Drawing of a Farmer
Real World Resilience:
Stories of Land, People, and Community

Farmer Stories

"I think it's more challenging to be a farmer now. No two years are alike. You have to be so nimble these days."

—Elizabeth Henderson, Genesee Valley Organic CSA

"You just don't know what's around the corner, so you have to prepare for the worst. Hope for the best of course, but you know, hope is not a plan."

—Gary Price, 77 Ranch

"It's so unpredictable, so we have to be very adaptable to extreme weather changes and, excuse me, it is sad to say, but it is not going to get any better, it's going to continue to get worse."

—Keymah Durdan, Rid-All Green Partnership

"I’ll be the first to say we have a lot of things we could be doing better, but still, overall, the resilience shows itself in our system. Our soil quality shines here. It really does."

—Ron Rosmann, Rosmann Family Farms

“There's nothing that can replace experience and observational knowledge of a region. Actually knowing your area and being able to recognize vulnerabilities or opportunities. We share and exchange information across our companies and we work collaboratively to help each other."

—A.G. Kawamura, Orange County Produce

“Ultimately, it is the pastured-production models that drive the resilience of our farmers. We are a community of producers working together to solve these problems. We don’t have all the answers, but just the fact that we're having that conversation while we're sitting around eating lunch creates new partnerships that allow us to try out new things.”

—Jamie Ager, Hickory Nut Gap Meats

“Mostly I am thinking about how to be more nimble and more attentive to details on the farm. I’m thinking about how to keep our options open, about diversifying crops to spread risk, about keeping the soil covered and about having backup plans.”

—Pam Dowling, Twin Oaks Community Farm

“We have such diverse pastures because we want to have stuff in there that will do good if it's hot, if it's cold, if it's wet and if it's dry. Not necessarily great, but good. We're trying to hit all those ranges.”

—Jordan Settlage, Settlage & Settlage Farms

“I have found a lot of value in having local groups of farmers and growers to share experiences and to brainstorm ideas with. It is so valuable to have peers and mentors to take your worries to who can give you some fresh thinking. This includes less technical, but more emotional support, a shoulder to cry on."

—Pam Dowling, Twin Oaks Community Farm

"There are so many variabilities in farming that you can get all stressed out. Part of being a successful farmer is probably just your head space as it relates to these things. But the fact that we are having more unpredictable weather creates a low level of constant worry that can be taxing on the spirit."

—Jamie Ager, Hickory Nut Gap Meats

Gunthorp Farms

Gunthorp Farms

First Edition Story, Livestock, Midwest Region
Humble Hands Harvest

Humble Hands Harvest

Midwest Region, Second Edition Story, Vegetables
Orange County Produce

Orange County Produce

Second Edition Story, Southwest Region, Vegetables
Tonnemaker Hill Farm

Tonnemaker Hill Farm

First Edition Story, Fruits & Nuts, Northwest Region
Abanitu Organics

Abanitu Organics

Second Edition Story, Southeast Region, Vegetables
Acorn Community

Acorn Community

Second Edition Story, Southeast Region, Vegetables
Peregrine Farm

Peregrine Farm

First Edition Story, Southeast Region, Vegetables
White Oak Pastures

White Oak Pastures

First Edition Story, Livestock, Southeast Region
Hickory Nut Gap Meats

Hickory Nut Gap Meats

Livestock, Second Edition Story, Southeast Region
Sap Bush Hollow Farm

Sap Bush Hollow Farm

First Edition Story, Livestock, Northeast Region
Settlage & Settlage Farm

Settlage & Settlage Farm

Livestock, Midwest Region, Second Edition Story
Cates Family Farm

Cates Family Farm

First Edition Story, Livestock, Midwest Region
The 77 Ranch

The 77 Ranch

First Edition Story, Livestock, Southern Great Plains Region
Frasier Farms

Frasier Farms

First Edition Story, Livestock, Southwest Region
CS Ranch

CS Ranch

First Edition Story, Livestock, Southwest Region
Straus Family Creamery

Straus Family Creamery

Livestock, Second Edition Story, Southwest Region
Rosmann Family Farms

Rosmann Family Farms

First Edition Story, Livestock, Midwest Region
Circle 7 by Fuller Farms

Circle 7 by Fuller Farms

Grains, Second Edition Story, Southern Great Plains Region
Fuller Farms

Fuller Farms

First Edition Story, Grains, Southern Great Plains Region
Brown’s Ranch

Brown’s Ranch

First Edition Story, Grains, Northern Great Plains Region
Quinn Farm and Ranch

Quinn Farm and Ranch

First Edition Story, Grains, Northern Great Plains Region
Lundberg Family Farms

Lundberg Family Farms

Grains, Second Edition Story, Southwest Region
Zenner Family Farms

Zenner Family Farms

First Edition Story, Grains, Northwest Region
The Happy Berry

The Happy Berry

Fruits & Nuts, Second Edition Story, Southeast Region
Bishop’s Orchards

Bishop’s Orchards

First Edition Story, Fruits & Nuts, Northeast Region
Almar Orchards & Cidery

Almar Orchards & Cidery

First Edition Story, Fruits & Nuts, Midwest Region
New Forest Farm

New Forest Farm

Fruits & Nuts, Midwest Region, Second Edition Story
Red Fern Farm

Red Fern Farm

First Edition Story, Fruits & Nuts, Midwest Region
Shepherd Farms

Shepherd Farms

First Edition Story, Fruits & Nuts, Midwest Region
Ela Family Farms

Ela Family Farms

First Edition Story, Fruits & Nuts, Southwest Region
Fillmore Farms

Fillmore Farms

First Edition Story, Fruits & Nuts, Southwest Region
Maple Spring Gardens

Maple Spring Gardens

First Edition Story, Southeast Region, Vegetables
Perry-winkle Farm

Perry-winkle Farm

First Edition Story, Southeast Region, Vegetables
Twin Oaks Community

Twin Oaks Community

Second Edition Story, Southeast Region, Vegetables
New Morning Farm

New Morning Farm

First Edition Story, Northeast Region, Vegetables
Peacework Farm

Peacework Farm

First Edition Story, Northeast Region, Vegetables
Rid-All Green Partnership

Rid-All Green Partnership

Midwest Region, Second Edition Story, Vegetables
Harmony Valley Farm

Harmony Valley Farm

First Edition Story, Midwest Region, Vegetables
Fair Share Farm

Fair Share Farm

Midwest Region, Second Edition Story, Vegetables
Monroe Organic Farms

Monroe Organic Farms

First Edition Story, Southwest Region, Vegetables
Rockey Farms

Rockey Farms

First Edition Story, Southwest Region, Vegetables
Full Belly Farm

Full Belly Farm

First Edition Story, Southwest Region, Vegetables
Nash’s Organic Produce

Nash’s Organic Produce

First Edition Story, Northwest Region, Vegetables
Happy Cow Creamery

Happy Cow Creamery

First Edition Story, Livestock, Southeast Region
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It was way back in 2011 when I discovered that the voices of American farmers and ranchers were absent from the many rich conversations about adaptation to climate change that were underway throughout the rest of the world. So I reached out to award-winning sustainable farmers and ranchers across the U.S. and asked them how climate change was changing their operations and what they were doing about it.

– Laura Lengnick,
Author of Resilient Agriculture

Map of Featured Farm and Ranch Locations across the U.S.