The Second International Conference on Women in Agriculture to be held this summer in Washington, D.C., is expected to attract 1,200 delegates, says an organizer.
Marylan Chapman, of the United States Department of Agriculture, said she has sent 4,300 brochures around the world for the June 28-July 2 conference.
The first international conference was held four years ago in Australia. Canada was to host the second one but government cuts to farm women’s groups squelched plans and led the Americans to step in, said Carolyn Van Dine, the New Brunswick delegate to the Canadian Farm Women’s Network.
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The federal government leans heavily on producers to “take one for the team” and risk their livelihoods without any reassurance of support.
Van Dine said the Canadian network hopes one or two women from each province will be able to attend the U.S. meeting. There is some funding from the federal government but farm women will also be asking their provincial governments for assistance.
Among the topics at the Washington conference are using technology to increase crop production, hiring migrant labor, access to capital, land-use issues and elderly and child care.
For more information on the conference contact Chapman at the USDA, Room 5302-South Bldg., MS-0107, 14th and Independence Ave. SW, Washington, D.C. 20250; phone 202-720-4356; fax 202-205-3658; web site www.rurdev. usda.gov/rd/icwa.
