WFP Global Youth Institute: Overview
"Unlike curing cancer or heart disease, we already know how to treat hunger: food."
Upon the luck of a successful Google search, I discovered the World Food Prize Global Youth Institute and immediately sparked an interest in the program and the opportunity it provides. To take part in the Global Youth Institute conference, one must complete a research paper highlighting a factor affecting food security in another country and be selected as their state's delegate(s). To my surprise, I was selected as the only delegate (up to 2 may be selected!) to represent the great Show Me State of Missouri with my paper about the impacts of urbanization and demographics on China.For those who are not familiar with this program (I wasn't until that lucky Google search!), the Global Youth Institute is held in conjunction with the World Food Prize's annual international symposium.
The 20th Annual Global Youth Institute is being held October 16-18, 2014 in Des Moines, Iowa; one of the many cities I have yet to explore! At the conference, I will be joining over 250 other outstanding high school students and teachers from across the United States and around the world for an exciting three-day program to interact with Nobel and World Food Prize Laureates. An estimated 1,000 global leaders from 75 countries will also be in attendance!
Participating high school students will have the opportunity to:- Present research and recommendations on how to solve key global challenges in a short speech and small group discussions with international experts (this is where I will present my findings on China!)- Connect with other student leaders from across the US and other countries- Tour cutting-edge industrial and research facilities addressing food and water security, nutrition, global agriculture, and health- Interact with global leaders in science, industry, and policy at the Borlaug Dialog International Symposium- Meet with World Food Prize Laureates.
So, you're probably wondering............why would you want to attend the conference? Besides getting to miss school to listen to all the incredible speakers, there are two major perks to participating in this conference. By participating in the Global Youth Institute, students are eligible to apply for a prestigious Borlaug-Ruan International Internship or USDA Wallace-Carver Fellowship.The Borlaug-Ruan International Internship an all-expenses-paid, eight-weeks hands-on experience for high school students to work with world-renowned scientists and policymakers at leading research centers in Africa, Asia, Latin America, and the Middle East; to get a firsthand view of pressing food security and nutritional problems in poverty-stricken areas and take part in ground-breaking research.
The Wallace-Carver Fellowship is a paid two-month research or policy placement at a U.S Department of Agriculture lab or field office, or at USDA headquarters in Washington D.C.That was my main intention of attending - getting a chance at one of those internships! I've always had a passion for agriculture and policy, with hopes of pursuing a career in that field, so this opportunity seemed perfect for me! I will be posting about the day-to-day events of the conference to give others an inside peek of what is happening, so stay tuned.