PRAIRIE VIEW, Texas (July 9, 2020) – You may not know this, but historically underserved farmers and ranchers contribute significantly to the nation’s food systems. That is why Noel M. Estwick, Ph. D., assistant professor in Prairie View A&M University’s College of Agriculture and Human Sciences, is leading a $300,000 initiative among 18 other 1890 Land-Grant Universities (LGUs) to ensure these farmers and ranchers are prepared for anything, including unplanned disasters.
Noel M. Estwick, Ph. D.
“Disasters disrupt and are capable of causing long-term damage to food supply chains,” said Estwick. “Food security is critical to the existence of all peoples. This has become more evident in recent months as we navigate the COVID-19 pandemic. Although food shortages have affected the entire society, the underserved have been disproportionately impacted. Hence, it is important that we understand how disasters affect farmers and their families culturally because there is no food if there are no farmers.”
As the principal investigator (PI) for the recently funded proposal Toward Culturally Responsive Disaster Management for Limited Resource Producers: The Role of Person, Place and Professional Agencies, Estwick and his team will work to minimize the impacts of disasters.
“The project goal is framed within the all-embracing acronym, MATCH 2 (Mobilizing Against Threats to Community Health),” he said. “It will assess the role culture plays in the way historically underserved farmers and ranchers prepare for, cope with, and respond to disasters.”
Each grant partner will focus on creating a web of information, resources, and best practices for disaster preparedness, mitigation, response, and recovery, while taking into account the cultural values of the farmers and ranchers they serve.
“This project will engage producers from the perspectives of person, or who they are as farmers; place, where their farm enterprises are located; and professional agencies, the agencies with which they interact or should be interacting. The aim is to leverage tools and training that can be used across the LGU network.”
Cooperative Extension Program Specialist Nelson Daniels, Ph.D., and History Professor Marco Robinson, Ph.D., are Co-PIs for the project at PVAMU. In addition to overall project management, the university is leading the effort to help agricultural producers manage risk.
“As an LGU, PVAMU disseminates practical and research-driven information to its clientele. This project supports PVAMU’s mission as it ‘seeks to invest in programs and services that address issues and challenges affecting the diverse ethnic and socioeconomic population of Texas and the larger society including the global arena.’”
Project partners include:
- Michelle Eley, North Carolina A&T State University, 1890 Partner Institution
- Finis Stribling III, Tennessee State University, 1890 Partner Institution
- Henry English, University of Arkansas Pine Bluff, 1890 Partner Institution
- Kimberly J. Davis, Florida A&M University, 1890 Partner Institution
- Rashidah Farid, Tuskegee University, 1890 Partner Institution
- Saundra Glover, University of South Carolina, Project Evaluator
The following are the 19 universities designated with land-grant statuses under the Morrill Act of 1890:
- Alabama A&M University
- Alcorn State University
- Central State University
- Delaware State University
- Florida A&M University
- Fort Valley State University
- Kentucky State University
- Langston University
- Lincoln University
- North Carolina A&T State University
- Prairie View A&M University
- South Carolina State University
- Southern University System
- Tennessee State University
- Tuskegee University
- University of Arkansas Pine Bluff
- University of Maryland Eastern Shore
- Virginia State University
- West Virginia State University
The project is supported by the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), under award number LS20-343 through the Southern Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) program. USDA is an equal opportunity employer and service provider.
Contact Estwick at nmestwick@pvamu.edu for more information about the project.
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