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Technical Assistance ToolkitCase Study: Sustainable Agricultural Lands Conservation Program Technical Assistance

Hands holding an artichoke plant.

Summary

When the Sustainable Agricultural Lands Conservation (SALC) Program staff identified a lack of program participation in the San Joaquin Valley and Southern California regions, the SALC team partnered with SGC to bring a technical assistance (TA) provider team on board that could help bridge this gap. The TA team conducted outreach to assess local needs, developed a training program, provided application assistance, and assisted with the initial implementation of the grants for those applicants that were awarded in these target regions.

The success of this initial technical assistance effort helped inform the development of additional SALC technical assistance, which aim to focus assistance on under-resourced communities and individuals in addition to supporting the expansion of SALC projects in new areas of the state. These efforts not only helped the applicants who received direct assistance, but also led to more awareness of and engagement with the program, leading to some of the first tribal applicants and a greater geographic reach of the program.

TA Providers

Cultivate, LLC

TA Recipients

County of Ventura, San Bernadino LAFCO, and San Diego LAFCO

Total Budget

$200,000

Program Description

The Sustainable Agricultural Lands Conservation (SALC) Program fights climate change by protecting productive farmlands and encouraging compact transit-oriented communities. This program is administered through a partnership between the Department of Conservation (DOC) and SGC and provides grants for three types of projects: land use planning grants; agricultural conservation acquisition grants; and capacity and project development grants.​

This TA effort focused on supporting applicants in the San Joaquin Valley and Southern California that previously had not pursued SALC grant funds. The scope of work for this TA contract focused on assisting applicants with SALC Planning grant applications, and included the following activities:

  • Completion of an outreach and partnership assessment developed through outreach to cities and counties.
  • Development and implementation of a training curriculum
  • Assistance in the development of eligible grant projects and grant applications
  • Support with the initial implementation of the project if a TA recipient is awarded a grant

Outcomes

This technical assistance effort was highly successful based on the intended outcomes of the program. All three planning projects that received assistance (located in Ventura, San Diego, and San Bernardino Counties) successfully received program funding and launched their projects. In addition to the success of selected TA recipients, the dedicated outreach carried out by the TA team resulted in increased awareness of the SALC program in the Focus Regions, leading to increased geographic diversity in subsequent rounds of the SALC program.

TA recipients expressed an overall positive experience in evaluations, sharing that they “may have not pursued this [grant opportunity] without the TA team.” and that “[The TA providers] helped us in understanding whether this would be fruitful for us to pursue.” They also shared that the workshops helped build enthusiasm for the program and encouraged many applicants to more seriously consider applying to the SALC Program.

Inspired by the success of this initial TA contract, the SALC team has since launched three new technical assistance contracts aimed at increasing the geographic spread and equitable outcomes of the SALC program (see below). With the expansion of technical assistance support, the SALC program hopes to reach new audiences in geographic areas and within specific communities that have yet to engage with the program.

  1. To have a stronger technical assistance presence on the ground in the San Joaquin Valley and Southern California, SALC developed a partnership with the University of California, Agriculture and Natural Resources (UCANR) to fund a full-time TA provider position in each region to aid SALC planning grant applicants.
  2. SALC has also continued its work with the Cultivate team, focusing more broadly on other counties in the state that have yet to receive SALC planning grant funding, this time with a more targeted focus on helping disadvantaged and low-income communities.
  3. The SALC team has also launched a new contract to conduct outreach and provide dedicated TA to land trusts, Socially Disadvantaged Farmers and Ranchers, tribes, and other key partners who are interested in SALC implementation grants.

Program Development

This section provides a step-by-step description of how these outcomes were achieved through program design and implementation.

Step 1. Getting Started

The SALC team’s approach to designing their first technical assistance effort focused on expanding their reach to unawarded regions of the state. They began by assessing the locations of previous planning grantees. They also conducted public engagement through email outreach to partners and stakeholders, and a land trust listening tour throughout the state to understand barriers to agricultural land conservation in certain regions. This analysis uncovered a lack of participation in the San Joaquin Valley and Southern California regions and provided salient information about best practices for reaching these regions, which helped inform the scope of work and design of the TA program.

Step 2. Setting Goals and Intended Outcomes

The overall objective of the TA Program was to assist cities and counties, specifically in the San Joaquin Valley and Southern California, in developing viable projects and preparing competitive applications for future rounds of the SALC Planning Grants. By conducting dedicated outreach and offering technical assistance, SALC aimed to build deeper relationships in these regions and ensure that the benefits of this valuable grant program reached these key areas of the state.

Step 3. Determining the TA Structure

The SALC team utilized an RFP process to select a consultant team with years of experience in land-use planning, farmland conservation, community engagement, training, and facilitation. The final scope of work for the contract included five main tasks for the TA provider team.

  1. Outreach and partnership assessment: This outreach and partnership assessment was meant to help DOC understand local readiness challenges and needs to develop SALC planning projects and grant applications. The TA provider team organized three public workshops throughout the state and also conducted one-on-one meetings with potential applicants. They summarized their assessment findings into a report that included a list of recommended potential TA recipients. TA recipients were selected based on project readiness, partnerships, project and applicant eligibility, and fit with the program’s goals. Applicants that had experience working with disadvantaged or low-income communities received more points in the review process.
  2. SALC program training: The TA providers offered skills training to the TA recipients, developing an in-depth curriculum to share information about the Planning Grants, focusing on the areas identified as needing support in the outreach and partnership assessment.
  3. Project development assistance: The TA providers assisted recipients in identifying potential SALC planning projects, outlining next steps and timelines for developing projects, and identifying potential partners and stakeholders.
  4. SALC application assistance: The TA providers worked with TA recipients to refine their SALC applications and submit viable proposals. The contractor also served as a liaison between the TA recipients and DOC staff to answer questions and provide clarifying information.
  5. SALC grant project implementation: Once awarded, the TA providers assisted grantees with grant implementation by maintaining communication with the TA recipient, creating a work plan detailing the steps to complete the grant project, facilitating discussions regarding project scope across public and private partners, and liaising with DOC staff regarding technical questions specific to the Planning Grants.
  6. Final technical assistance report: The TA Providers wrote a final report containing a summary of the process, findings, outcomes, lessons learned and best practices, and recommendations for future technical assistance efforts.

Step 4. Identifying a Funding Source

Since SALC is administered by the Strategic Growth Council (SGC) and implemented by the Department of Conservation (DOC), these two state entities collaborated to develop this inaugural technical assistance contract for the SALC program. The SGC Council approved a decision to allocate a small portion of the local assistance program funds ($200,000) to pilot this technical assistance approach. SGC and DOC executed an Interagency agreement so that DOC could administer the technical assistance contract, and SGC program staff collaborated with DOC staff to inform the implementation of the TA.

Step 5. Selecting TA Providers and Recipients

DOC and SGC reviewed the Outreach and Partnership Assessment prepared by Cultivate, LLC to identify who would receive Technical Assistance. The TA team first conducted an initial identification of interest by conducting an evaluation of the areas that were most likely to be interested in the SALC program, based on criteria such as interest level and potential commitment from partners. This led to the selection of outreach and educational workshops in the following areas Stanislaus County, San Diego County, and Ventura County.

The community engagement strategy targeted specific geographical regions, eligible applicants and potential partners such as cities and counties, special districts, local agency formation commissions, agricultural businesses, agricultural water providers/purveyors, non-governmental organizations, community members, and Native American tribes. Outreach included interviews with potential and existing project partners to better understand local readiness and needs.

Step 6. Develop a Feedback Loop

The SALC Team was able to reflect on lessons learned with the help of the Final Technical Assistance report provided by the TA provider, evaluation findings, and insights from their experience managing this first technical assistance contract. The Final Technical Assistance Report provided feedback on the program guidelines, application process, outreach and engagement, insight from TA recipients, and overall recommendations for the next round of SALC grant guidelines and future TA efforts.

One of the key learnings for the SALC team was the importance of conducting robust community engagement and targeted assistance, as many eligible communities lack the capacity to apply without support. The team also gained helpful perspectives on grant program design, including allowing for flexibility on scopes of work and guidelines, allowing more time to develop projects, and the importance of feedback and stakeholder engagement throughout all phases of the grant process. These insights helped inform subsequent iterations of the program to ensure that it addresses the needs of applicants.