AP - RightRisk: Risk Management Training For Agricultural Managers In The Rural United States

RightRisk is an Extension education program offered across the rural United States since its inception in 2002. Team members offer these programs using portable computer labs and web-based software to managers located in remote locations from the bottom of the Grand Canyon to the windswept-plains of Wyoming. Program offerings have expanded beyond the risk simulation – Ag Survivor – to include a ten-step process for strategic risk management with accompanying tools for implementation. Additional courses covering other dimensions of risk management have been developed, including: Feasibility of Alternative Rural Enterprises, Taxes for Agricultural Enterprises, and a two-module course entitled A Lasting Legacy. Alternative scenarios, covering various agricultural enterprises, make the simulation relevant to managers of rural farms and ranches. This flexibility and broad relevance of the fundamental concepts presented make these educational programs appealing for application in other rural areas.

Keywords: rural family, enterprise management, risk management.