Agricultural industry coaches were assigned to the APECS Fellows to address diverse science and policy communication needs. These coaches, including media practitioners, international development professionals, private sector experts, and government relations communication specialists, provided varied perspectives that complemented the tools introduced by Virginia Tech. They conducted virtual sessions with the fellows, helping them view issues from perspectives outside academia.

Following the project launch, the 21 APECS Fellows participated in five virtual learning sessions over three months. These sessions, held bi-weekly, were supported by a Virginia Tech knowledge management and learning platform. The learner-centered approach promoted group work and peer-to-peer learning, covering topics such as effective science communication strategies, the power of LinkedIn for networking, introductions to graphics and design, and writing effective op-eds, policy memos, and technical issue briefs.

A central feature of APECS is the APECS Science Communication Case Competition (The S3C), held at the APECS Convention at Egerton University, Kenya. The winning team of APECS 2024 is granted the opportunity to participate in the 2024 Global Agricultural Productivity Report launch in the United States, engaging with various stakeholders to explore further collaborations in science and policy communication.

The APECS Convention, held at Egerton University, Kenya, from May 6 to 10, 2024, brought the APECS Fellows together in person to continue their work and prepare for the Case Competition. The convention facilitated multidisciplinary and multi-institutional networking and collaborations, creating opportunities to explore partnership within the APECS Community of Practice. The event culminated in the APECS Case Competition, where fellows presented oral presentations, technical issue briefs, and op-eds addressing agricultural productivity research and innovation gaps, based on findings from the 2023 GAP Report. Additionally, the symposium emphasized the need to build researchers’ capacity to communicate their science through extension, with insights shared by key speakers and APECS Fellows. The convention also included a mini-symposium on enhancing Extension models to incorporate science communication, with keynote addresses by Ben Grove from Virginia Cooperative Extension and Dr. Agnes Nkurumwa from Egerton University. The APECS Fellows formed the symposium panel, discussing their diverse approaches.