Cultivating Resilience

Mental health support can be hard to ask for, especially in farming communities where long hours, self-reliance, financial stress, and limited access to care can make it difficult to pause and reach out. On this episode of Cultivating Resilience, host Hans Hageman speaks with Jaime Angelini and Emily Horton. Jaime Angelini is the statewide director of suicide prevention and crisis response at the Mental Health Association in New Jersey. Emily is the Director of Policy & Community Engagement at the Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry and co-chair of the Heritage Industries Mental Health and Wellness Working Group. Having grown up on a farm in Mid-Coast Maine and lost her brother, a commercial farmer, after his struggle with mental illness, Emily brings both personal and professional insight to this conversation.  Together, Emily and Jaime talk about how to recognize when someone may be struggling, how to start a conversation in a practical and respectful way, and why support does not always have to begin in a clinical setting. They also discuss the barriers rural farmers face when trying to access care, the importance of meeting people where they are, and the role family, friends, neighbors, and other farmers can play in helping someone feel less alone.This conversation offers a reminder that mental health care is health care, and that even small acts of connection can matter.Highlights Include:(2:38) How to talk about mental health in everyday language(3:31) Barriers rural farmers face when trying to access care(7:24) Why asking for support can feel difficult(12:06) Signs that someone may need help(13:24) Asking direct questions with care(16:11) How family, friends, and neighbors can show up(22:28) Mental Health First Aid, QPR, and 988 Episode-specific resourcesMental Health Association in New JerseyMental Health First AidQPR — Question, Persuade, Refer suicide prevention training988 Suicide & Crisis LifelineNational Association of State Departments of Agriculture — Farmer Mental HealthUniversity of Maine Cooperative Extension General farmer support resourcesCultivemosNational Young Farmers Coalition — Farmer Mental HealthFarm Aid Farmer Resource NetworkFarm Aid Hotline: 1-800-FARM-AIDFarm State of MindForge AI Coach  Feedback:If you have questions about the show or topics you’d like discussed in future episodes, email us at [email protected].

Community care can look like many things: sharing resources, helping someone get to the farm, dropping off a meal, caring for the land, or creating spaces where people feel safe enough to belong. On this episode of Cultivating Resilience, host Hans Hageman speaks with Juliana Quaresma, co-executive director of the Groundswell Center for Local Food and Farming, an organization supporting farmers and food system workers across the Finger Lakes and Southern Tier region of upstate New York. Together, Hans and Juliana explore the relationship between farming, land, food justice, isolation, and community care. Juliana shares how her work in Brazil shaped the way she thinks about farming and collective support. They discuss the realities of rural isolation, the importance of farmers of color seeing themselves represented on the land, and the ways communities can show up when farmers are facing stress, injury, funding cuts, or other barriers. Through it all, Juliana offers a grounded reminder that food and land can be places of connection, learning, healing, and change. Highlights Include:(1:29) Juliana’s path from Brazil to Groundswell(3:29) Balancing desk work, farm work, and community support(5:01) Viva Acres, sheep and tending the land(10:04) Rural isolation and learning when to reach out(11:53) Farming for Freedom Trail and representation on the land(14:15) Funding cuts, uncertainty, and community care in action(20:38) Small practices for getting through a hard day Episode-specific resourcesGroundswell Center for Local Food and FarmingGroundswell Incubator FarmFarming for Freedom TrailViva AcresSeeding Power Fellowship General farmer support resourcesCultivemosNational Young Farmers Coalition — Farmer Mental HealthFarm Aid Farmer Resource NetworkFarm Aid Hotline: 1-800-FARM-AIDFarm State of MindForge AI Coach  Feedback:If you have questions about the show or topics you’d like discussed in future episodes, email us at [email protected].

Succession planning can feel like one of the biggest, most overwhelming conversations a farmer will ever have. It touches everything: land, family, money, identity, retirement, legacy, and the future of the farm itself.On this episode of Cultivating Resilience, host Hans Hageman speaks with Seren Sinisi, co-owner of Old Crow Ranch in Durham, Maine, and Sylvie Boisvert, Farm Transfer Program Coordinator at Land for Good. Together, they explore what it really means to plan for the next chapter of a farm. Seren shares what she and her husband Steve have learned while building Old Crow Ranch from the ground up, putting land into agricultural easement, creating an LLC, writing wills, and beginning to imagine what the farm could look like beyond them. Sylvie brings the service-provider perspective, explaining the practical and emotional pieces of farm transfer, from business planning and finances to family communication and identity. The conversation is honest about how hard these conversations can be, especially when farming is not just what someone does, but who they are. But it also offers a clear and hopeful reminder: succession planning does not have to happen all at once. It can begin with one conversation, one worksheet, one phone call, and one small step. Highlights Include:(4:51) What succession planning really means(7:03) Old Crow Ranch’s succession path(12:10) Farming, family, and identity(15:05) What happens when planning starts too late(20:36) Finances, transparency, and common mistakes(25:25) Communication, fairness, and keeping families intact Episode-specific resourcesOld Crow RanchLand for GoodLand for Good — Where Do I Start? GuideMaine Agricultural Mediation Program (MAMP)UMaine Cooperative Extension Farm Communication CoachingAlison Bishop @ UMaine Cooperative Extension Financial CoachingMaine Farmland Trust General farmer support resourcesCultivemosNational Young Farmers Coalition — Farmer Mental HealthFarm Aid Farmer Resource NetworkFarm Aid Hotline: 1-800-FARM-AIDFarm State of MindForge AI Coach  Feedback:If you have questions about the show or topics you’d like discussed in future episodes, email us at [email protected].

Farming asks something different of us in every season. Spring can bring excitement and possibility. Summer can bring heat, long hours, and hard choices about what to protect and what to let go. Winter can offer space to rest, reflect, and plan for what needs to change. On this episode of Cultivating Resilience, host Hans Hageman speaks with Bo Dennis, lead designer at Dandy Ram Farm, a flower farm and floral design studio in rural Maine. Bo is also the Beginning Farmer Specialist at MOFGA, the Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association, where he supports beginning farmers across the state. Together, Hans and Bo explore what it means to build a farm, a business, and a life that can move with the seasons. Bo shares how flowers invite people to slow down, why farming can be both joyful and exhausting, and how boundaries, planning, community, and rest can help farmers stay grounded through uncertainty. They also discuss the experience of farming as a queer and trans person in rural Maine, the shift away from romanticizing burnout in agriculture, and why true resilience is not just about pushing through. Highlights Include:(2:04) Why flowers matter(5:34) Farming, identity, and belonging(8:34) Burnout, boundaries, and building a sustainable farm life(12:32) Climate grief and farming through uncertainty(15:03) The rhythm of the farming year(27:38) Rethinking resilience Episode-specific resourcesDandy Ram FarmDandy Ram Farm on InstagramMOFGA — Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association General farmer support resourcesCultivemosNational Young Farmers Coalition — Farmer Mental HealthFarm Aid Farmer Resource NetworkFarm Aid Hotline: 1-800-FARM-AIDFarm State of MindForge AI Coach Feedback:If you have questions about the show or topics you’d like discussed in future episodes, email us at [email protected]. 

A full video interview is available with English subtitles on the Cultivemos YouTube channel.La entrevista completa en vídeo está disponible con subtítulos en inglés en el canal de YouTube de Cultivemos.Descripción:Advertencia sobre el contenido: En este episodio se habla de suicidio.Más del 60% de los trabajadores agrícolas de EE. UU. se sienten más cómodos conversando en español. Y también tienen necesidades de salud mental. Pero cuando se trata de salud mental, su experiencia viene determinada por su cultura. Así que no podemos limitarnos a traducir los mismos consejos al español; tenemos que abordar los problemas específicos a los que se enfrentan los agricultores hispanos.En este episodio, hablamos con Eustacio Mil Quino, Jaime Cardoso Zúñiga y Ernesto Villegas González, tres agricultores de origen mexicano de Hudson Valley Farm Hub. Hablamos con ellos sobre sus experiencias con la salud mental, cómo se ve de manera diferente en México, y cómo lidian con el estrés en sus vidas. Además, cómo están cambiando las actitudes culturales y los obstáculos específicos para los inmigrantes mexicanos.Acompáñenos a explorar este importante tema. Más de tres cuartas partes de los trabajadores agrícolas de EE.UU. se identifican como hispanos. Si no satisfacemos sus necesidades, estamos fracasando, y puede que el sistema alimentario también.Reflejos:Por qué estos agricultores vinieron a Estados Unidos (3:09)Discriminación (6:17)Barreras a la atención sanitaria mental (8:51)Actitudes culturales hacia la salud mental (10:44)Estrategias para afrontar el estrés (14:42)La experiencia de Eustacio con el suicidio (16:00)El poder de una mano amiga (16:51)Cómo afecta tu salud mental a tu familia (19:31)Cómo están cambiando las actitudes (22:41)  Enlaces:Suicide Prevention Lifeline - EspañolCentro de Recursos para la Prevención del SuicidioCultivemosFood FirstCultivemos YouTubeCultivemos InstagramCultivemos FacebookRecursos CultivemosHudson Valley Farm HubHudson Valley Farm Hub - Guía de justicia lingüísticaComentarios:Si tienes preguntas sobre el programa o sobre temas que te gustaría que se trataran en futuros episodios, envíanos un correo electrónico a [email protected] trabajo cuenta con el proyecto 2020-70028-32729 Instituto nacional de alimentos y agricultura (NIFA, por sus siglas en inglés) del Departamento de agricultura de los Estados Unidos (USDA, por sus siglas en inglés) y la Red de asistencia para el estrés en fincas y ranchos del noreste (FRSAN, por sus siglas en inglés).Description:Content warning: This episode contains discussions of suicide.More than 60% of farm workers in the US feel more comfortable conversing in Spanish. And they have mental health needs too! But when it comes to mental health, your experience is shaped by your culture. So we can’t just translate the same advice into Spanish; we have to address the specific issues that Hispanic farmers face.On this episode, we spoke with Eustacio Mil Quino, Jaime Cardoso Zúñiga, and Ernesto Villegas González–three Mexican-born farmers at Hudson Valley Farm Hub. We spoke to them about their experiences with mental health, how it’s seen differently in Mexico, and how they deal with stress in their lives. Plus, how cultural attitudes are changing, and specific obstacles for Mexican immigrants.So join us as we explore this important issue. Over three-quarters of agricultural workers in the US identify as Hispanic. If we're not meeting their needs, we're failing--and the food system might be too.Highlights:Why these farmers came to the US (3:09)Discrimination (6:17)Barriers to mental healthcare (8:51)Cultural attitudes towards mental health (10:44)Strategies for dealing with stress (14:42)Eustacio’s experience with suicide (16:00)The power of a helping hand (16:51)How your mental health affects your family (19:31)How cultural attitudes are changing (22:41)Links:Suicide Prevention Lifeline - EnglishSuicide Prevention Resource CenterCultivemosFood FirstCultivemos YouTubeCultivemos InstagramCultivemos FacebookCultivemos ResourcesHudson Valley Farm HubHudson Valley Farm Hub - Language Justice GuideFeedback:If you have questions about the show or topics you'd like discussed in future episodes, email us at [email protected] work is supported by the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture, Farm and Ranch Stress Assistance Network (FRSAN) project 2020-70028-32729.