Series by Des Moines Register uses virtual reality to explore state's family farms

The Des Moines Register this summer undertook a three-month agricultural journey across Iowa in search of the diverse nature of what makes up the state's family farms. The result is a five-day series beginning today called "Harvest of Change" that uses virtual reality technology and 360-degree video with 3-D effects. (Register photo by Christopher Gannon)

"Iowa's farm families are as diverse as their operations, growing crops that are conventional, organic and chemical-free alongside pastures of grass- and grain-fed beef and free-range chickens," Sharyn Jackson reports for the Register. "Among those who steward these operations are a six-generation farm family, a same-sex couple, an aging father and son, and an immigrant who found refuge in Iowa."

"'Harvest of Change' is an exploration of a nation in transition, as seen through the lens of the family farm in Iowa," she writes "We look at major shifts, including the aging of the population and the decline of rural communities; the change of America's complexion, as the country heads toward becoming majority nonwhite; the increasingly global connections that are altering business in even the most remote corners of the country; and the environmental challenges predicted from climate change."

"These broad changes are giving many Americans an unsettled sense of the future," Jackson writes. "But what we found in the homes and on the farms of the Iowa families we met was a determination to continue contributing to a legacy that is rooted in history, even as they innovate to make their life's work compatible with a changing world. We're telling this story of a changing America and changing farm life through all the tools of a changing journalism landscape." To read the first story, click here.