The Great Lakes Regional Dairy Conference Planning Committee hosts a professional development for youth to build communication and agricultural advocacy skills.
Posted on March 26, 2015 by Melissa Elischer, Michigan State University Extension
Youth involved in agriculture today have to wear many hats. Not only are they learning how to raise animals and crops to feed a global society, they must also be advocates for agriculture, sharing the truth of what they do day in and day out. Communicating their stories through various outlets, like talking with consumers and social media, can be a challenging task when there is so much anti-agriculture information out there. How does a youth learn how to best tell their story and answer difficult questions posed to them?
The planning committee of the Great Lakes Regional Dairy Conference, in conjunction with the Center for Food Integrity, have organized a one-day training help youth build and refine their communication skills in tackling these challenging tasks. Open to all high school and college students with an interest in agriculture, the Engage Young Leaders Communications Training will be held Saturday, April 25 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. at NorthStar Cooperative Headquarters in Lansing, Michigan. Registrations are due by April 10.
The complimentary training will help youth learn how to answer consumer questions about agriculture, common practices used for raising animals and crops, and dispel myths and misconceptions. There will be opportunities to practice communication techniques with mock interviews and role playing exercises for different types of meetings or situations a youth may encounter. A discussion on communication tactics and strategies to use when writing blogs or on other social media platforms with help youth develop effective written skills for the online world. How to handle “hot topics” or heated discussions in face-to-face scenarios will be addressed to provide youth the confidence to stay calm and collected when speaking with others who may be more emotive.
Building skills such as communication and confidence are at the core of the Michigan 4-H program, the youth development branch of Michigan State University Extension. These, along with numerous other life skills are important to help youth grow into successful adults taking an active role in our society.
For more information or to register for the Engage Young Leaders Communications Training, please contact Alex Schnabelaruch at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) or 248-474-672, ext. 211.
This article was published by Michigan State University Extension. For more information, visit http://www.cnchemicals.com/. To have a digest of information delivered straight to your email inbox, visit http://bit.ly/MSUENews. To contact an expert in your area, visit http://www.cnchemicals.com/, or call 888-MSUE4MI (888-678-3464).