While many teenagers spend their summer focused on vacations, jobs or sports, a group of high school students is researching solutions to hunger, food insecurity and other complex global challenges.
Through the Florida Youth Institute (FYI), hosted by the University of Florida College of Agricultural and Life Sciences (UF CALS), rising juniors and seniors from across the state research complex global issues and develop their own evidence-based recommendations for solutions. While visiting the university, they present their comprehensive projects to university researchers, agricultural leaders and industry experts, including partners from the World Food Prize Foundation.
Payton Grant, a rising senior from Ocoee, described FYI as “giving students the framework to find solutions to global issues such as food insecurity.”
During the weeklong residential program, students engage with scientists, faculty and industry professionals through laboratory tours, hands-on experiences and discussions that demonstrate how agriculture and the life sciences influence food systems, environmental stewardship, public health and economic opportunity.
“Throughout the week, UF CALS and the Research and Education Centers taught us about different aspects of agriculture that affect food security in one way or another,” said Grant. “It allowed us to gain new perspectives about the world and ways we can be a part of the change that is needed.”
Ari Greves, a rising junior from Orlando, described the experience as an opportunity to see firsthand how research and innovation connect to issues affecting communities around the world.
“You can’t get it reading a paper or doing all the research,” said Greves. “To see it in action emphasizes the importance even more and increases knowledge and awareness.”
The experience also introduces participants to potential career pathways in agriculture, natural resources, engineering, biotechnology and related fields. Student research papers are submitted to the World Food Prize Foundation’s Global Youth Programs, connecting their work to an international effort to address food security and other pressing challenges.
“The Florida Youth Institute is an incredible opportunity for high school students to explore local and global challenges and innovations in the context of food, agriculture, and food insecurity for an entire week,” said Rebecca Picard, senior director of World Food Prize Global Youth Programs and Partnerships. “UF CALS does outstanding work to highlight educational and career pathways, and its partnership with the World Food Prize Foundation provides students critical professional skills, a voice, and a seat at the table.”
The program’s impact extends beyond students and into classrooms through the Florida Teacher Institute, a companion program designed to help elementary, middle and high school educators incorporate agricultural and life sciences concepts into existing coursework.
The teachers also participate in a weeklong residential experience and work alongside university faculty and agricultural educators. They explore current issues affecting food and agricultural systems, and develop classroom lessons that connect real-world challenges with academic standards.
“I was a dairy farmer for a while and agriculture has always been a big part of my life and I’ve had a strong love for science and so I put them together and became a teacher of agriscience,” said Wayne Oelfke, a veteran high school science and agriculture teacher in Fort White, with more than 30 years of experience.
“This experience will make learning in the classroom more interesting because agriculture is so diverse that it brings meaning. It’s science that can be applied,” said Oelfke. “I have found that student interest in agriculture is pretty high, especially when you offer it through activity-based learning, which is what FYI does through a diverse selection of disciplines. It’s been a wonderful time and a very uplifting summer.”
Together, the Florida Youth Institute and Florida Teacher Institute help expand awareness of agriculture and the life sciences while equipping students and educators with tools to better understand challenges affecting communities in Florida and around the world.
Find out more information, including how to apply to attend next year’s Florida Youth Institute, on the UF CALS website. Applications are typically available each year in January.
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ABOUT UF/IFAS
The mission of the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) is to develop knowledge relevant to agricultural, human and natural resources and to make that knowledge available to sustain and enhance the quality of human life. With more than a dozen research facilities, 67 county Extension offices, and award-winning students and faculty in the UF College of Agricultural and Life Sciences, UF/IFAS brings science-based solutions to the state’s agricultural and natural resources industries, and all Florida residents.
ABOUT THE UF/IFAS COLLEGE OF AGRICULTURAL AND LIFE SCIENCES
The College of Agricultural and Life Sciences (CALS) administers the degree programs of the University of Florida’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS). The mission of the College of Agricultural and Life Sciences is to deliver unsurpassed educational programs that prepare students to address the world’s critical challenges related to agriculture, food systems, human wellbeing, natural resources and sustainable communities. The college has received more total (national and regional combined) USDA teaching awards than any other institution.
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