Saginaw Bay Agricultural Conservation Innovation Award Nomination

Conservation Innovation Award

Conservation Innovation Award

Please note, information submitted will be used for award/event purposes only and will not be shared. You may nominate yourself or someone else. If you would like to make more than one nomination, please complete each nomination separately. All nominations must be received by January 10, 2018. For questions or assistance, please contact Ben Wickerham at 517-316-2286.

·Intent: To show appreciation for farmers who are on the cutting edge of conservation innovation and to help build trust and deepen relationships with area farmers. Ideally, by recognizing this farmer with the Conservation Innovation Award, we would highlight interesting or new practices and encourage other farmers to pursue innovative applications of conservation on their own farms.

·Possible Recipients: Saginaw Bay Area farmers (row crop and vegetable farmers)

·Guidelines: Farmer must be farming land within the Saginaw Bay Watershed. Conservation can be either voluntary implementation or funded via a conservation program.

·Description: The Conservation Innovation Award is intended to recognize an established cash crop or vegetable farmer that has successfully implemented a new or innovative conservation practice on their farm. An appropriate awardee would have experience implementing either:

1) an established practice that isn’t widely used or accepted within this region or being used in a new and/or unexpected way or within a cropping system not typically suited to that practice or,

2) a new practice that could be described as original, cutting edge, untested, and/or experimental.

Well qualified candidates would likely be farming more than 500 acres, report a positive experience with said practices and would have the potential to be “influential” within the agricultural community.

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* 1. Tell us about who you would like to nominate!

Farmer Name

Operation Name

Farm HQ Address

Address 2

City/Town

State/Province

ZIP/Postal Code

Approximate Farm Size (total acres)

Email Address

Phone Number

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* 2. What type of Conservation practices do they use and on how many acres?

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* 3. Tell us about yourself:

Name

Affiliation

Address

Address 2

City/Town

State/Province

ZIP/Postal Code

Email Address

Phone Number

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* 4. Please describe the farm/farm operation itself. Consider the following questions: Type of operation? Crop rotation? Local watershed?

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* 5. Please provide a brief testimonial about why you think this farmer should receive the Conservation Innovation Award. Consider the following questions: Is this farmer, farm, and/or specific project unique in some way? What makes this project a compelling or interesting story to highlight? How did this project come about?

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* 6. Please describe the challenges (if any) that the farmer needed to overcome to implement said practice(s) or important lessons learned after implementing practice (s). Consider these questions: Did the farmer need to alter or purchase new equipment? Did they need to consult with experts or other farmers to implement the practice correctly or troubleshoot any problems?

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* 7. How is this project being funded? If the farmer is participating in a cost share program please indicate which program if known.

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* 8. Have you notified this farmer that you are nominating them for an award (not required)?

Yes

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* 9. If your nomination leads to an award for this farmer, we would like you both to attend the March 1st Awards Dinner. Are you available?

Yes

Not sure