Navigating Diversity in Agriculture & STEM
Washington, DC
Frank Discussions about Diversity in Agriculture
The future of agriculture depends on the work that we do today to optimize diverse, equitable and inclusive spaces. The Open Rivers Navigator podcast, hosted by the founder, Dr.Shefali Mehta, features a three-episode series with FFAR Scientific Program Director Dr. LaKisha Odom discussing the realities and repercussions of discrimination and exclusion in agriculture.
This series explores how Odom developed a passion for agriculture, the transformative side of discomfort and the impacts of institutionalized racism on her daily life. This series reminds listeners that while you are not alone in these feelings of inadequacy, you are not inadequate.
Tune in to hear more of Odom’s thoughts.
Episode One: Navigating diversity in agriculture and STEM with Dr. LaKisha Odom
The first episode in this series focuses on diversity and barriers in agriculture. Odom discusses how she grew to love agriculture, how she holds multiple realities and her experience in the white world of agriculture. Read the episode transcript.
Listen to Episode One
In having difficult conversations like this, we can create this future we want to see. We can’t get there by not talking about it. We’ve done that for hundreds of years. How’s that working out for us? Not great.
LaKisha Odom, Ph.D.
Scientific Program Director
Sustaining Vibrant Agroecosystems
Episode Two: Navigating diversity in agriculture and STEM with Dr. LaKisha Odom
In the second episode, Odom shares experiences of being too much, and yet still not enough. She discusses the consequences of gaslighting, the importance of discomfort and the ways to take action in your own life. Read the episode transcript.
Listen to Episode Two
When you talk about leading change and transforming organizations, the first step is to lead yourself…If you individually make these shifts, then these behaviors will change.
Dr. Shefali Mehta
Founder of Open Rivers
Episode Three: Navigating diversity in agriculture and STEM with Dr. LaKisha Odom
In the final episode, Odom dives into the harm microaggressions cause and the impacts of institutional racism on everyday life. This episode captures the importance of having these difficult conversations. Read the episode transcript.
Listen to Episode Three
More Navigator Podcast Episodes
Where to listen
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Insights
Our Insights highlight unique perspectives from across the food and agriculture community.
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The Aim For Healthy, Productive & Environmentally Friendly, Southeastern Beef Calves
Federico Tarnonsky
FFAR Fellow (2022-2025), University of Florida
The Importance of & Advancements in Agricultural Research
Hispanic Heritage Month
Using Artificial Intelligence to Calculate GHGs at the Individual Farm Level
Dr. Kaiyu Guan
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign
Data for Dairy: Research to Guide Farmers in Their Sustainability Journey
Reza Afshar
Vice President, Soil, Feed and Water Research at Dairy Management Inc.
Data-Driven Fungicide Decisions
Vini Garnica
2022-2025 FFAR Fellow, NC State University
Time Teaches Biosecurity Importance
Kevin Schulz
Editor, The Farmer/Farm Progress
Greener Cattle Initiative is Game Changer for Dairy’s Future
Dr. Juan Tricarico
Senior Vice President, Environmental Research, Dairy Management Inc.
Cracking the Code of Texture:
Heeduk Oh
FFAR Fellow, NC State University
Entrepreneur Attributes Kirchner HBCU Fellowship to Career Success
Kwame Terra MPH
Kirchner Fellowship HBCU 2021 Cohort
Reducing Enteric Methane Emissions from Dairy Cattle
Dr. Francisco Peñagaricano and Dr. Guillermo Martinez Boggio
Building Diversity & Inclusion in the Agriculture Technology Venture Capital Industry
LaKisha Odom, Ph.D.
Scientific Program Director Sustaining Vibrant Agroecosystems
Unlocking Peanut Potential
Samuele Lamon
FFAR Fellow, University of Georgia
Advancing Ecosystem Service Markets for Sustainable Farming
Feeding Bees Through Diversity
Riley Reed
FFAR Fellow, Washington State University
Precision Agriculture Tools for Livestock Production
Caleb J. Grohmann
FFAR Fellow, University of Missouri
The Next Frontier for Biotechnology & the Future of Forestry
Samantha Surber
FFAR Fellow, University of Georgia
A Place for Everyone in Agriculture
Dr. LaKisha Odom & Jocelyn Hittle
Transforming Agriculture with Data and Artificial Intelligence
Shiang-Wan Chin, FFAR Fellow
Cornell University
Closing the Loop
Madeline Desjardins, FFAR Fellow
Washington State University
News
The latest news and updates from FFAR.
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FFAR Aims to Help Farmers Manage Manure More Sustainably & Profitably
Grant Promotes Clean Water Through Performance-Based Financing
FFAR Seeding Solutions Grant Evaluates the Benefits of Converting Row Crops to Perennial Forage Systems
Grant Provides Decision Support Tool for Extreme Weather Events
Grant to Preserve Groundwater and Economically Benefit Growers
FFAR & Eight Member Organizations Commit $8.45 Million to Efficient Fertilizer Consortium
Grant Examines Biopesticides for Hemp Treatment
Grant Developing Tomato Resistance to Parasitic Weed
Grant Develops Cotton-Based Precision Irrigation to Improve Sustainability
FFAR and North Carolina State Announce 2024 FFAR Fellows
Grant Improves Stress Tolerance in Carrots
AgMission Grant Evaluates Successful Incentives for Persistent Cover Crop Adoption
ICASA Award Addresses Antimicrobial Stewardship for Bovine Respiratory Disease
FFAR Grant to Improve Sorghum & Strengthen Nutritional Security
FFAR & FoodShot Global Announce GroundBreaker Prize Winners in Water Research
Swine Wean-to-Harvest Biosecurity Program Funds Additional Research
FFAR Names Sixth Cohort of Veterinary Fellows
Advancing Circular Bioeconomy with Biomass Feedstocks
U.S. Roundtable for Sustainable Beef & FFAR Announce Focus Group Series to Develop Sustainable Beef Research Roadmap
Student Teams Combat Climate Change
Breakthroughs
Tools, technologies and strategies from the research we fund.
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New Study Shows AI & Supercomputing Can Quantify Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Individual Farms
Breakthrough for FFAR Grant Quantifies Organic Carbon to Improve Agricultural Productivity
Loyalty Shopper Card Intervention Creates Behavior Change
Breakthrough for Individually-targeted incentives, diet quality and health outcomes among adults
Developing an Extensive Database of US Groundwater Wells
Breakthrough for Achieving Sustainable Groundwater Management Through Innovative Governance & Optimal Agricultural Water Use Under Conflicting Objectives
Building Collaborations for Technology-Driven Solutions in Agriculture
Breakthrough for Open Technology Ecosystem for Agricultural Management (OpenTEAM)
Building Food System Interventions to Support Urban & Rural Communities
Breakthrough for Integrating Community and Modeling Efforts to Evaluate Impacts and Tradeoffs of Food System Interventions
Unlocking Genetic Heat Tolerance in Cattle
Breakthrough for Precision Bred Adaptation of Elite Taurine Breeds of Beef & Dairy Cattle
Increased Fiber, Same Great Taste
Breakthrough for Increasing Dietary Fiber in Wheat Crop
Diagnosing Coffee Leaf Rust & Slowing Its Spread
Breakthrough for Protecting Coffee from Leaf Rust Disease
Connecting Growers & Markets
Breakthrough for FFAR Grant Develops Tools to Predict Consumer Demand, Reduce Food Waste
Accelerating Crop Development with Improved Haploid Fertility
Breakthrough for Accelerated Development of Crops of the Future
Documenting Adaptive Multi-Paddock Grazing’s Benefits
Breakthrough for Quantifying the Advantages of Multi-Paddock (AMP) Grazing in the U.S. Southeast & Northern Great Plains
RIPE Researchers Prove Bioengineering Better Photosynthesis Increases Yields in Food Crops for the First Time
Breakthrough for Realizing Increased Photosynthetic Efficiency (RIPE) Reinvestment
Launch of Eco-Harvest, a program rewarding producers for regenerative agriculture practices
Breakthrough for Ecosystem Services Market Consortium
Radiography could transform poultry breeding
Breakthrough for FFAR Awards $1.4 Million to Purdue University, University of California, Davis and University of Edinburgh Researchers to Improve Health and Productivity of Egg-Laying Hens
Research Pinpoints Why Dairy Cows Produce Less Milk in Warm Weather and Develops Nutrition-Based Solution
Breakthrough for FFAR Grant Helps Heat-Stressed Dairy Cows Weather Increasing Temperatures
The Irrigation Innovation Consortium & Parallel 41 Network: Building a path to data-driven management
Groundwater Fluctuations Impact Grain Yields
Breakthrough for FFAR Awards $2.4 Million to Eight Early-Career Research Faculty Members for Innovative Research Projects
Getting to the Root of the Problem: Fastidious Pathogens
Breakthrough for A Novel Bioassay for Culturing and Characterizing Fastidious Phytopathogens
Report on Interventions to Reduce Consumer Food Waste
Breakthrough for Understanding & Reducing Consumer Food Waste
Feed Additives Stop Viral Disease Spread, Researchers Find
Breakthrough for FFAR-Funded Research Finds Feed Additives Stop the Spread of Viral Diseases