Kelly Wilson and Mary Hendrickson publish article in Choices
Kelly Wilson, Assistant Research Professor in the School of Natural Resources at the University of Missouri, and Mary Hendrickson, Professor of Sociology at the University of Missouri, recently published an article in the Agricultural and Applied Economics Association publication Choices titled “Trends and Barriers to Underserved Farmers’ Participation in Federal Conservation Programs and Their Association with Policy Changes.” In the article, they and their coauthors reviews national data on historically underserved farmers and ranchers’ participation in federal conservation programs. They use this data to examine how these patterns relate to administrative processes, structural barriers, and recent policy changes. They describe trends in EQIP and CSP participation across producer groups and assesses whether major institutional milestones have been associated with changes in historically underserved farmers and ranchers contract numbers. The overall goal of the article is to provide a clear view of how accessibility has evolved, identify remaining constraints, and inform policy discussions on equity and efficiency in conservation program design.