I’m pleased to report that at the IFAJ annual meeting in Sweden I was elected vice-president of the organization, making me the first Canadian to hold this post. I’m very proud of that fact, and proud to be part of such a worthwhile federation. Thanks again to my Canadian Farm Writers Federation (CFWF) colleagues who nominated me, campaigned for me and supported me, as well as my IFAJ colleagues who campaigned for me and voted for me.

Speaking of CFWF, the federation’s annual meeting is on this week in Winnipeg, themed Mud, Floods and Suds: A Celebration of Soil and Water. I’m pleased to be reporting on IFAJ activities with colleagues Allison Finnamore (chair of the IFAJ communications committee), John Greig (bursary award winner) and Lisa Guenther (past winner of IFAJ-Alltech Young Leaders in Agricultural Journalism award).

To follow the action, the conference Twitter hash tag is #cfwf12. Like the Facebook page, CFWF 2012. E-mail conference photos to drag87casts@photos.flickr.com for upload to http://www.flickr.com/photos/cfwf2012/ . Or take video with your smartphone and e-mail it to jy13wvdgklwg@m.youtube.com, viewable at http://www.youtube.com/cfwf2012. It will all be compiled into a grand conference presentation, which organizers will show during the Saturday evening banquet.