FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — In a move that underscores its commitment to serving the agricultural community through research-based initiatives, the National Agricultural Law Center (NALC) has launched an online stakeholder survey. This initiative aims to gather crucial feedback from a broad spectrum of individuals connected to agricultural and environmental law and policy. The survey, which takes less than 10 minutes to complete, will be available until October 16.
Harrison Pittman, the director of the NALC, emphasized the importance of this survey in shaping the center’s future activities. “The reason we’re here is to serve those in the agricultural community,” Pittman said. “We’ve been at this since 1987, criss-crossing the country to share what we know through our legal research. While we’re out there, we also learn a lot from those we serve.”
The NALC has a broad reach, engaging with stakeholders across the United States. In Fiscal Year 2023 alone, NALC staff spoke in at least 25 states and the District of Columbia. The center’s newsletters reach thousands of readers, and its website garnered more than 617,000 page views. This extensive engagement highlights the center’s influence and the importance of its work.
The survey is designed to be inclusive, targeting a wide audience that includes farmers, advocates, students, lawmakers, analysts, and journalists. Pittman stressed the significance of this inclusivity, saying, “We want to hear as much feedback and input from every part of the nation’s agricultural community as we possibly can. We encourage folks to not only take the survey but to share it with others in their organizations, on social media, listservs, and other networks as broadly as they can.”
The 15-question survey features both multiple choice and open-answer questions, allowing respondents to provide detailed feedback. This input will be instrumental in helping the NALC prioritize topics, determine preferred methods of information delivery, and gather basic demographic information about its audience. The anonymous nature of the survey ensures that respondents can provide honest and candid feedback without concerns about privacy.
The launch of this survey is a testament to the NALC’s dedication to being a stakeholder-driven institution. “We depend on stakeholder input to help strategically inform our work, and these survey results will be a major part of that in the months and years ahead,” Pittman noted. This systematic approach to gathering feedback will enable the NALC to better serve its diverse audience, which includes producers, federal and state policymakers, attorneys, lenders, and many others in both the public and private sectors.
The implications of this survey are far-reaching. By actively seeking input from its stakeholders, the NALC is positioning itself to address the evolving needs and challenges of the agricultural community. This proactive approach not only enhances the center’s ability to provide relevant and timely information but also strengthens its role as a vital resource in the field of agricultural and environmental law.
For those interested in contributing their insights, the survey is readily accessible online and will remain open until October 16. This is an opportunity for members of the agricultural community to voice their needs and preferences, ultimately shaping the future direction of the NALC’s work.
To read the full news release and participate in the survey, visit the National Agricultural Law Center’s website.