Kentucky State University in a Land grant university located in Kentucky, USA. Land grant university integrate education, research and extension at a place. Experts and students are involved in research whereas extension workers as well as faculty and students are involved in extension of the findings of researches through different approach of extensions such as publications, seminars, journals distributions, farmers field visits etc.
Third Thursday Thing (TTT) is a monthly sustainability workshop to directly interact with small farmers throughout Kentucky. KYSU organize a seminar every third Thursday of the month to share findings of the researches conducted at KYSU. This event creates common platform to interact between farmers, faculties, students, extension workers, extension organizations outside of the university, but still supporting farmers in some-ways by providing technical, extension, hardware support etc.
Farmers are informed about the event by email, text messages, KYSU notice announcements, extension workers as well as various other means. A regular schedule of the event (Third thursday of every month) and name itself is an information for the farmers about the date time and venue of the event. Generally, the event happens in demonstration farm of KYSU. The date of next event is written in every months schedule.
The event includes sharing informations about recent findings of researches, discussion about the issues in farmers’ field, how to start new farm, suitability of farm and enterprise based on climate, cost analysis, sustainable issues, organic farming etc. The event focus on one issues each months that are directly related with the field of farmers. The finding of researches as well as interaction with farmers determines the topics to be shared. Also, farmers get opportunities to visit the farm based on the topics that are discussed in the event.
Researchers from the university can utilize the event for their thesis survey as well as to be familiar with the farmers, what they are planting or rearing in their farm, how they are managing their farms and many other issues that will be helpful for their researches and academic proposes. Also, this event becomes vital for the identification of research problems providing continuous research areas for the veterans as well as students.
Experts provides lectures in the pre-determined topics and farmers are allowed to discuss about the lecture as well as problems in their farm or starting of new farm at the end of each lecture and program. The event provide opportunity for farmers to directly with experts in university which is lacking in Nepal. Farmers get chance to get access and knowledge about the latest technologies that are invented from intensive researches and lab works in KYSU. This is the best means of information dissemination as well as getting feedback about the technologies. This helps to identify the areas of improvements of those technologies and measure the success as well as failure of it, thus help to test the technology before distribution throughout the country.
This kind of program helps to disseminate information directly to farmers from university whereas provides university to identify problems of farmers for future research acting as the bridging pool between farmer and university or research based organization.
