REGION — In your typical high school curriculum, students can have access to an abundance of courses where students can learn another language, play an instrument, or play basketball with their friends. Slowly fading from that curriculum, however, are classes that specialize in teaching agriculture.
While it may seem like working with livestock or harvesting a cash crop may not be high on the priority list of many kids, Cooperative Extension’s 4-H program is looking to change that with their Ag Ambassador program.
Ag Ambassador is meant to show kids that are interested in agriculture all the different components involved with it. On their webpage, 4-H demonstrates the significance of the program by asking a question: With the world population growing, how do we feed 10 billion people by 2050?
In a recent study, the USDA has found that farming in general has been on a gradual decline since the 1980s, with a survey reporting the existence of 2 million farms in the U.S., down from 2.2 million farms in 2007. With the cost of food going up, it goes without saying that farms are crucial, and 4-H built the ambassador program to combat this decline.
Available for teenagers between the ages of 14 and 18, the statewide program puts a focus on connecting youth with their local food systems and industries, while also developing their advocacy skills. Students that get involved in the program will also increase their access to career opportunities in agriculture-driven science and food systems.
Tara Marble, a 4-H youth development professional in Franklin County, and her colleagues Sadee Mehuren, Megan Cook, and Alisha Targonski, are the facilitators for the program, which is broken into seven-week online sessions as well as trip to the UMaine campus in Orono for other agriculture related activities and learning opportunities.
“It’s a really great opportunity for kids to connect, where they might be the only one in their school that has an interest in [agriculture] and a future in [agriculture],” Marble stated in an interview. “So, we’re bringing those youth together and it’s been very successful.”
Their first cohort began early last year, where they spent their first session learning about the global food system, local food system and threats to Maine agriculture. The session also connected the youth to local organizations in Maine to further their knowledge and skillset.
In their second session, participants learned more about career opportunities, from farming to lab work, and they practiced resume building and interviewing skills.
Their third session, which is currently underway, is focusing on the politics and policy making surrounding agriculture in Maine. In one of their online sessions, the kids received a visit from former state representative Nathan Wadsworth, who shared his insight on crafting policy and listening to constituents.
“There is a lot more camaraderie among the different parties than we see in the media,” Wadsworth told the kids in the March 28 session. “They agree a lot more than people realize.”
The youth hit Wadsworth with a variety of [agriculture]-related questions, from farming to solar panels, before he departed and made way for an activity where each of the seven youth currently enrolled in this cohort had to make a 30 second elevator pitch about a topic that was important to them.
Among the students was 16-year-old Hannah Josephs of Yarmouth, who has found the Ag Ambassador program has had a significant impact on her passion for working steers and oxen.
“My working steers have been my passion since I was young, but it’s not relatable to most people in my area and [it] lacks ways to make social connections for me,” she said. “What I have learned through Ag Ambassadors are ways to network, create bonds and friendships, and how to help make change in our communities.”
A second cohort has begun with an even bigger group of 13 students who are eager to learn about how to become Ag Ambassadors. The ultimate goal of this program is to, along with bringing together these kids and creating a community for them, benefit the future of agriculture in Maine and beyond with youth who better understand the nuances of agriculture and how to make it better.
“Certainly, I’m biased because I also have a farm as well,” Marble said, “And so getting youth interested in providing food for the next generation is certainly a motive of mine.”
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