Conferences
From Grief to Resilience: Finding Purpose and Connection through Climate Change
Maud Powell
Summary
A quick glance at the news and one sees the ravages of our now annual wildfires, extreme climate events, and challenges with water supply. These events increase uncertainty for producers and can result in anxiety and other forms of stress. In this session, participants will learn more about climate stress and grief, how they directly affect farmers, ranchers, and others in food systems, and strategies for identifying and managing their stress and grief.
A team of OSU Extension faculty and community partners, who co-lead the Ag Climate Stress and Grief: Building Resilience in Farmers and Ranchers Initiative, have spent the past year developing resources, including a website, PNW Extension publication, farmer videos, and curricula to engage with producers about the mental health effects of climate change. Additionally, they have conducted interviews and focus groups with 50 farmers to discover the unique impacts of climate stress and grief, barriers to seeking support, and current resiliency strategies.
Over the next year, the leaders of the Initiative will develop a train-the-trainer curriculum for agricultural service providers and producers. Using this new approach, the team will train farmers to lead climate stress and grief discussion groups in their communities.
During the 30-minute session, we will guide participants through the various resources available through the Initiative and report findings from our qualitative research with farmers.
Details
| Conference | 2025 Extension Risk Management Education National Conference |
| Presentation Type | 30-minute Concurrent |