By: Ashley Honsberger, Executive Director
It’s hard to express in 500 words how excited I am to be moving into the role of Executive Director at OSCIA. Late this summer when I started mentioning to folks that I had accepted this role, the excitement for OSCIA was palpable. I heard great reviews on the committed and competent staff, the strong grassroots connection through the board and regional SCIAs, and the long-standing history that we are now taking into the next frontier through activities like the modernisation of the Environmental Farm Plan.
As I write, I am wrapping up my first week working with Andy Graham to learn about the immense number and breadth of initiatives that the association is leading. And after meeting many of the folks working here, the reviews have come true: OSCIA has immense skills, passion and knowledge and is truly a leader in the program delivery and knowledge transfer space for optimal farm practices.
At this point, I must thank and commend Andy on his commitment to the mandate and development of the organisation. As an organisation we are nimble and responsive and have a very committed team which is a key driver in our success.
The long-standing partnerships with OMAFRA and AAFC are also proof positive that soil health and farm sustainability are the cornerstone of the future of agriculture. Through these initiatives OSCIA is one of the major players in facilitating leading practices being implemented on farm.
At the organisational level much of the heavy lifting has been completed to secure a wide range of beneficial funding and research programs at both the federal and provincial levels. As I see it, this is business as usual for the organisation, and my role is to support the team in optimising all facets of making these programs run smoothly and effectively.
This coming winter OSCIA will start developing a new Strategic Plan to identify areas for development. An ideal planning process leverages a series of collaborative sessions to ensure we are truly listening to our staff, Board, members and other stakeholders to develop a plan that will enhance our platforms, enable our people and ultimately increase our impacts.
We have a complex organisation structure that focuses on program delivery and being a farmer-led association, so I will be curious to see where we can take the process to add value to the already successful platforms.
Writing this early on in my time with OSCIA I am merely offering initial thoughts, but I can say with assurance that I am grateful to be stepping into this role and into the shoes of Andy who has supported growth and opportunities for an essential organisation in the agriculture ecosystem.
It has been a pleasure getting to know him and I wish him all the best in his retirement. Over the coming weeks and months, I look forward to getting out and meeting members and participants at our events.
The future is bright from where I sit as to how OSCIA will continue to be a key player in realising the collective vision of a sustainable sector that produces safe, high-quality agri-food products.