U of A hosts Arkansas Women in Agriculture Conference
Contact Information:Dr. Jennie Popp, Dept. of Agricultural Economics and Agribusiness
479-575-2279 / jhpopp@uark.edu
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. --- The second Arkansas Women in Agriculture conference will be held March 6-7 at the Hot Springs Convention Center "to enrich the lives and empower the participants in all aspects of agriculture and in the rural community," said Dr. Jennie Popp, an agricultural economist in the University of Arkansas Division of Agriculture and Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences on the Fayetteville campus.
Jolene Brown of West Branch, Iowa, will return to the conference to deliver the keynote address, "Stand Up, Step Out and Lead." She also will moderate a panel discussion regarding intergenerational concerns called "Generations at Work or At War."
Brown is a professional speaker and farm operator who uses a blend of humor, hope and helpful ideas to address the hearts, homes and business of agriculture, Popp said.
Dick Bell, Arkansas Secretary of Agriculture, will introduce conference participants to the new Arkansas Department of Agriculture.
Bell served as Riceland Food's executive vice president and chief operating officer from 1977-81, and president from 1981-2004. He served as assistant secretary of agriculture for international affairs and commodity programs at the U.S. Department of Agriculture in Washington, D.C. in the early 1970s.
Cynthia Edwards, a caseworker in the state office of Sen. Blanche Lincoln, will discuss the future of the Farm Bill during dinner on Monday. Among her specialty areas on Sen. Lincoln's staff, Edwards, covers Farm Services, Fish and Wildlife, Forestry, Natural Resources, Parks, Rural Development and USDA.
During lunch on Tuesday, A panel of members of the Arkansas General Assembly will discuss their thoughts on the agricultural and rural issues that will be raised during the next legislative session.
Concurrent session topics include tax, water and legal issues in agriculture; family financial planning; getting to know the new Arkansas Department of Agriculture; alternative marketing strategies available to Arkansas farmers; financial assistance for production agriculture; understanding the signs of drug use in your community; home organization; cooking with Arkansas agricultural products; and Arkansas native foods.
The full conference agenda is available on the Web: http://www.uark.edu/ua/arwia/arwomeninag/registration06.htm
Registration is $35. Students can register for $25.
The growing number of women in the "man‚s world" of agriculture make the conference not just a good idea, but a necessity, Popp said.
Arkansas is part of a national trend of increasing numbers of women as farm operators. From 1992 to 2002, the number of men as full-time farm operators in the United States declined, but the number of women increased by 42 percent to 236,269, according to the U.S. Census of Agriculture.
"In Arkansas, an estimated 19,900 women are farm operators, and nearly 5,000 are principal operators," Popp said. "The purpose of this conference is to help prepare Arkansas women to meet the challenges of an ever-changing agricultural marketplace and an ever-changing rural landscape."
The Arlington Resort Hotel and Spa and the Embassy Suites in Hot Springs are holding rooms at a special rate for conference participants. Rates and hotel information can be found on the Web at http://www.uark.edu/ua/arwia/arwomeninag/hotels.htm. Mention Arkansas Women in Agriculture when making reservations to receive the conference rates.
For more information, including a registration form, visit the conference Web site: http://www.arwomeninag.com or call Jennie Popp or Darci Hewett at 479-575-2279. Send e-mail to arwia@uark.edu.