The Extensionists

The world of agriculture technology moves fast. Alison Sunstrum, managing partner of NYA Ventures, has been working in ag tech for decades and is now mentoring the next generation of inventors. In the fifteenth episode of The Extensionists, co-hosts Jay Whetter and Toban Dyck, sit down with Alison to discuss all the intricacies of ag tech from funding to the things that are changing the future of...

In our fourteenth episode of The Extensionists , Diljeet Brar takes us back to his family farm in India, sharing the story of his family’s hundreds of years of farming and how the value his parents placed on education pushed him into the world of agricultural extension. Co-hosts Toban Dyck and Jay Whetter speak with Diljeet about his fascinating, creative, and refreshingly novel approaches to the...

In the thirteenth episode of The Extensionists , co-hosts Toban Dyck and Jay Whetter speak with farmer and retired Manitoba Pulse & Soybean Growers Executive Director Francois Labelle. Francois has had a long and illustrious career in the agriculture industry from working as a grain merchant at Continental Grain travelling the world to running a strawberry u-pick farm — he has done a little bi...

David Sauchyn uses tree-ring research to connect with climate change skeptics. And if that alone isn’t interesting enough, he also has other strategies in his toolkit. In the twelfth episode of The Extensionists , co-hosts Toban Dyck and Jay Whetter speak with David, who is the director of the Prairie Adaptation Research Collaborative (PARC) and a professor of geography and environmental studies a...

In the eleventh episode of The Extensionists , co-hosts Toban Dyck and Jay Whetter speak with Justice Acoose, communications specialist with the National Circle for Indigenous Agriculture and Food. In this in-depth conversation, Jay and Toban learn about everything from video game streaming to how the agriculture sector can move towards reconciliation.   Justice shares how she’s working...

In the tenth episode of The Extensionists , co-hosts Toban Dyck and Jay Whetter speak with Manitoba Pulse & Soybean Growers Executive Director Daryl Domitruk. In this wide-ranging interview, the three of them get to the heart of what agriculture extension is and how it seems to have fallen by the wayside these days. Or has it…  Daryl shares how extension is a two-way street and to do it r...

In the ninth episode of The Extensionists , co-hosts Toban Dyck and Jay Whetter speak with Beef Cattle Research Council Extension and Communications Director Tracy Herbert. Stemming from a lifetime of exposure and genuine interest, Tracy’s knowledge of cattle and everything related is comprehensive and comfortable. She grew up on a mixed cattle and grain farm in Saskatchewan, and her parents were...

In the eighth episode of The Extensionists , co-hosts Toban Dyck and Jay Whetter chat with Jeff Schoenau, professor of soil fertility and the Saskatchewan Agriculture Ministry chair in soil nutrient management at the University of Saskatchewan. Jeff - otherwise known as Dr. Dirt - is passionate about soil health. In this wide-ranging interview, he divulges his inspiration for studying soil science...

With the holiday season upon us, The Extensionists hosts Toban Dyck and Jay Whetter decided to take a break from interviewing the great thinkers of agriculture and instead share a reimagined Christmas poem with you, our dear listeners. So curl up by the fireplace and listen to The Extensionists version of ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas.  Happy holidays to your and yours from the team here a...

In the sixth episode of The Extensionists , co-hosts Toban Dyck and Jay Whetter chat with  University of Manitoba professor and soil scientist Afua Mante. Afua’s fervor and perspective on soil breathe new life into a topic foundational to a successful ag sector.  In this episode, Afua likens soil structure to the frame of a house with many rooms. Like in a house, compact rooms are hard t...

In the fifth episode of The Extensionists , co-hosts Toban Dyck and Jay Whetter chat with AAFC Lacombe research scientist Breanne Tidemann. Breanne is a self proclaimed weed nerd and creator of #WeedIDWednesday, an extension tool that uses social media to make weed education and identification more accessible.  In this episode, Breanne shares all about what weeds she battles in Lacombe, inclu...

In the fourth episode of The Extensionists , co-hosts Toban Dyck and Jay Whetter chat with former high school teacher and current University of Calgary associate professor Paul Galpern. Paul’s love of insects is contagious, and he thinks farmers should embrace the “messy” parts of the vocation. He makes a convincing, impassioned case. In this episode, Paul talks about his involvement with the Prai...

In the third episode of The Extensionists , co-hosts Toban Dyck and Jay Whetter chat with one of the “fathers of canola” Keith Downey. Back in the ‘60s and ‘70s, while working with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada in Saskatoon, Keith was instrumental in creating the crop we now know as canola – Canada’s most valuable crop. In this episode, Keith talks about the science, policy and the business tea...

In this second episode of The Extensionists , co-hosts Toban Dyck and Jay Whetter sit down with Marla Riekman, soil management specialist with Manitoba Agriculture. Marla is passionate about all things soil, but her journey to becoming a soil expert wasn’t always a straight line. From her nerdy high school days immersed in science and music, to her brief flirtation with entomology, Marla eventuall...

In the inaugural episode of The Extensionists, co-hosts Toban Dyck and Jay Whetter talk with Alanna Koch. Alanna, a well-known and respected leader, does not wear jogging pants to the grocery store, and she values a good debate. Alanna and her husband, Gerry Hertz, farm near Edenwold, Sask. She has held various senior executive roles with the Saskatchewan government, including Deputy Minister to t...

Toban Dyck and Jay Whetter talk to researchers, inventors, and farmers with ideas and discoveries for the economic, environmental, and social enhancement of Canadian agriculture.