Many sets of helping hands, groups of supportive friends and well-timed opportunities, sit at the heart of Hannah Breckbill’s journey from Carleton College math degree graduate to queer organic farmer and beginning farmer advocate.
As Hannah worked to create and continues to grow Humble Hands, she said she experienced unique issues as an LGBTQI+ farmer. “The main challenge that I associate with being a queer farmer is the societal and even legal expectations associated with ‘family+’.”
“Our farm is different from what people expect from a family farm because we’re two women who are not in a romantic partnership who own and operate the business together,” she said, referring to her farming partnership with her cousin.
In this February 2023 podcast episode from the Agrisafe Network, Knesha Rose-Davison, Agrisafe’s public health and equity director talks with Nicole Gwishiri American Farmland Trust’s Women for the Land Southeast Program Manager.
Women4theLand provides information, networking, education and resources to women landowners and farmers. The program is a collaborative effort of the Indiana Conservation Partnership and other agricultural and natural resources partners. Women4theLand seeks to empower women to make good science-based land use and management decisions that lead to more viable communities and stronger farm enterprises. It uses conservation learning circles, to help women learn how to care for their natural resources, where to find financial and technical assistance, how to work with tenant farmers, and more. This toolkit provides the information needed to facilitate a successful learning circle.
