Dear HMI Community,
2017 was another busy year for HMI as we collaborated with over 100 organizations around the globe to deliver 105 days of programming in 13 countries. To provide in-depth training in Holistic Management, we held 13 Open Gates and six Whole Farm/Ranch Business Planning or Land Management Series or Beginning Farmer/Ranching Training Programs. We also had 305 farmers and ranchers enroll in HMI’s Getting Started Courses and other online training.
HMI’s programming and global network of over 60 Certified Educators trained and presented on Holistic Management to 4,462 people, while also positively impacting 5.86 million acres.
Thanks to the support of our generous donors in 2017, HMI was able to increase the total amount of scholarships to over $35,000 to beginning and transitioning farmers and ranchers needing financial assistance.
On the outreach front, we continue to expand our scope by educating more people about Holistic Management and HMI. By the end of the year, our outreach outcomes included almost 21,000 Facebook fans and 14,000+ Twitter followers. Over 16,000 people subscribe to our e-letter and over 110,000 visitors engage with our website.
While HMI finished 2017 with a net loss of $19,764, we were able to increase our reserves by $86,720, while decreasing our expenses by 14%. Importantly, net assets have risen by 93% since 2015 and contributions from our donors have grown by 42% since last year. We continue to use those donation dollars wisely, with 82 cents of every dollar going directly to programs.
In 2017 we also deepened our collaboration with the Quivira Coalition by developing a New Agrarian Online Training program, providing online training to support their New Agrarian Program as well as buttressing other educational farms and ranches throughout the globe. Together, apprentices, interns, and young farmers were able to learn Holistic Management to support their educational experience on these farms and ranches.
This year HMI is partnering with the Quivira Coalition and the American Grassfed Association for the 2018 Regenerate Conference in a not-to-be-missed regenerative agriculture gathering, to be held at the Hotel Albuquerque in Albuquerque, New Mexico on October 31 -November 2, 2018. We hope to see you all there. We will have a pre-conference Holistic Management Social on October 30th so please come in town early enough to participate and meet HMI’s Board of Directors, Advisory Council, and Certified Educators.
We look forward to reporting on our 2018 programming in the ensuing 2018 annual report, as this year has already been a busy one. Thanks to our committed team of Board, staff, Advisory Council, Certified Educators and our network of practitioners and allies, we continue to grow the circle of those who are practicing Holistic Management and creating healthy land and thriving communities.
Click here to read the full HMI 2017 Annual Report
Sincerely,
Ann Adams - Executive Director
Danny Nuckols - Board Chair
