 
                        AFT Celebrates Five Years of Soil Health Stewards Program
AFT recently released a Soil Health Toolkit on the Farmland Information Center website.
 
                        AFT recently released a Soil Health Toolkit on the Farmland Information Center website.
 
                         
                         
                         
                         
                         
                         
                         
                         
                         
                        American Farmland Trust (AFT) recently awarded $896,600 to farmers and ranchers looking to improve soil health and long-term farm viability. The funds, distributed through two new grants launched in October 2024, will support 38 producers in Virginia.
 
                         
                        In this third installment of our blog series, we analyze the labels, marketing channels, and environmental markets the PCSC projects proposed to pursue to attract customers who value farm and forest climate-smart conservation practices.
 
                        Organic farmers across New England are rethinking tillage. Through American Farmland Trust’s Farmer Led Innovations project, seven farms are testing new ways to build soil health, save time, and learn from each other’s successes and failures.
 
                        American Farmland Trust hosts the New York Farm to School Institute retreat for schools growing farm to school efforts.
Heidi Exline
 
                        Through AFT's Regenerative Agriculture & Soil Health Curriculum
Kinzie Reiss
 
                        This fall, farmers across California are invited to attend four free events designed to explore how agrivoltaics can support working lands and strengthen farm resilience.
 
                        Eliza Paterson
 
                        Ranchers are piecing their lives back together one fence post, one pasture, and one herd at a time. We followed up with the recipients of the Brighter Future Fund back in July — here’s a look into their journey on the road to recovery.
 
                        “A lot of the "magic" in a farmers market is the unique bond that's formed between the producer and consumer. Questions are asked, "aha" moments are had, and you leave each stand with not just a product or a sale, but a purpose. THAT is invaluable.”
 
                        While much of the nation’s attention has been rightly focused on the current federal shutdown, we cannot lose sight of the fact that parts of the Farm Bill have expired at a time when agriculture is facing incredible economic challenges and uncertainty.
Samantha Levy
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                        In August, AFT’s Midwest team program staff completed the Soil & Water Conservation Society’s Emerging Leaders Program (ELP) and attended the 80th Soil and Water Conservation Society’s Annual Conference in Costa Mesa, California. Midwest staff Rachel Lechuga, Floreal Crubaugh, and Marlee Giacometti are AFT’s most recent graduates of the second class of the Emerging Leaders Program (fun fact: Helen VanBeck, our Midwest Program Manager) graduated from the first-ever program. Here’s a look back at what the program meant to them and the snapshots that capture their achievements.
Rachel Lechuga
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                        Rachel Irvine
