Sharing Agricultural Innovations Around the World

Today was a great first day at the Global Agriculture Summit at Dordt College in Sioux Center, Iowa! This event is designed to create connections and relationships locally and globally in agriculture while encouraging action. To open the conference four key words were highlighted and shared as the theme of the conference. These are as follows: inspire, connect, equip, and act. Below you will find some highlights from the conference, a recap of the Agri-Ed Talk that I presented, and then discussion points to foster conversations in your classrooms, communities, and around the globe.

Some key quotes from the conference:

• "My African friends say, We want trade, not aid." Doug Seebeck
• "You have to experience a life changing event before you can change the world." Doug Seebeck
• "We are making stunning progress in feeding our growing world." David Beckmann
• "We must focus and invest in agriculture and nutrition in our poorest countries." David Beckmann
• Two-thirds of those living in poverty depend on agriculture as their livelihood." David Beckmann
• "Soil and life are married." Fred Kirschenmann
• "We always have to change to stay sustainable." Fred Kirschenmann
• "Change has to come from the bottom up, not the top down." Fred Kirschenmann

As part of the day I represented the Global Agriculture Learning Center and gave a short talk titled "Sharing Agricultural Innovations Around the World." This talk addressed the following areas: 

• Definition of innovation
• Why is it important/needed to share innovation in agriculture 
• What innovation looks like in different parts of the world
• How the Global Agriculture Learning Center is sharing innovation around the world
• Challenged participants to find opportunities to share innovation in agriculture with others

Discussion Points

• Explain your interpretation of the quote that Fred made above "Soil and life are married."
• Which one of the other "key quotes" sticks out to you? Why? Explain and expand on the quote.
• Why is sharing innovation in agriculture with others around the world important? 
• How can you share innovation in agriculture with others in your local community, state, country, and around the world? I challenge you to take action regarding your response!

We look forward to great day two at the Global Agriculture Summit!