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Dear Friends,
Strategic planning during a time of challenge and change is a bit like the proverbial building of an airplane while flying it! Or maybe the metaphor is growing a farm business while weather events hit or federal funding abruptly disappears. The point is: life doesn't "stop and let us off" so that we can plan.
BAV began a strategic planning process last December to help us navigate the next three years strategically, flexibly, and with an eye on the areas of BAV's uniqueness and greatest impact. Major changes in the federal landscape created more turbulence than expected, highlighting the critical need for contingencies and resilience — both attributes of strong strategic plans. Our process has been thoughtful and rigorous, encompassing stakeholder surveys and in-depth interviews that capture feedback from our clients, partners, donors, Board members, and staff. We are grateful to everyone who offered their time and insights — especially the partners who joined us during a portion of our strategic planning retreat in May.
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We look forward to sharing the substance of BAV's plan after our work wraps up this summer. For now, I want to highlight an area that came into sharper focus for us during this process and invite your feedback. Alongside the lending and technical assistance that BAV provides, we regularly reach out to farmers about funding opportunities and informational resources, make introductions and broker relationships, and collaborate with partners across the food system to strengthen the connections that support and serve us all.
In our surveys and interviews, numerous stakeholders described BAV as a trusted resource and reflected back to us that they find this aspect of our work distinctive and valuable. In the words of one stakeholder: “BAV’s knowledge of the network, combined with their technical knowledge of grants and connections, allows them to vet and curate resources effectively." Our strategic planning consultants helped us give these activities a collective name: network weaving.
Thanks to our talented, knowledgeable, and well-connected staff, we are dedicated network weavers! Going forward, we will continue this area of our work with greater intentionality, and explore new language to capture and convey our efforts. Again, we would love your thoughts about whether and how BAV's network weaving has helped, or could help, your business or organization.
As always, if you are in a position to share and support BAV's work, we would be grateful to have you forward this newsletter to a friend, tag us on social media, or make a gift so that we can continue serving local farmers and strengthening our food system.
All of us at BAV wish you a great start to your summer!
Warm regards,
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Rebecca Busansky
Executive Director
Photos: Fenceline and birdhouse at Greenagers' April Hill Farm
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BAV staff and Board members gathered with invited partners for our strategic planning retreat on May 16 at Greenagers' gorgeous barn at April Hill Farm (the photo to the left pictures most, but not all, of our retreat participants). Facilitated by Adam Brock of Regenerate Change, we had a day of thoughtful and stimulating conversations about BAV's mission and vision, core audiences, and multi-faceted role in the regional food system. We are especially grateful for the participation, insights, and questions from our invited thought-partners who joined us for the morning sessions! We look forward to sharing our strategic plan and key takeaways from the planning process in the near future.
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Our thanks to writer Jan Hartford and the Richmond Record for a great piece in the May issue on BAV featuring interviews with founder/Board member Tom Gardner and clients Nick Martinelli of Marty's Local and Brian Callahan of Uncle B and Katy Lou's Farm. We are thrilled for the coverage of these two wonderful clients — a critically important local food distribution business and a diversified farm operation. Note: Newsstand copies of the paper may be purchased at Bartlett's Orchard in Richmond.
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ICE raids continue at work sites across our region. To help farm businesses support and protect immigrant workers, BAV initiated a project this spring to provide weather-resistant printed copies of the two informational posters pictured here to any local farms that request them. (Click on the images to enlarge.)
These posters were developed by BASIC (Berkshire Alliance to Support the Immigrant Community), a local group whose mission is to bring justice, equity, and accessibility to the immigrant community in Berkshire County.
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BASIC has a wealth of free resources available for individuals and organizations, and offers free peer coaching on local organizations' ICE preparedness plans.
You are welcome to download these posters for digital use. In addition, if you are interested in obtaining printed copies of these posters from BAV for your farm operation, please contact us at info@berkshireagventures.org and we will arrange to get them to you!
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BAV was thrilled to attend the ribbon-cutting last month for the Solidarity House, the new headquarters of Multicultural BRIDGE here in Great Barrington, MA. Dan Carr and Rebecca Busansky joined with many friends and partners to celebrate Multicultural BRIDGE's new space for providing resources, healing, and restorative projects for communities of color in the Berkshires. "We see this building as healing justice," Multicultural BRIDGE founder and CEO Gwendolyn VanSant reflected at the event.
Note: All photos by Shaw Israel Izikson for The Berkshire Edge. Read a full report of the ribbon-cutting event in the Edge here.
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Rebecca Busansky and colleagues from 1Berkshire and Berkshire Regional Planning Commission took part in a Berkshire Advocacy Day at the MA State House on May 8. Thanks to State Senator Paul Mark for arranging a great day with legislative leaders to discuss economic development priorities in the Berkshires — including the vital role of farms and agriculture in our region's future.
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About 20 farmers and agricultural stakeholders attended BAV's two-part Live Carcass Evaluation workshop series last month. The workshops featured livestock expert Dr. Joe Emenheiser, who helped participants gain skills in evaluating market readiness and understanding yield grades and quality grades from butchered beef cattle. BAV is grateful to Katie Adkins, owner of Plymouth Meats LLC and Blue Moon Farm, for opening her doors to host the workshops. The series was organized by Jake Levin and supported by Emma Kron as part of BAV's Local Meat Processing Support Program.
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Ben Crockett discussed strategies for financing agroforestry at Rhode to Regenerative, a conference dedicated to agroforestry, ocean farming, and the land-to-sea connection at the University of Rhode Island in Kingston. The conference was a literal "deep dive" into the potential of ocean farming and its connection to terrestrial agriculture, examining how forests, farms, and coastal systems interact through shared watersheds.
| | TWO-PART WORKSHOP FOR LIVESTOCK FARMERS | | 2025 GRAZING LUMINARY TOUR | | BAV is proud to partner with the New England Grazing Network for this upcoming Northeast Luminary Tour. The goal is to bring innovative, in-person, interactive grazing resources to farmers and farm service providers across the region. The tour will be coming to our area on July 18 with a session at Hawthorne Valley Farm. Click here for more information and to register! | | FARMER EVENTS & RESOURCES | | |
Upcoming Deadline!
MA Department of Agricultural Resources (MDAR) is still accepting applications for its CSAP grant. The deadline is 4pm next Wednesday, June 18. This program supports agricultural operations in making improvements across a range of priority areas, including soil health, food safety, energy efficiency, composting, environmental sustainability, and more. Details and application here.
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Tuesday, June 17, 9:30-11:30am
Sustainable Livestock Production Workshop at Mayapple Hill Farm in New Milford, CT, organized by Sustainable Agriculture Research & Education (SARE) in conjunction with Northwest Connecticut Land Conservancy. Tour this family farm to learn about their approaches to grazing management for sheep, controlling invasives, and managing wet areas. Registration here.
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Tuesday, June 17, 3-7:30pm
Connecticut Pomological Society’s Summer Field Day at Rogers Orchard, Southington, CT. Free to attend; RSVP here.
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Tuesday, June 24, 5-6:30pm
Poultry Workshop: Small Flock Management at Extension Education Center, 479 Route 66, Hudson, NY. Join Cornell Cooperative Extension for a workshop on laying and meat birds, including broilers, ducks, and turkeys. Topics include breed comparisons, start-up costs, what to expect, feeding and housing needs, processing considerations, and marketing regulations for eggs and meat. Details and registration here.
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Tuesday, July 1, 4-6pm
Reduced Tillage Field Walk at Adamah Farm in Falls Village, CT, organized by American Farmland Trust, to discuss the ways that Adamah uses tillage and no-till techniques on their three acres of vegetables. Farmers are invited to share their challenges and successes. Optional casual dinner of pizza and veggies follows from 6-7pm. Details and registration here.
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Thursday, July 10, 5-6pm
Silvopasture Field Day at Gansvoort Farm in Germantown, NY. Join Cornell Cooperative Extension, Scenic Hudson, Eli Roberts of Sunfleck Consulting, and Jennifer Phillips of Gansvoort Farm for a Silvopasture Field Day. Learn how silvopasture can help address your farm’s resource concerns and identify potential funding sources for implementing these practices. Details and registration here.
| | We all have a stake in local agriculture. Farmers, food producers, and our rural communities need our support more than ever. Please consider supporting BAV's work to strengthen our local food systems. Thank you! | | | | |
