Who We Are
The mission of AFTA is to promote the wider adoption of agroforestry by landowners in temperate regions of North America. Formed in 1991, the Association for Temperate Agroforestry Inc. (AFTA) is a private, non-profit, 501(c)(3) organization based at the University of Missouri Center for Agroforestry at Columbia.
With members in the US, Canada and overseas, AFTA pursues its mission through activities such as networking, information exchange, public education, and policy development. Our intended audience includes university researchers, educators and extensionists, private farm and forestry groups, public policy makers, and private landowners. AFTA has received financial support through dues and contributions from its members and the public, sponsorships from public agencies and private corporations, contracts with USDA, and foundation grants, notably the Allen and Josephine Green Foundation.
AFTA is primarily a voluntary organization. Many individuals from universities, public agencies, private organizations and businesses donate their time and agroforestry-related expertise to help AFTA conduct its educational programs. The affairs of AFTA are overseen by a voluntary Board of Directors elected by its members.
What We Do
AFTA's educational programs are aimed at facilitating the exchange of scientific and practical information about temperate agroforestry, primarily in North America. Our major programs include:
North American Agroforestry Conference: Since 1989, we have co-sponsored the biennial North American Agroforestry Conference series - a major scientific forum for those involved in agroforestry research, extension and application in the US, Canada and overseas.
Newsletters: Our quarterly newsletter, The Temperate Agroforester, contains reports on research and demonstration trials, landowner success stories, conference reports, book reviews, links to information sources in print and online, and a calendar of agroforestry-related events. The email newsletter Agroforestry Newsline alerts subscribers to news that's relevant to agroforestry.
Website: Our aim is to make the AFTA website serve as a comprehensive source of news and information about agroforestry, including info on agroforestry practices, searchable databases of agroforestry education and research, and links to other information sources.
Technical and Policy Publications: Our reports on agroforestry development and policy are available for online viewing.