Using webinars to extend the reach of soil learning in New South Wales: A first look

Abstract

Increasingly knowledge is shared using new web-based channels. The use of these channels is relatively new in the realm of soil science. However, they may prove to be very useful for connecting time-poor, geographically dispersed audiences in an efficient and cost-effective way. There has been limited study of this form of knowledge sharing for natural science (let alone soil science). In New South Wales (NSW), Australia, the NSW Department of Primary Industries (NSW DPI) has coordinated the Soil Network of Knowledge (SNoK) monthly webinar over 3 years, with over 40 webinars targeting an audience of next users of soil information. Aggregated data collected from these webinars indicated that the majority of information is used for professional development by participants. Whether this will eventually lead to onground practice change because of the improved professional and technical knowledge of participants is still a moot point and will require further investigation over time. The information collected on attendance and participation showed that webinars are a good way to connect with some target audiences such as other government bodies that have a historical relationship with NSW DPI. However, other target audiences that NSW DPI has always found difficulty in engaging, such as private advisers, require more active overtures to drive participation. The growing subscriber base is encouraging.

Sustainable soil use and management: An interdisciplinary and systematic approach

“…A variety of soil information management and knowledge sharing mechanisms exist, including training workshops (online or offline), websites, social media, advisory services. In Australia, the New South Wales local government uses webinars to disseminate soil science information to a geographically disperse community of practice (CoP) (Jenkins et al, 2019). Grain advisors, however, were reported to be guiding farmers to historically established "rules of thumb" for calculating nitrogen fertilizer needs, rather than the latest evidence-based science on soil water and nitrogen management (Schwenke et al, 2019).…”

Knowledge sharing and adoption behaviour: An imperative to promote sustainable soil use and management

“…Therefore, it has been typical to extend soil information via advisory service providers who share scientific knowledge with farmers one‐on‐one, with behavioural change facilitated by the building of individual and close relationships. State and local governmental agencies can play critical roles in information transmittal processes (Jenkins, Beange, & Morris, 2019). However, in the current movement of sustainable soil management, advisory services also face special challenges owing to farmers’ desire for high‐resolution soil information and practical step‐by‐step guidelines on a farm level, while sustainability is often achieved by integrating considerations across multiple temporal and spatial scales (Ingram & Mills, 2019).…”

“…Web‐based information technology allows the transmittal and sharing of soil knowledge at much lower cost than traditional knowledge sharing approaches. Webinars can be used to extend soil knowledge to government advisory services, private advisors and landholders (Jenkins et al., 2019). Online repositories can store large amounts of soil and landscape information collected from field studies, training sessions and land resource assessments (Imhof, Heemskerk, & Cox, 2019).…”

Food community: Understanding community needs for a food security website to support rural and remote Western Australians

“…30,31 These studies found that this may be resolved by incorporating useful infographics and webinars that clearly and artfully capture the essence of the research which can reach a geographically dispersed, timepoor audience. 30,32 This can be realised by incorporating the four components of novelty, informativeness, efficiency and aesthetics 30 thus leading to more views of academic journal article abstracts 32 and engagement with target audiences. 32 This study has added to the literature by further strengthening the evidence of the value in co-designing with stakeholders when developing and building community-based websites.…”

“…30,32 This can be realised by incorporating the four components of novelty, informativeness, efficiency and aesthetics 30 thus leading to more views of academic journal article abstracts 32 and engagement with target audiences. 32 This study has added to the literature by further strengthening the evidence of the value in co-designing with stakeholders when developing and building community-based websites. Collectively, this demonstrates how end users can be engaged in a website development process to ensure their needs are met.…”