Farmer Field School (FFS): The Farmer Field School supports current or aspiring farmers by teaching hands-on environmentally sustainable agricultural techniques using a no-cost or low-cost approach.
During the Farmer Field School program, participants meet regularly at a demonstration site, taking business management courses and technical training; and while managing all day-to-day aspects of the farm, including clearing the land, planting seedlings, providing water, and pest/disease management control.
Once a new lesson is taught, participants demonstrate lessons learned by applying the newly discovered skill at the demonstration site before applying those learnings to their individual farms.
At the end of the season, farmers sell the produce grown at the demonstration site and share the profits. Each farmer also has their home gardens resulting in increased crop production and a growing and steady income.