July 26, 2013 REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL: CAPITAL CAMPAIGN FEASIBILITY STUDY AND CAMPAIGN. Pennsylvania Association for Sustainable Agriculture

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1 July 26, 2013 REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL: CAPITAL CAMPAIGN FEASIBILITY STUDY AND CAMPAIGN Pennsylvania Association for Sustainable Agriculture Introduction: Pennsylvania Association for Sustainable Agriculture (PASA), a grassroots 501(c)(3) non- profit entity, requests proposals from qualified firms or consultants to work with its Board of Directors, Capital Campaign Committee and Management Team to conduct a feasibility study related to PASA s desire to raise capital for the implementation of The Institute for Agrarian Leadership and Innovation. Background Information: In existence since 1992, PASA continues working to bring farmers together to learn from each other, and to build relationships between those farmers and consumers looking for fresh, wholesome, locally and sustainably produced food. As the largest statewide, member- based sustainable farming organization in the United States, with over 6,000 members, we seek to improve the economic viability, environmental soundness and social responsibility of food and farming systems in Pennsylvania and across the country. We place great value on efforts to build bridges between broadly diverse participants in the agricultural industry, from "farm to fork." PASA's mission is the underlying theme of all of our programs - promoting profitable farms that produce healthy food for all people while respecting the natural environment - as our work is rooted in education, support and outreach. The hallmark of our educational opportunities is the Farm- Based Education programs, which reaches over 1,000 attendees each year and the annual Farming for the Future Conference held each February in State College Pa. Over 2,000 farmers, scientists and agricultural enthusiasts from around the globe, attend this conference each year, which sets the standard for sustainable farming education. The Project: PASA plans to launch a capital campaign to raise a minimum of $3.0M to $3.5M for the establishment of The Institute for Agrarian Leadership and Innovation (ALI). This move will focus and deepen PASA s farm- to- fork educational programs, strengthen farmer- to- farmer learning and facilitate farmer- driven research. The ALI Institute will not only provide a unique and powerful resource to the sustainable farming and agricultural research communities in Pennsylvania and elsewhere, it will also constitute a huge step for PASA as an organization, in assuring both its permanence as a nationally recognized and respected food system leader, and our traditional and proven focus on farmer- centered educational programming.

2 The Consultant s Role: PASA seeks proposals from qualified fundraising consultants to conduct a feasibility study to determine the amount of capital that could reasonably be raised from private sector donors, philanthropic individuals and foundations in support of the stated campaign goal of $3.0 to $3.5M for the establishment of the ALI Institute. The consultant, in coordination with the Staff and Board Members of PASA will: Assess fundraising capability based upon current situation and contacts. Develop a compelling case for future support. Identify a donor list comprised of local, regional and national philanthropic donors and foundation prospects. Within the lists, identify priority prospects across a full and diverse range of donor and solicitation levels. Develop a plan and present strategies for reaching new donors and securing generous priority gifts. Identify other potential campaign leadership volunteers. Provide training to board members and key staff in capital campaign solicitation. PASA s Feasibility Study for the Agrarian Leadership and Innovation Institute: Describe your feasibility study process, including a timeline. Include the duties you perform and those you expect to be done by PASA staff or Board. Include how many interviews you ll conduct and whether you do any other fact- gathering other than interviews. How do you identify who to interview? How do you determine who will be working with us in our campaign? Do you know who that individual(s) will be? What are your expectations of the Staff, Executive Director and Board members during the feasibility study process? What information and recommendations will be included in the Feasibility Study Report? In addition to the overall feasibility of the project, should the study indicate the ability to conduct the capital campaign, please provide a written fundraising campaign plan. Proposal Format and Requirements: Contact information The firm or individual name Contact person All contact information including , address and telephone. Signature of the lead individual Firm Capabilities Services provided by your firm relative to a feasibility study and to a capital campaign including experience in securing major gifts from individuals, and local and national foundations. Experience with similar organizations and capital campaign projects Project team and associated biographies and resumes What other resources does your firm have available? References: Complete contact information of three references from the past 2-4 years including the goal and amount raised for each campaign. Include a sample of your recent work if available. This could include a feasibility study, case statement or campaign plan. 2

3 Fee: Total estimated firm fee for completion of the feasibility project including if the firm would be willing to a cap and would be willing to work within our payment schedule. A list of anticipated reimbursable expenses and the rate charged for each. Any other fees or charges. Estimate of fees and expenses for ongoing campaign counsel, should your firm be awarded the feasibility study project and chosen to facilitate the campaign. Conflict of interest: Is your firm currently consulting for other campaigns which could be construed as a potential conflict to this campaign? If so please disclose potential conflicts. Estimated Schedule: Issue Request for Proposal July 26, 2013 RFP Question Conference call 9am to 10 am EST August 2, am to 10am EST August 9, 2013 Call in number Participant # Proposals Due.August 16, 2013 Top Candidates notified of Interview schedule.august 23, 2013 Top Candidates Interviewed at Dickinson College, Carlisle Pa August 28, 2013 Final Candidate interview conducted at PASA Board Meeting, State College Pa...September 6, 2013 Announce decision.. September 16,2016 Finalize contract, confidentiality agreement and non- compete agreement..october 7,2013 Begin Feasibility Study.October 14,2013 Final Report Due.TBD- Defined in contract Proposal Submission: (not to exceed 20 pages) Please submit electronic copies of your proposal to: carrie@pasafarming.org Subject: Campaign RFP Questions/Clarifications: Contact Carrie Ryan Proposals are due no later than 5:00pm EST on Friday August 16,

4 PASA Case Statement Draft IV, June 2013 The Context a World at the Crossroads There is little doubt that human civilization has reached an historically significant time, perhaps unprecedented in terms of the monumental decisions that must somehow collectively be made in the coming few decades. The challenges we face can be summed up as the effort to achieve sustainability by addressing serious problems with the health of our economies, the environment, and indeed our own beings physically, mentally and emotionally. The bottom line of these challenges is that we must relearn what it takes to get along as citizens of the planet within its ecosystem, and with each other as neighbors, in our respective communities and countries around the world. There indeed has never been a moment in history when it was so clear what s at stake and how we must all work together to find solutions. And yet, the way we should go about working together toward lasting solutions has never been more contentious. Some would say that science holds all the answers. Others are more skeptical of scientific endeavor and of overly zealous technology in particular, wishing to rely on personal experience and trial-and-error instead. Nowhere is this fundamental debate and the hope for our common future more poignant than in the consideration of farming and food systems. All of the problems we face today, including the threat of climate change, insufficient human health and nutrition, collapsing world economies, violent confrontation between different factions, and others too numerous to list here, can be addressed at least in part through the common threads of food and farming. It is also becoming abundantly clear that a near total reversal of widespread perception with respect to agriculture will be necessary. The new emphasis will be on discovering and conforming to the lessons of nature as a top priority, as opposed to using technology in an attempt to manipulate nature to do as we wish. It will also require a balanced approach that relies on both the indigenous knowledge of farmers and the empirical experience of scientific researchers to achieve lasting understanding and results. Working together, our sustainable farmers and the most progressive agricultural scientists available can create the necessary magic that will make the world a better place. In brief, while as a civilization we may be in deep trouble, many of the solutions are readily available through the creation of more sustainable food and farming systems. More localized foodsheds that utilize natural systems of agricultural production as a priority are a significant source of hope for healthier economies, ecosystems, people and communities in both the short and longer term. Now what we need is a robust, interactive program, run by one of our nation s largest and most vibrant, member-based sustainable agriculture organizations to help bridge the gap to that promising future. 4

5 The Institute for Agrarian Leadership and Innovation The Pennsylvania Association for Sustainable Agriculture (PASA) is excited to announce the launch of the Institute for Agrarian Leadership and Innovation (the ALI Institute). This bold move will focus and deepen PASA s farm-to-fork educational programs, greatly expanding the number of people served and programs offered. The ALI Institute is designed to strengthen farmer-tofarmer learning through an expanded program of farmer-hosted field days and the formation of farmer-led learning circles. It will also facilitate farmer-driven research, with groups of farmers working collectively to test sustainable practices on their farms and sharing the results with neighboring farmers. This multiplier effect will yield greater insight into how practices work over a range of conditions and how those practices fit into each farm. The ALI Institute will also deepen PASA s offerings by coordinating multiple-day short courses for beginning, intermediate, and highly experienced sustainable farmers. The time is right for PASA to launch the ALI Institute as we are increasingly hearing from our members that the need for information and learning is greater than ever. Meet PASA The Pennsylvania Association for Sustainable Agriculture (PASA) is a grassroots, nonprofit organization working to change and improve the food system. Our stated mission is to promote profitable farms that produce healthy food for all people while respecting the natural environment. PASA farmer education programs are the hallmark of the organization and have made an incredible impact on the lives and success of thousands of farmers and food producers throughout Pennsylvania and elsewhere. These are people who care for the land and animals, improve soil health on a daily basis, deliver quality nutritious food, all while making a viable living from their farms and businesses. PASA has also improved and enriched our communities those families looking for healthy food that is grown safely and locally, by farmers they can know and trust. In its short 22 years of existence, PASA has built and sustained genuine relationships between farmers and those whom they nourish. This connection is proving increasingly vital. As PASA has grown, so too have the reach and needs of our membership. Our organizational responsibility calls on us to broaden and deepen the connection between farms and forks, to move beyond market niches and measurably protect and enhance ecological and cultural functions of our landscapes and foodsheds. Why the ALI Institute? The long-term health of our children and the future of our productive land and clean waterways are in our hands. We have the experience, network and deeply rooted wisdom to create significant positive change. The desire for locally and sustainably grown foods, improved food access and food quality has never been higher. This increased interest provides a fascinating opportunity for PASA to continue to be the incubator, the catalyst, the accelerator for much needed change. The power of our programs was underscored during PASA s recent annual conference, attended by over 2000 people. During the awards ceremony one of our members credited PASA for being the source of knowledge and, most importantly, human resources that helped a food cooperative grow from a fledgling idea shared by two people to a cooperative with 45 contributing farmers grossing sales of over 3 million dollars! Indeed, PASA is the nexus for sharing knowledge about the food system and incubating successful sustainable farm and food 5

6 system businesses. It is PASA s role, and even responsibility, to grow this movement now, in a very significant way. The Goals of the ALI Institute Strengthen Farmer-to-Farmer exchange. There is a dual need within the existing food system for knowledge about sustainable production practices, as well as the basic skills and tools needed for start-up of small, food-related businesses. Our annual Farming for the Future conference and in-season Farm Based Education program has historically been a wonderfully successful framework for this exchange. We will build on this success by designing tracks in our programs that target the needs of beginning, intermediate, and advanced growers while at the same time facilitating crosstalk between sustainable farmers at all levels. Build networks of farmers and researchers. We intend to dispel the notion of centrally conducted experiments that result in experts (industry or academic) handing down general, often ill-fitting, recommendations to our farmers. With new assumptions and a carefully designed framework, the PASA member farmsteads and farm fields will become the new laboratory where distributed experiments are conducted. Such an approach is bold but promises to be highly effective as insights and recommendations specific to each context and individual farm site are harvested from a method of study that places farmer needs at the center. This approach to on-farm research allows farmers to have a say in the design and conduct of the experiments. We will draw on the best and the brightest farmers and educators and leverage the incredible resource of a growing population of young farmers and agroecology students in our membership and in partnership with a variety of regional colleges and universities. This collaborative approach ensures that the farm remains the place where our collective education occurs, equipping and empowering the farmer, local communities and society at large to address the myriad of issues we face today. Deepen PASA s programs. We will offer on-farm intensive programs that probe more deeply into the how and why of sustainably managed farms and the positive ecosystem services sustainable farming practices provide on a landscape and watershed level. We will accomplish this by offering single and multi-day sustainable farm schools where our best PASA farmers team up with subject matter experts to compliment the depth and breadth of the issues and systems being investigated. Critical audiences will be crop, livestock, dairy, and poultry farmers, college students, public officials at local, state, and national levels, and technical service providers. If we ve learned one thing in the past 22 years, it s that the necessary solutions to some of our greatest challenges will only come if all players along this knowledge chain are working together. Empower a New Generation of Leaders. Whatever else we achieve in terms of knowledge and experience in the coming years, it will all be for naught if we are not successful in bringing new leaders to the forefront of the movement to implement more sustainable farming and food systems. Such individuals will come from both the farming and scientific communities, and many will move freely in both. But all of them must be up to the challenge of not only defending the integrity of data and designs from the influences in our society that would look to maximize profit alone, but also representing openly and confidently the vision that would be embodied by the ALI Institute as outlined by its founders in this document. 6

7 Please Be a Part of this Initiative! The ALI Institute will not only provide a unique and powerful resource to the sustainable farming and agricultural research communities in Pennsylvania and elsewhere, it will also constitute a huge step for PASA as an organization, in assuring both its permanence as a nationally recognized and respected food system leader, and our traditional and proven focus on farmer-centered educational programming. This basic farmer-to-farmer exchange of information and even things like equipment and seeds is at the very heart of what has made us perhaps the fastest growing voice for sustainable agriculture in the country. As we approach the mark of achieving 10,000 members and advocates, and 35,000 participants through our Good Food Neighborhood program that also reaches out to the general public of conscientious eaters, we wish to keep the focus where it has always been, on the farm. In order to achieve this main objective, and assure success of the ALI Institute from the start, we will need to hire a unique individual as its director; a person with a solid footing in both the world of science and the realities of farming; a person who also has a demonstrated ability to write and administer grants, and draw diverse resources including the human variety into a complex and ongoing project like this. We also need to build resources for short-term operations, medium-term capital needs, and long-term endowment to bolster our ongoing efforts. To that end, the PASA Board of Directors has launched a campaign to raise $1M in short/medium range assets to be invested immediately as determined by the board to assure a successful start to the ALI Institute, and $2M in committed endowment funds that will be set up to benefit PASA s educational endeavors exclusively and in perpetuity. The total of $3M will be quite a challenge for all of us to achieve, but will serve as a fitting down payment on the sustainable future we all desire on behalf of our farms, families, communities and our troubled world. 7