From WOOD SOIL & WATER CONSERVATION DISTRICT
Northwest Ohio is a vital agricultural region, providing food to local, regional, and global markets. Farming is deeply woven into local history. However, some farmers are struggling to make ends meet, agriculture has been linked to water quality issues, and one in seven people in the region are food insecure. It could be said that there are tensions, frustrations, and misconceptions about what farmers are doing to address these challenges, and how farmers from different sectors, and local residents, perceive one another.
Ohio State University’s Agroecosystem Management Program (AMP) invites area farmers and others who work in food and resource management to join in finding common ground on these issues at the annual Stinner Summit. For nearly 20 years, AMP has convened this annual event in different parts of Ohio, inviting local farm and food stakeholders to identify projects that can address regional challenges. Using a participatory process, attendees can brainstorm, develop, and vote on specific project ideas that can be led locally with financial support from the Ben Stinner Endowment Fund.
This year’s 2025 Stinner Summit will be at Bluffton University on Dec. 12. Attendees can explore ways of “Finding Common Ground: Connecting Farms, Food, and Community in the Western Lake Erie Watershed.” The event will be an opportunity to network with others connected to food and farming and to discuss areas of misunderstanding as well as shared needs. AMP is especially interested in having farmers participate in this discussion, but the event is also open to policy-makers, educators, food processors, consumers, or anyone else interested in creating projects that help better connect farmers, food, land, and people.
The event will go from 9 a.m. – 4 p.m. and includes a lunch featuring local foods. There is no cost to participate, but attendees must register by Dec. 5. To learn more or register, visit go.osu.edu/StinnerReg or call 330-202-3537.
