Educational Delivery Methods to Encourage Adoption of Sustainable Agricultural Practices

The growing public concern about groundwater contamination, pesticide residues, soil erosion, and wildlife habitat runs parallel to “an emerging interest by many farmers for a more costeffective and environmentally benign agriculture” (USDA, 1990). But only a small number of farmers are using alternative farming systems (Board of Agriculture, 1989). The cause of the limited adoption of sustainable agricultural practices is the lack of dissemination of clear and reliable information. “Although science has accumulated a great base of knowledge of potential benefit to alternative agriculture, research and extension have not focused on integrating this knowledge into practical solutions to farmers’ problems” (Board of Agriculture, 1989). The link between research and reality is still a tenuous one.