Effectively Communicating Agricultural Science

Effectively Communicating Agricultural Science

Kevin M. FoltaProfessor and Chairman

Horticultural Sciences Department

kfolta.blogspot.com@kevinfolta

[email protected]

www.talkingbiotechpodcast.com

Universities are great at generating agricultural innovation.

We are good at delivering information.

Universities are great at generating agricultural innovation.

We are good at delivering information.

How do we ensure equal access to agricultural innovations?

Universities are great at generating agricultural innovation.

We are good at delivering information.

How do we ensure equal access to agricultural innovations?

Must come from effective communication.

Why do we have a problem?

Why do we have a problem?

Marketing fear?Marketing fear?

Big profits can made from science-free separations

Pseudoscience CreepPseudoscience Creep

Scientists don’t know how to speak up. Scientists don’t know how to speak up.

Scientists are afraid to speak up.Scientists are afraid to speak up.

FR

elat

ive

num

ber i

n po

pula

tion

Nonexperts

Farmers, scientists,

Etc.

MOST PEOPLE!!!!

FEAR FACTS

Favorable views of technology

LOGOS PATHOS

ETHOS

State your larger priorities up front

Farmers

The Needy

Environment

Consumers

Why It Matters. We need to ensure equal access to agricultural innovation.

Solutions exist, that we don’t use.

Golden Rice

X

Farmers

Consumers

Environment

Needy

Opposition to golden rice cost $2 billion to farmers in developing countries and 1.4 million human years – Wesseler et al., 2014

Cassava

Virus Resistant Cassava (VIRCA)

Biocassava Plus (BC Plus)

250 million depend on cassava

50 million tons lost to virus.

X

X Farmers

Consumers

Environment

Needy

Golden Bananas Beta carotene producing

X

Farmers

Consumers

Environment

Needy

Bacterial Wilt in Bananas

>70% of carbohydrate calories for some areas

GM trials in Uganda

X

X

Farmers

Consumers

Environment

Needy

X

Hypoallergenic Peanuts

Peanut – RNAi suppression Ara h2

X

Farmers

Consumers

Environment

Needy

GE chickens do not pass on Avian Influenza

Episode 007

X

Farmers

Consumers

Environment

Needy

X

X

X

X Animal welfare

AquaBounty Salmon – attains market weight in less time. Salmon may be farmed on inland pools, generating high protein food on fewer inputs.

Episode 008

X

Farmers

Consumers

Environment

Needy

X

X

X

X Wild populations

First Approved GE Animal !!

Thanks Alison Van Eenennaam for the slide!

Farmers

Consumers

Environment

Needy

X

Low Acrylamide, non Browning Potatoes

XX

Farmers

Consumers

Environment

Needy

Non Browning ApplesSilencing a gene that leads to discoloration

XX

Farmers

Consumers

Environment

Needy

Small Business!X

BS2 TomatoA pepper gene in tomato eases bacterial wilt.

X

X Farmers

Consumers

Environment

Needy

Grapes resistant to Pierce’s Disease

XX

Farmers

Consumers

Environment

Needy

X

XX

Farmers

Consumers

Environment

Needy

X

Fungicide-Free Strawberries?

Silva et al., 2015

Stopping Citrus Greening Spinach defensin

NPR1

Lytic peptides

Many show promise

Earliest deregulation is 2019

X

Farmers

Consumers

Environment

Needy

X

X

Your job--

Communication about agriculture.

Share your stories, your journey, your experience.

Share your passions.

Share the innovations that inspire you.

Your job--

Start a blog.

Amplify positive messages in social media.

Write. The internet is hungry for content.

Start a science café. They will come.

Speak.

Innovation moves to application with communication.

kfolta.blogspot.com@kevinfolta

[email protected]

"There is a path to truth and sincerity that you must guard and defend“

-- Teruyuki Okazaki

“It is our mission to stand up for the truth that science gives us.” 

Dr. Jack Payne

Follow FOIA developments using #Science14

www.talkingbiotechpodcast.com

iTunes, Stitcher, Player FM

“Don’t tell me it can’t be done, tell me what needs to be done and help me do it.”