How Data Can Enhance Outreach to Landowners

At mano-Y-ola, we are using data to create new opportunities.

Effective outreach begins with robust data.

One of the biggest hurdles in outreach to historically underserved landowners is obtaining high-quality data. Over the years, through our outreach work with the Hispanic population, we have developed precise, non-invasive insights that provide county-level data on agricultural land use characteristics and economic and demographic information.

This year, mYo has created several new data visualizations to enable our agriculture and forestry partners, as well as potential clients, to target better their outreach efforts to underserved landowners.

These visualizations, created using agroforestry data from the 2012, 2017, and 2022 Census of Agriculture conducted by the USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service, offer granular detail. They include county-level specifics on age, gender, farm sales, cattle inventory, conservation practices, forestland acreage, and characteristics specific to race and ethnicity. 

Such detailed data allows our partners to gain insights that can significantly enhance their programs. For instance, USDA partners across the United States can use this data to allocate resources, such as bilingual staff, more effectively, thereby improving their outreach efforts and support for underserved communities.

Using this visualized data from the 2017 Ag Census, we are able to narrow down how and where to begin conducting outreach to underserved landowners. We start with this map showing all agricultural/woodland acreage for all races and ethnicities.

Let's say our project is focused on Hispanic pastureland owners. We would select those criteria and observe how the map has changed. This tells us what counties Hispanic pastureland acreages are located in and the concentration of acreage depending on the shade of blue used.

If we select a dark blue county like Catron we can learn that there are over 575,103.28 acres of Hispanic-owned pastureland in that county. Now, let's say we want to know even more.

Taking a closer look at Catron County, we can see demographics like age, gender, typical farm size, and farm sales. This tool allows us to be as specific as the number of cattle that Hispanic landowners have in a specific county.

By providing this data to our partners throughout the United States and using it to inform our own work, we aim to facilitate targeted outreach to underserved landowners. Additionally, in the future, this data could also reinforce our efforts to promote climate-smart practices among farmers and forest landowners and to measure the impact of these efforts. 

As soon as the race and ethnicity data from the 2022 Census of Agriculture becomes available, we plan to update these visualizations so that we and our partners have access to the most up-to-date information and can compare trends over time. For example, these data will enable us to analyze trends, such as whether the amount of forestland is increasing or decreasing over time. 

A note about the agroforestry data: The data we obtained from 2012 shows the number of alley cropping and silvopasture operations throughout the United States. Because the 2017 and 2022 data includes five agroforestry practices, these data cannot be directly compared.

If you have questions about this data or would like more information, please contact mYo Program Manager Adrian Parrott at adrian.parrott@mano-y-ola.com. 

Hispanic Forest Landowner Spotlight: Miguel Moya 

We are thrilled that this month's featured landowner, Miguel Moya, is part of our forestry outreach program!

When meeting with experienced beekeeper Miguel Moya for this month’s Spotlight interview, birds chirping filled the background. Like many participants in our Hispanic Forest Landowners Outreach (HFLO) Program, Miguel learned about agriculture and beekeeping from his family. He is the third generation of his family to care for bees. He studied and practiced veterinary medicine, later retiring to the mountains.

“Being in this place, the bees came to revisit me…It reactivated the lessons that I learned through my parents and grandparents,” Miguel explained.

Miguel’s aim as a beekeeper is to continue expanding the number of colonies he tends. Instead of removing honey from the hives, Miguel leaves it in place so the bees can take advantage of its valuable nutrition. He manages environmental conditions and the condition of the hives to maintain the delicate balance required to keep the colonies healthy.

Miguel has attended all of our forestry outreach workshops this year and facilitated our June workshop on bees and pollinators.

Miguel Moya and Heriberto Martínez Méndez inspire us with their dedication to conservation!

In his message to farmers or those interested in starting to farm, Miguel emphasizes the interconnected nature of agriculture and pollinators, especially bees, through a saying he learned from his grandfather many years ago:

“The term ‘agriculture’ can’t be separated from the term ‘beekeeper.’ … Without bees, agriculture is no good, and without agriculture, there’s no life,” he said.

Miguel also underscored the importance of bees in terms of food security.

“Working the land gives you the opportunity to obtain a healthy product — produced, crafted, protected, planted by your hands…This won’t be effective if you don’t have the process of pollination that bees offer,” Miguel explained.

When reflecting on his legacy, Miguel hopes that the people he has taught will gain an understanding of pollinators, especially bees, and continue caring for these insects that play such an important ecological role.

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Coming Soon!

Stay tuned for more information about our upcoming Annual Hispanic Farmers and Agricultural Professionals Symposium, which we hold each year between September 15 and October 15 during the celebration of National Hispanic Heritage Month. Last year as part of the symposium, we held a farm demonstration at Hacienda Jeanmarie in Aguada, Puerto Rico. This year’s symposium will be the 6th one we have hosted!