Before I came to American Farmland Trust, I was the Counselor to the Administrator for Agricultural Policy at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). One of my primary efforts at EPA was to start the first-ever agricultural advisory committee for the agency so that they might advise the agency on how environmental policy issues affect farms, ranches and rural communities. Why? To foster a better understanding between farmers and the EPA so that each group might have a better sense of the challenges each face in their work. Nearly 150 people from farmers, ranchers, rural suppliers, academics who study agricultural and environmental issues and others applied to be on the committee for a two-year term, with a diverse group of 29 selected to make up the group. Our former president, Ralph Grossi, just completed a term—and I was glad to have someone from American Farmland Trust on the advisory board. The group was charged with several tasks: to help the agency understand the effects on agriculture of EPA programs, policies and regulations related to climate change and renewable energy; to help develop a national environmental strategy for livestock operations; and to find a framework to address the common interests between sustainable agriculture and protection of the environment. I learned a lot from this experience. First, that the agency and farmers are challenged to communicate because each group has a very different language and lots of acronyms for describing their work and what they want to accomplish. Second—both face challenges—one group in running viable farms and ranches, the other in running a regulatory agency with lots of statutorily prescribed duties. An important perspective that the advisory group brings is to help the agency find ways to meet its environmental goals in ways that will allow farmers to remain profitable. But I also learned that after all is said and done, both groups have a common goal: to leave the land better than when they started. As a second group of citizens from across the country are selected to serve on EPA’s Farm, Ranch and Rural Communities Federal Advisory Committee, I have some words of wisdom to share:  a common understanding isn’t something that always comes overnight. Stick with the process---after a few meetings, you’ll have developed stronger relationships and better solutions to the very real environmental issues we face in our country. About the Author: Jon Scholl is President of American Farmland Trust. Prior to AFT, he served as Counselor to the Administrator for Agriculture Policy at the United States Environmental Protection Agency. Jon and his family operate a corn and soybean farm in McLean County, Illinois.