Photo taken by Taylor Howell.
By Maegan Beatty
Agriculture Future of America (AFA) and the National Association of Conservation Districts (NACD) recently held their 2024 Sustainability Institute in San Diego, California. Over 50 student delegates from across the nation gathered to connect with industry professionals and discuss recent innovations and challenges in sustainability.
The institute consisted of a keynote speech by Carlos Suarez who represented the U.S. Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Conservation Service. Suarez discussed the future of sustainability and the role of conservation practices within the industry.
Student delegates also saw multiple panel discussions that highlighted what conservation and agricultural companies are doing to play their part in a sustainable future. Some companies represented included Valent, ADM, and Corteva Agriscience.
Suarez was also featured in one of the executive panel discussions and talked about how we can build more sustainable communities. He said that includes reaching out more for their input.
“We think we know what the community needs, but we don’t involve the community,” Suarez said.
SUSTAINABILITY TOURS
A major part of the 2024 Sustainability Institute is allowing student delegates to choose a tour group focused around one area of sustainability. Students could choose from three tracks: urban agriculture, animal science and natural resource conservation. Lana Guzman, current undergraduate agricultural education student at the University of Florida, chose the urban agriculture track.
“During the industry tours, I got the chance to see first-hand the interaction between agriculture, community and the urban environment,” Guzman said. “It was evident throughout the tour that each company is working towards a sustainable future for the agricultural, food and natural resource industries.”
Through the urban agriculture track, students got to visit community gardens, teaching farms, and San Diego City College. At each of these locations, participants got to interact with urban farmers and see how agriculture is practiced within the city. In other tracks, delegates visited with ranchers and environmentalists across the state of California.
AFA hosts many leadership institutes throughout the year. Students are encouraged to seek more information on the AFA website.
Maegan Beatty is an Agent Media intern.