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Existing research indicates that participation in simulations contributes to the development of key soft skills, but has tended to rely on contemporaneous self-evaluations. In this paper, we evaluated the degree to which early career professionals who had previously completed an extended simulation class felt that the experience had contributed to the development of soft skills that they used in their professional lives. Survey, interview, and focus group data all show that working professionals in various fields felt that the dynamic nature of the extended simulation contributed to the development of several categories of soft skills and made a strong impact on their careers.

Under what conditions are some small‐scale agricultural producers able to overcome challenges associated with shifting to organic production, whereas most are not? The answers are vital for the global effort to encourage more sustainable, pro‐poor forms of agriculture—more organic farming, more sustainable production; more smallholders engaged in green production, more income and better livelihoods. Yet, answering this question is challenging in part because previous analyses of global production networks, such as those associated with organic agriculture, focus more on broad governance patterns than the specific factors and actors that help smallholders shift to organic production and link to far‐flung markets. To fill in these gaps, we conducted fieldwork in Isan, Thailand, a major rice‐producing area in which many groups of smallholders have attempted to shift into organic production. Doing so allows us to identify the critical challenges associated with upgrading into organic production and analyse how specific actors enabled some groups to overcome these challenges. Our findings provide a generalizable theoretical approach to understanding how to link small‐scale farmers to global value chains in ways that can potentially enhance smallholders' livelihoods, spark rural development and encourage more sustainable practices in agriculture.