Applying Audience Segmentation to Water Conservation Activities in the Home Landscape: Implications for Extension Programming

Laura A. Warner and Alexa Lamm

Faculty in the Department of Agricultural Education and Communication are always looking for ways we can increase the effectiveness of UF/IFAS Extension water conservation programming. Since we know that a “one size fits all” approach is not the most effective strategy, we recommend incorporating principles of audience segmentation to Extension programming. 

Getting Specific
Audience segmentation is an approach to changing public behaviors where Extension audiences are divided into meaningful subgroups and programming is strategically delivered based on a specific group’s needs. This is a great strategy for UF/IFAS Extension to focus our limited resources and remain relevant to our stakeholders’ diverse needs, interests, and motivations while encouraging change that benefits water supply and quality in our state.

Figure 2. People who live in Homeowners' Association may have different needs and prefer different approaches to conserving water. Photo: B. Warner

In the case of home landscape water conservation, an Extension agent could divide the residential audience into subgroups based on their values, the way they like to learn about water, how likely they are to adopt water-savings technologies and practices, or by how much water they currently use. A segmented Extension approach might target subgroups of residents who are most likely to adopt a water-saving device, or might target those people who use the most water. By targeting specific audiences we hope to make the greatest differences with the groups having the largest negative impact or the potential to make the largest positive difference.

Ongoing Work
A research project is currently underway to help us better understand Florida residents who use landscape irrigation, an important target audience for water conservation programming. This project is a collaboration between the UF Center for Landscape Conservation and Ecology (CLCE), the UF Center for Public Issues Education (PIE), and faculty from both the Department of Agricultural Education and Communication and Family, Youth and Consumer Sciences. Funding was provided by the CLCE.

The purpose of this research is to learn about residents that use irrigation in their landscapes and look at meaningful ways to segment this audience into subgroups that may have different needs or respond differently to Extension programming methods. The results are being used to make recommendations for incorporating audience segmentation into Extension landscape water conservation programming.

Figure 2. People who live in Homeowners' Association may have different needs and prefer different approaches to conserving water. Photo: B. Warner

Initial findings show that approximately half of the residents who use irrigation reside in Homeowners’ Associations (HOAs). HOA dwellers were found to believe that they have less control over adopting good irrigation practices than people who don’t live in HOAs. These findings and many others are providing insight into this audience’s needs and preferences. Results indicate that there are meaningful differences between subgroups of this audience when they are divided based on their current landscape water conservation practices. One group who is characterized by engaging the most in water conservation practices also interacts the most with Extension. A moderate group who engages somewhat in landscape water conservation practices assigns a greater level of importance to clean water than the least engaged group, and is more likely to avoid purchasing plants that require a lot of water.

Read All About It
Detailed findings will be shared in a forthcoming UF/IFAS Electronic Data Information Source (EDIS) publication series, Encouraging Landscape Water Conservation Behaviors. This series is being developed to share research results and address promoting specific behaviors (adopting water-saving practices and technologies) to a specific target audience: Florida residents who irrigate their home landscapes.  These EDIS publications will provide information to help Florida Extension professionals to understand this target audience and guide more effective programming. Look for them as they are published here.

UF/IFAS Proudly Presents: Smartirrigation Avocado

Avocado has joined the ranks of important agricultural commodities in Florida with their own mobile irrigation app. Mobile apps for irrigation offer growers and homeowners convenient access to efficient irrigation scheduling and thus water savings. The newly released Smartirrigation (SI) Avocado, along with citrus, strawberry, vegetable and turf round out the Smartirrigation app suite for use in Florida. 

How does it work?

To use SI Avocado, the grower simply enters the irrigation system characteristics in the orchard. The app then estimates crop water demand and provides irrigation run times and event depths by considering: 

• orchard location 
• crop growth characteristics 
• weather parameters (rainfall, temperatures, relative humidity and wind speed) obtained from the nearest Florida Automated Weather Network (FAWN) station
• allowed watering days

Passing the savings on to you: a sample app-generated irrigation schedule

Of course, it would not be a proper app without push notifications, and SI Avocado offers growers a variety of alerts, such as:

• estimated water savings 
• changes to irrigation run times  
• weather forecast  
• when to turn off irrigation events 
• weekly reports about irrigation schedules

App-generated weather forecasts let you plan ahead

Does it work?

“The apps provide a 20 to 50% water savings, minimize nutrient leaching and provide energy savings due to short pump run times (thus less fuel) if recommendations of irrigation schedules are followed,” said Dr. Kati Migliaccio, Associate Professor, Agricultural and Biological Engineering, University of Florida. “Water savings for the Avocado app are currently being evaluated in a study in Homestead, Florida, but are expected to be in the same range.”

The goal: maximize outputs, minimize inputs

Download today

SI Avocado is available for use with both iOS and Android devices and is tailored specifically for Florida and Georgia residents.

For more information on the app, contact: Dr. Kati Migliaccio.

Water and the Florida Public

At IrriGator we invest considerable time and resources into communicating research-based information on water-use and water management. Rare, however, is the opportunity to gauge how the public is receiving and digesting these efforts. Enter the UF/IFAS PIE Center’s annual Public Opinion of Water in Florida survey.

Gleanings

The Center’s survey polled 749 Florida residents on a number of water-related topics. The ensuing report paints a helpful picture about what the public knows and doesn't know and where messaging and communication can be improved or adjusted.  A sample of these findings include: 

• Water ranks 3rd, below health care and the economy, on a priority list of those surveyed
• Few of those surveyed felt water quality was getting better in any of Florida's water bodies
• 85% of those surveyed indicated they were likely/very likely to pay attention to a water news item
• 72% of those surveyed are willing to pay more for their water bills if it would ensure adequate water resources for Florida's future

When the chips are down

"I think the public generally understands

 water conservation when they are affected by it. 

That is, when they don’t have enough water, 

the importance hits home. Those affected 

by the drought in California right now 

would be a good example."

-Dr. Michael Dukes

In a recent interview for Landscape Management, Dr. Michael Dukes, director of the UF/IFAS Center for Landscape Conservation and Ecology, addresses some aspects of successful water communication. Namely, context counts. When water scarcity is a factor, the public is generally more receptive to messaging. And in drought circumstances conservation messaging tends to saturate the media. 

Knowing what we don't know about what you think you know about water: an infographic

Further, Dr. Dukes also notes how the development of a water efficient ethic within the Green Industry coincided with implementation of water conserving programs, devices and codes at both the manufacturing and agency levels. There are advantages to being able to communicate important information from a non-crisis position.

Teachables

As someone whose work encompasses Extension and communication, the most useful gems among the Center’s survey results are Figure 33 and Figure 35. 

Extension? What's that? (courtesy: Public Opinions of Water in Florida)

For me, Fig. 33 (above) confirms the shortcomings of engaging the public by way of what are often understaffed, inadequately resourced and marginal channels throughout the state. On the other hand, Fig. 35 (below) is fraught with possibility, suggesting an accessible audience consuming content online - a multimedia platform today’s educators are well-versed in utilizing. 

See you on the interwebs (courtesy: Public Opinions of Water in Florida)

In a great article addressing the water survey, Jenny Adler of the UF Water Institute said it best: “We are given an incredible opportunity (which will also be a challenge) to share current water research and knowledge about water issues through these identified outlets.”

Webinars
The PIE Center recently hosted a webinar on water issues and the implications for agriculture featuring Dr. Kati Migliaccio and Dr. Alexa Lamm. View the webinar here.

The PIE Center recently hosted a webinar featuring Dr. Michael Dukes addressing the landscape water use aspects of the survey. View the webinar here.

Polk County: If You’re Into Water, You’ll Love “Living at the Lakes”

Living at the Lakes (LAtL) is a program offered in Polk County, Florida, by Lakes Education/Action Drive (LE/AD) and UF IFAS Extension Polk County. Live on or near a lake? Use lakes frequently for recreation? Interested in learning more about our local hydrology? Then LAtL is for you!

Living at the Lakes is a free program offered twice a year, three sessions at a time. Each session has a unique theme and includes a short presentation and ample time for audience questions and discussion.

Reserve your spot

Staying Informed

LAtL presentations are structured around frequently asked questions, such as:

• Why is my lake green?
• Do plants attract snakes?
• Is algae bad for the environment?
• What kind of bird is this?
• Are alligators dangerous?

Because lakes!

In addition to presentations, several utilities and governmental agencies set up booths to share additional information on water conservation, invasive plants, wildlife, and Florida-Friendly Landscaping™.

Read the flier and register today

You Are Invited

Living at the Lakes is currently scheduled for March 3, 5, and 10, from 6-8pm at Circle B Bar Reserve in Lakeland. If you are interested in attending, register here. The agenda currently includes presentations on:

• March 3
• Know the Flow! An Introduction to Water in Central Florida
• How Rain Gardens Help with Water Quality

• 
  
• March 5
• Why is my Lake Green? An Introduction to Water Quality Issues
• Fish Facts
• 
  
• March 10
• Lake Water Quality: We’re All To Blame, We All Can Help
• The Importance of Lakefront Vegetation

See you there!

About the author:

Shannon Carnevale is the Natural Resources Agent for UF/IFAS Extension Polk County – working on educational programming related to Polk County’s natural resources and environment.

Engage. Communicate. Educate: Bringing Extension Into the Digital Age

UF/IFAS Extension Agents and Master Gardeners recently attended an in-service training focused on learning social media basics and getting hands-on time with several UF/IFAS apps. The IrriGator project also took center stage in both website and blog form.

The IrriGator Project: All irrigation. All the time. All across FL. 

Knowledge on-the-go

What do weather, horticulture and irrigation have in common? UF/IFAS has apps for those! My FL Farm Weather keeps growers attuned to weather information from across the state. FL Gardening Solutions lets the user create a virtual garden, and then periodically push notifies handy information about garden plants for care and maintenance. 

What's cooking? Smart irrigation!

Smartirrigation Turf is like having a weather-based controller on your mobile device. The user creates an irrigation system, programming geographic information and system parameters, and then the app does all the work – push notifying irrigation scheduling adjustments based on details about the local weather and your system.

Sharing is caring

As a means for promoting projects and expanding the reach of educational content, social media platforms can be very useful for Extension Agents. 

Orange County Extension's Jennifer Pelham defines the terms.

Training attendees learned the ABCs of Twitter, with many live-tweeting during the event using #waterIST. Then IFAS Communications’ Social Media Manager Tiffani Stephenson talked about how to manage a social account successfully and the benefits of “official account” status. She also shared her top 5 Twitter tips for Extension Agents.

This is a call…

A training is valuable insofar as it prepares you to put a useful skill into practice. Training attendees whom braved the hours to the event's conclusion enjoyed a spirited presentation on blogging. 

...and by spirited I mean there were bunnies

The takeaway: blogs offer an opportunity to share and educate in detail about your field of expertise. And because the web is teeming with great content to help make your posts as polished and engaging as possible, there’s no reason to not get in the game.

Fire up those phablets

Initiate your own platform or benefit from IrriGator’s existing infrastructure and editorial guidance. Extension Agents are invited to contribute water-related content to IrriGator! Contact Kati Migliaccio with an article pitch or to claim a publishing date.

Cynthia Barnett and the Craft of Environmental Journalism

If you have water on the brain 24/7 like us here at IrriGator you know very well that renowned author/journalist Cynthia Barnett joined UF’s College of Journalism and Communications this year as a Hearst Visiting Professional. Author of the water-focused classics Mirage and Blue Revolution, Ms. Barnett is teaching two Environmental Journalism courses this semester and, as chance would have it, we’re enrolled in both.

Cynthia Barnett and Mackenzie Boyer: listen to the interview below 

Learning from the Pros

I should clarify. Graduate student Mackenzie Boyer is enrolled in both courses. I’m only taking part in the hour-long survey course. Nevertheless, our objective is the same: dive into sundry works of environmental journalism with an expert guide to learn about effective communication techniques.

The Interview

Recently, Cynthia Barnett was kind enough to grant IrriGator a short interview. We were interested in Ms. Barnett’s thoughts on and approach to this new teaching venture as well as her highly anticipated new book, and she more than satisfied our curiosity. Special thanks to Mackenzie Boyer who put on her reporter’s hat to capture this audio.

Hot tip: if you live in North Florida, clear your calendar for April 26^th. This is when the book release celebration for Cynthia Barnett’s Rain: A Natural and Cultural History takes place in Gainesville. Listen above for further details.

Apps in Agriculture: Perfecting the New Avocado Smart Irrigation App

One of the newest additions among the SmartIrrigation Apps to be released by UF IFAS is for avocado. Commercial production of avocados in Florida is primarily centered in Miami-Dade County - approximately 7,400 acres (Fig. 1). Read more about avocados in this EDIS article.

Bells and whistles

The avocado smart irrigation app has some special features to accommodate for the different varieties and needs of avocado growers in Florida. One unique feature is an emailed output with irrigation scheduling information (Fig. 2).

System	Zone	Irrigation type	Irrigation days	Irrigation time (hours)	Irrigation time (minutes)	Irrigation amount (in)	Last 7 days rainfall (in)
Trec Grove	West	Micro sprinkler	Monday Wednesday Friday	0	15	0.2	0

Fig. 2. Example of output emailed from the app to the user

Further, the app can be used with overhead solid set and microsprinkler irrigation systems. Microsprinklers provide targeted irrigation which is more efficient than solid set (Fig. 3). However, many growers use solid set not only for irrigation but also for cold protection (Fig. 4).

Fig. 3. Microsprinkler irrigation in an avocado orchard.

Fig. 4. Overhead solid-set irrigation in action.

The app uses real-time FAWN data for determining the irrigation schedules (Fig. 5). 

Fig 5. Screenshot of the avocado app's generated irrigation schedule.

In trial phase

We are currently testing the app at the UF IFAS Tropical Research and Education Center and on a local grower’s field in Homestead, FL. Anyone interested in being an app tester should contact Dr. Kati Migliaccio (klwhite@ufl.edu). The app is slated for release in April 2015.

Fig. 6. Deanroy, Armando, and Tina working to install the field study in an avocado orchard in Homestead, FL (January 2015).

This project is being conducted by Dr. Migliaccio’s group. Mr. Deanroy Mbabazi is leading this effort as part of his MS research.

About the author:

Mr. Mbabazi is a graduate student in Agricultural and Biological Engineering. His research interests are in irrigation, hydrological systems modeling, water quality, water conservation, surface-vadose zone- groundwater hydrology, and solute and contaminant transport.