Abstract
Grassland 2.0 Learning Hubs are place-based conversations supporting communication and co-learning among an array of community partners in Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Illinois. We are developing an Agroecological Transformation Plan (ATP) for livestock production in the Upper Midwest that will be informed and driven by the desires and visions of local communities. To help this happen, we worked with local partners to conduct interviews of key people in the region conversations that took place in farms, offices, kitchen tables, by phone, zoom, and coffee shops.
Working shoulder-to-shoulder with local partners, I conducted 25 interviews in each of the three Wisconsin Learning Hub s, which are called Cloverbelt, Driftless, and Ridge & Valley. Once interviews were complete, we distilled and compiled themes and worked with a graphic designer to develop visual depictions called The Story of Now , The Story of the Future , and Pathways . We then organized community gatherings with interviewees, steering team members, and other local partners to reflect, discuss, and revise the rich picture of their community and begin mapping visions of future outcomes and landscapes. Currently, we are developing more concrete scenarios of what the socioecological landscapes could be and what policies, markets, and conversations need to be in place to make these visions reality.