By Madelaine Giebler
“A snowflake might be nice at the moment,” I thought to myself as the the editor of thirty years offered advice to the sardine packed students. Worn magazine bindings filled the ceiling high shelves lining the room. Glasgow traffic passed slowly below. Students shifted from one foot to the other as they fanned themselves with copies of the latest Scottish Farmer, the exhaustion of a week abroad finally settling in.
We had been briefed on Brexit so many times we probably could have stood in for the Prime Minister. We had seen enough sheep to keep the entire population of the UK awake that night counting them. We had heard enough about Open Farm Sunday to be walking advertisements for the nation-wide event. We were aware of the necessity of government subsidies for the farming industry and the detrimental affect Brexit would have on agricultural sustainability.
But heads raised and interest peaked with the editor’s latest comment.
“Don’t be a snowflake,” he said.
The biggest piece of advice he could give us was to be real, to dig to deep, and to stick with it, whatever “it” might be. He shared his biggest issue with journalists these days is that they get tired of their job and are moving onto something else fairly quickly.
We had experienced differences in cultures. Tea was served at every stop whether a university, a publication company, or a rural farm. Water was uncommon at restaurants and never served with ice. Traffic flowed opposite of the United States, and navigating sidewalks proved to be a mental exercise in and of itself. Checks at restaurants were not split by meal, ever. In fact, when asked if a waiter could split the check they would look at us as if we had horns growing out of our heads. We learned that neither washcloths nor fitted sheets exist in the UK, yet some things remain the same- “snowflakes.”
As agricultural communications students, many of us are involved in farming and are accustomed to hard work, not to say that other industries are not hard working, but my point is that most of the individuals in that room would not normally be categorized as “snowflakes;” however, we all struggle with motivation and feeling burnt out at times, and several of us shared we came on the trip for a change of pace, for self-discovery, and to push ourselves out of our comfort zones.
When I found out about the Environmental and Agricultural Communications Study Tour in the United Kingdom, I was at a point in life where I felt I needed to experience some new adventures. Other students had talked about their previous experiences on the trip, and when Dr. Miller announced applications were open I was all in.
Leading up to the trip we had six weeks of classes briefing us on agricultural, political, and cultural issues in the UK. Because of those research and discussion times, I feel I was well prepared for the agricultural hot topics going on in the UK, but I learned a great deal more while talking to agricultural producers, publishers, professors, and industry professionals.
During our first few days in London we visited with publishers from Farmers Weekly who shared the demographics and culture surrounding their agricultural publication. Like the United States, the largest audience for their magazine is fifty years or older; however, they have started publishing their magazine online and are utilizing social media and phone applications to connect younger audiences. I found this situation to be true across all three of the publication companies (Farmer’s Guardian and Scottish Farmer) we visited.
Another notable problem I saw was the lack of formally trained agricultural journalists. Publishers shared many of their journalists are either journalists who had to learn about agriculture or agriculturalists who had to learn about journalism. There are no current degree programs for agricultural communications in the UK; however, Dr. Miller is working with several of the universities to develop an agricultural communications program there, and I believe doing so would be a great asset to their agricultural industry.
Another topic heavily discussed among publishers, producers, and certainly at our visit to the United States Embassy included Brexit. If the UK leaves the EU the industry will meet many challenges including reduced government subsidies (many of which UK farmers rely on for survival), uncertain trade opportunities, and reduced labor from migrant workers.
One sheep producer we spoke with of Eastside Farm shared he is working to “Brexit Proof” his farm by selling lumber and creating quaint cottages for guests to stay in. Other farmers are making similar efforts to create agritourism ventures on their farm, and as a whole I believe UK producers are working to educate the public about agriculture. Unlike the US where most individuals are less than three generations removed from the family farm, citizens of London may be hundreds of years removed from agriculture because the UK is a much older country than the United States in terms of modern civilization. This generation gap creates challenges for farmers trying to bridge the gap between the farm and the consumer.
We visited with one dairy farmer, Jane, who is working to educate individuals on the positive environmental efforts they are making on their farm. She made a great point that some farmers should not talk to the public because they do not have the personality, patience, or professionalism to do so. However, Jane had the whole farm hosting thing down as she passed out coffee and tea in cute mugs in her 17th century barn yard. We were instantly sold. Well, at least I was (and it had nothing to do with the fact I was on dairy).
While I loved the historic palaces of London and I could not get enough of the ancient history and architecture of Bath, the English and Scottish countryside’s’ were my favorite. I walked away with a great deal of new knowledge in regard to communications efforts and farming practices to bring back to my family’s dairy as well as to the US as a whole. Some advice was given directly, while other advice was picked up from observation, but no advice stood out to me as prominently as the snowflake advice.
For students considering this trip, I would tell them not to think overthink it, just do it. If money is an issue, find a way to make some extra cash, apply for scholarships, or get a temporary loan, but do not miss out on the opportunity for a life changing experience. Do not go into the trip with preconceived notions of what you will experience. Let yourself be changed by the culture and the people around you. Dig deep. Give it your all; whatever, “it” might be.
