PPSN in the Media

March 4th, 2026 - Digging Into the Margins: How precision agriculture can restore unproductive land for biodiversity, soil health and profitability. Marginal cropland is often defined as low yielding unprofitable areas in fields that can be targeted for restoration to perennial grasses. Our team is working with farmers across the prairies to map marginal land using predictive yield models, then plant these areas with tame and native forages in order to study the sustainability benefits over time.

Welcome to Restoring the Margins, a Rural Roots podcast series that explores how agriculture producers in the Prairies can take their marginal lands and turn them into something both more profitable and more beneficial for the environment. In this opening episode, Dr. Christy Morrissey introduces the Prairie Precision Sustainability Network (PPSN).

#5 of the Top 5 of the UCalgary Most Watched Research and Innovation Videos of 2025, watch as Dr. Paul Galpern, PhD, explains  how the Prairie Precision Sustainability Network (PPSN) is working to find ways to help farmers get the most out of every harvest, and to become more sustainable and profitable.

YXE Underground 2025. Dr. Christy Morrissey, PhD is a supporter of protecting prairie grasslands and wetlands. Christy welcomes host Eric Anderson to her acreage west of Saskatoon to share her passion for these beautiful but fragile ecosystems and explain why she hopes her work will inspire more young women to enter the world of science and research.

Canola Digest 2025. Dr. Paul Galpern, PhD explains the PPSN's Field Profitability and Marginality Tool, answering questions about identifying profitability differences within a field, and the tools, time and cost required. 

Globe and Mail 2025. Harvesting Triple Wins. Dr. Christy Morrissey, PhD explains how PPSN research and technology applications may enhance environmental, social and economic outcomes in farming systems.

In this 2024 episode of the Extensionists, Dr. Paul Galpern, PhD talks about his involvement with the Prairie Precision Sustainability Network, which works with farmers to identify and share data related to the low-yielding areas in their fields. PPSN enables farmers to strategically add “mess” to these unproductive regions to improve economic and ecological outcomes on their farms.

Alberta Seed Guide 2024.  Farm the Best, Leave the Rest: Boosting Profitability can Come From an Unlikely Strategy.  Professor Paul Galpern explains how switching certain areas of a field from crop to non-crop vegetation can lead to multiple benefits, both financial and ecological.

GrainNews Bless Your Mess 2024. Use These Incentives to Improve the Profitability of Low-Yield Acres. Taking marginal land out of annual crop production could improve the farm’s overall profitability.