Global Youth Ag-Summit addressing global agriculture challenges

Nicola Theron from the University of the Free State University and Wilbri Vorster from the University of Pretoria, along with mentor Jan van Vuuren, Agri Services manager from Bayer CropScience, will represent South Africa at the event.

The Youth Ag-Summit aims to build awareness and understanding of the challenges facing modern agriculture and food security, empowering young leaders to advocate on behalf of agriculture and to inspire them to build networks and take action.

Inspiring youth and encouraging leadership

Topics tabled across the four days will be based around three key themes - Innovation, Sustainability and Leadership. The sessions will address global challenges in agriculture, including food wastage, equitable food distribution, sustainable food consumption and alternative food sources. The program will include inspiring key notes from Julie Borlaug, from the Norman E. Borlaug Institute for International Agriculture and Bernd Naaf, member of the Board of Management at Bayer CropScience, as well as field trips and hands-on breakout sessions.

To inspire young minds and encourage leadership and action, the program will be highly dynamic and collaborative, highlighted Richard Dickmann, head of new business development at Bayer CropScience.

"Bayer and FFN worked closely with both sponsors and partners of the Youth Ag-Summit, including GRDC, ACIAR, Rabobank, LEGENDAIRY/Dairy Australia, Coles, WWF and CSIRO, to create an engaging, meaningful program for the delegates," said Dickmann. "In addition to igniting thoughts and ideas that will ultimately generate solutions to the question around feeding a hungry planet, we also aim to educate the delegates on the bigger picture and the role that we and each of the Summit partners play."

For a detailed preview of the Summit programme and to meet the delegates, visit Youth Ag-Summit