ANALOGS FOR DIALOGS: AN ACADEMY TO CATALYZE CLIMATE CHANGE ADAPTATION FOR US SPECIALTY CROPS

Our overarching goal is to build Extension and Climate Hub capacity and expertise to catalyze climate change adaptation in US specialty crops. This will be accomplished by leveraging the strength of the Extension system in successfully encouraging agricultural producers to adopt new practices and the strengths of the Climate Hubs in their explicit focus on climate change considerations. Our specific objectives include: Objective 1: Develop, establish, and refine a train-the-trainer program - the Specialty Crop Climate Change Extension Academy (Academy) - using innovative curriculum and methods to improve the effectiveness of climate change extension programming for specialty crop producers. Objective 2: Develop a diverse and skilled workforce responsive to the Hubs' priorities and needs via a training cohort including current specialty crop Extension professionals, graduate student interns, and early career professionals. Objective 3: Enhance the connectivity between Extension and the regional USDA Climate Hubs to better serve the nation-wide specialty crop industry in climate adaptation.