Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
example, expressed anger and frustration over failed attempts to get basic
support for growers in the advocate's organization, questioning advisors'
adherence to the land-grant mission:
CRH:
So, I wonder if you have a general sense . . . of what it is that the
university should be doing. . . . First of all, do they have a responsibility to
the growers in your organization, and, if so, what should they be doing—
what's their mission to the growers in [your organization]?
Advocate:
First of all, to answer that question, I would have to ask my
own question [of Cooperative Extension]: “What's your mission? What
is
your mission? After all these meetings [with Cooperative Extension], what
is your mission?” We've worked with them to give them advice, we've
given them ideas to develop certain topics. From that, what have they
gathered? “What's your mission for [our organization]?”
I would like to revisit their goals and objectives, just to see what they're
supposed to be doing. Who was their constituency supposed to be—what
is the initial purpose of developing Co-op Extension? My understanding
is . . . that they're supposed to help the disadvantaged grower, the ones
who are in need of specifi c information. We should come back to that—we
should go back to the goals and objectives of their initial development.
Another advocate voiced similar concerns but struck a more optimistic
tone about advisors' attempts to make better connections with small
growers:
CRH:
I wanted to ask if you have any feelings about things the university
could be doing to promote the kind of work that you'd like to see in agri-
culture in this area. What kinds of things do you think the university could
be doing? Or are they doing everything that they could be?
Advocate:
There is always more to do, but I do have strong feelings about
certain things . . . that I feel that the university system can do. One is to
balance the ship [holds up hands to represent two sides of an unbalanced
scale] and say, there is this ship where a lot of money is here, and a little
money here. Here, this is where we are [indicating the lower side], non-
profi t organizations, for example. Or, an organization that is helping
people to become farmers or that is dealing with small farmers. We need
to fi nd ways and encourage the system to share resources.
I spoke to these advocates 80 years after Thomas Mayhew fi rst came to
work as a farm advisor in Monterey County. That they could still question
