The overall goal of "securing a future on the land" is to connect beginning farmers and ranchers (bfrs) to land access options in colorado and prepare them for secure land tenure to support a…

The overall goal of "securing a future on the land" is to connect beginning farmers and ranchers (bfrs) to land access options in colorado and prepare them for secure land tenure to support a diverse agricultural future. There are four objectives for this goal: 1) increase the pool of certified land access trainers (lats) by completing american farmland trust's self-paced program, 2) improve and expand bfrs knowledge of land tenure options and how to execute secure land transfer agreements by offering LAT courses in various formats to increase participation, 3) improve land owner knowledge of BFR's land access issues and recruit more landowners/retiringfarmers and ranchers to the colorado land link database, 4) establish a criteria system for evaluation of land matches each year. Our plans to accomplish the project goals include: fulfilling the criteria for the LAT certification; partnering with groups and indiviudals to enhance our recruitment of bfrs; providing stipends to all bfrs who attend our LAT courses; delivering courses virtually and in-person; working with land trusts to establish relationships with landowners to increase the number of viable land listings in the database; developing a land access advisory team; interviewing beginning and retiring farmers/ranchers to determine knowledge gaps; research of evaluation systems and metrics of land matches. This project meets the goals of the bfrdp by providing innovative land transfer and succession strategies, as well as technical asssitance to help bfrs acquire land from retiring farmers/ranchers.