What do an agricultural advocate, a US logger and an urban media specialist from Toronto have in common?

They will all be presenting at this year’s AGCare/Ontario Farm Animal Council (OFAC) speakers’ program, which will focus on advocacy, outreach and the social license to farm.

Kay Johnson Smith of the Animal Agriculture Alliance will provide an overview of legislation and campaigns affecting farming practices in the United States.

Bruce Vincent from Montana will discuss how farmers need to regain their social license to farm, basing his presentation on the experiences of the US logging industry. “We are now getting our ‘social license’ back”, he says, ” but only after we figured out the difference between fighting and leading.”

Wrapping up the day will be urban media specialist Wallace Pidgeon of Brick and Ball Media. Wallace, who has been providing media relations counsel to farm groups for the last number of years, will share his insights on what he thinks farmers need to do share their story and do so effectively and proactively.

The speakers’ program will take place April 8 at Guelph Place in Guelph, Ontario, starting at 1 pm. The annual general meetings for AGCare and OFAC will take place earlier that day, starting at 9:30 am.

For more information, visit www.ofac.org.

Photo sources top to bottom: OFAC photo library and www.sciencelives.com