Site Archive

To Bill Field, professor of agricultural and biological engineering, a man who suffers a head injury falling from a grain bin in Indiana is no different than a woman who loses a foot to snakebite near Bangkok. “They have the same mechanical needs,” he explains — “how to get to where they need to be and do the things they’ve always done.”

Field directs the national AgrAbility Project, a USDA-NIFA-sponsored program that helps farmers, ranchers and other agricultural workers with disabilities meet those needs. His work focuses on three main areas: the health and well-being of farm families; enhancing emergency response in rural communities; and helping farmers rehabilitate after they’ve experienced a disability. The last priority taps Field’s ongoing research on assistive technology in agricultural workplaces.