EP 85 – The Human Side of Restoring Marginal Land
What would it take for marginal land restoration to make sense for the farm family, not just the field?
In this episode of the Rural Routes to Climate Solutions podcast, Derek Leahy speaks with Dr. Jeremy Pittman, an associate professor in the School of Planning at the University of Waterloo, about the human side of adopting sustainable agriculture practices. It is the second episode of Restoring the Margins, a series produced in partnership with the Prairie Precision Sustainability Network (PPSN).
Jeremy shares early findings from his research into what motivates producers to restore marginally producing areas, including the role of family, economics, risk and social relationships. He describes producers as “citizen scientists” and explains how research can validate what they already know from working their land.
Together, they explore what makes restoration workable, from financial support and decision-making tools to the logistics of reaching a patch in the middle of a field. Jeremy also explains how social pressures can hold some producers back, how communities of practice offer support and how small changes across the Prairies can add up to benefits for pollinators, birds and carbon storage.
“Sometimes we assume there’s a bit of a difference … between a farmer and a scientist. But end of the day, there’s a lot more similarities there than we realize.”
— Dr. Jeremy Pittman
In this episode
02:00 – Meet Dr. Jeremy Pittman
03:49 – What is social and ecological sustainability?
04:58 – The human side of restoring marginal land
06:56 – Why producers choose to restore marginal land
09:10 – Producers as citizen scientists
10:50 – What is PPSN and the Marginal Lands project?
15:01 – How researchers study producer motivations
17:01 – The role of family and future generations
19:00 – Using data to support on-farm decisions
21:10 – When research validates lived experience
22:28 – Making data useful for producers and policymakers
25:03 – Designing tools around lived experience
26:33 – What supports producers in restoring marginal land?
31:11 – Conservation easements, family and land succession
33:29 – The practical barriers to restoration
35:44 – The landscape-level benefits of small changes
39:12 – The role of policy and government programs
41:58 – Local communities and regional approaches
43:03 – The bigger challenges facing prairie sustainability
45:11 – Social pressure and being the “village idiot”
47:42 – Communities of practice and finding support
49:06 – Closing remarks