Effective extension relies on more than technical knowledge. It requires skilled facilitators who can engage producers, encourage discussion and support the adoption of drought resilience practices.
This project delivered practical extension training to SA Drought Hub members and partner organisations, building the skills and confidence of researchers, advisers, grower groups and government staff who work directly with farmers. By strengthening regional extension capability, the project supports more effective delivery of drought resilience knowledge well beyond the life of individual SA Drought Hub projects.
Project description:
Building on the success of the previous Extension Training for Hub Members program, this project delivered a further series of practical workshops led by experienced extension practitioner Jeanette Long from Ag Consulting Co. Two workshop formats were offered: Facilitating Learning and Change and Designing Engaging Extension, providing participants with practical tools to improve communication, workshop design and producer engagement.
Training was delivered to researchers, grower groups, Landscape Boards, government staff, consultants and other Hub partners working directly with farmers. Workshop content covered facilitation techniques, peer-to-peer learning, extension tools, adult learning principles, personality types and behaviour change, equipping participants to better design and deliver extension activities that encourage adoption of drought resilience practices.
To reinforce learning, participants were also offered follow-up online sessions and one-on-one mentoring, providing opportunities to discuss challenges, refine facilitation skills and apply the training directly to upcoming extension activities.
Key achievements and results:
The project successfully delivered four extension training workshops across metropolitan and regional South Australia, engaging 57 participants from 17 SA Drought Hub partner organisations. Participants represented farming systems groups, Landscape Boards, government, universities, RDCs, private consultants, agribusiness and industry organisations, helping strengthen extension capability across the Hub network. Follow-up online sessions and nine one-on-one mentoring sessions further supported participants to apply their new skills in real-world extension activities.
Feedback demonstrated that participants gained increased confidence in facilitating workshops, engaging producers and designing extension activities that encourage knowledge sharing and practice change. Many reported immediately applying the training to crop walks, livestock events, field days, workshops and research projects, while others highlighted improvements in meeting facilitation, communication and community leadership. Participants also valued the opportunity to network with others working in agricultural extension and share ideas across organisations.
The project has also had a broader impact beyond individual workshops. Since the SA Drought Hub began supporting this training program, participants have applied the skills across numerous producer engagement activities throughout South Australia, improving the quality of extension delivery and strengthening regional capability. Feedback identified the training as highly relevant to day-to-day roles, with several participants suggesting it should become standard professional development for people leading agricultural extension and producer engagement projects.
The success of the program has also informed future delivery, with one-day extension masterclasses incorporated into the 2026-27 program to provide previous participants with opportunities to further develop specific facilitation and extension skills.
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Further information:
Project resources:
- Read the project report to learn how extension training is positively impacting Hub members
- Hear from Rachel May, Jeanette Long, and Dr Caitlin Evans as they discuss best practice extension methodologies, and why extension training is helping improve extension and adoption in SA
- Learn how this extension training is making an impact across South Australia
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