IFAJ is in great shape. There’s always room for improvement, but to me, we are making huge strides forward– for many reasons. I shared my perspective on the federation’s status quo with executive members and delegates at this year’s annual congress in Minneapolis, USA, hosted by the Agricultural Communicators Network. I’m pleased to share them now with you.
- New member applications grow. Agricultural journalism guilds from Mexico, Pakistan, Philippines and Romania were accepted into IFAJ this year, bringing our total membership to 53 guilds and more than 5,000 members (compared to 33 guilds four years ago).
- Improved dynamics from broader membership. Broader membership means IFAJ connects more journalists than ever, offering members unprecedented connectivity with their colleagues — many from countries that are major importing or exporting nations, and whose trade policies affect farmers everywhere.
- Young leaders and master class success. These programs are working. A significant proportion of all the executive committee and delegate assembly members at this year’s congress were past participants of the IFAJ-Alltech Young Leaders in Agricultural Journalism program and the IFAJ-Corteva Master Class program.
- Foundation and incorporation. By the end of 2019, the IFAJ Foundation is scheduled to be in place as a charitable organization and IFAJ will officially be registered as a not-for-profit entity. This will open new doors to members for projects and programs.
- Significant and growing partnerships. Annual support for IFAJ professional development initiatives from major agricultural sector partners is approaching 100,000 Euros and covers a dozen programs.
- Healthy financial position. Thorough accountability, persistent fundraising and active member support have given IFAJ a solid financial footing, an essential element for an active and expanding organization like ours. Membership fees have not increased in well over a decade.
- New digital outreach initiative. This spring, IFAJ held its first professional development webinar on photojournalism skills. More are in the planning stages, to offer members everywhere educational opportunities. The IFAJ executive is meeting online every quarter now as well, to deal with federation business.
- Looking to the future. The Vision 2025 committee developed an eight-point plan to guide the federation through the first half of the upcoming decade with emphasis on professional development, youth development and global outreach.
- Effective administration. The IFAJ global office model has given the federation a firm foundation to administer, deliver and expand existing programs, support our members, and seek partnerships to help develop new programs.
- Growing recognition of agricultural journalism. The commitment of IFAJ members to support the skills, professionalism and visibility of agricultural journalism in their home countries is strengthening our profession and helping farmers as they intensify their efforts to feed the world and contribute to a sustainable future.
