Language-Appropriate Outreach

Immigrant farmers in Hawaiʻi whose native tongues include Thai, Lao, Ilocano, Chinese and other languages often find it difficult to access new safety guidelines and other important agricultural information.

CTAHR Extension’s Local and Immigrant Farmer Education (LIFE) program has worked over the years to provide this applied knowledge in multiple languages for Hawaiʻi’s diverse population. Now, a new $743K grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture will help agents “revitalize the LIFE program as a statewide umbrella for these efforts,” says Emilie Kirk.

“We recognize the diverse needs and dynamic demographics of Hawaiʻi’s agricultural community,” she adds. “We want to remain adaptive and responsive to keep up and to the best of our abilities provide services to the full spectrum of our farmers across the islands. This grant gives us the ability to expand some of the long-term, ongoing work of CTAHR Extension agents who have been striving to better serve the diverse populations we have in the state.”

Read the full UH News story.