O B-RURAL, an initiative promoted by CONSULT, launched the manual A Voice to Communicate Agriculture and Forestry. The document is the work of Cristina Nobre Soares and it was developed with the support of several sectoral associations.
The manual provides practical and strategic guidance for communicating with greater clarity, purpose, and impact, from language choices to visual suggestions. It is intended for those who work or communicate in the sector and want to make the topics of agriculture and forestry more visible and understandable.
Because it was made
Agriculture and forestry have little media and social expression in Portugal. In such a moment, communicating in a clear, accessible and mobilizing way becomes crucial. The manual stems from the desire to help those working in the sector strengthen their connection with society, the press, political decision-makers and urban audiences.
A working tool
More than just a reading document, the manual serves as a support tool for those who are building the communication plan for an association, a company, or a project in the sector. It is organized into three parts, which can be consulted independently.
The manual integrates the initiative B-RURAL, which brings together the main sectoral associations in the construction of a strategic and aligned discourse on agriculture and forestry and which CONSULT promotes from 2023.
What the manual covers
The document starts from the concrete difficulties faced by those who communicate in the sector: explaining technical topics to non-specialized audiences, responding to news that simplifies agricultural and forestry activity, and finding language and images that bring people closer together rather than pushing them apart. From there, it proposes criteria for choosing words, ways of structuring a message, and visual suggestions applicable to own materials.
It does not replace a communication plan or specialized advice, but it provides a common base for those working in the sector, which is precisely the goal of the B-RURAL, Speak with one voice.
See the three parts of the manual on the channels of B-RURAL and of CONSULT.