from the Journal of Agriculture, Food Systems, and Community Development |
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JAFSCD is the world’s only community-supported journal. JAFSCD content is open access (free) thanks to the generous support of our shareholders: the JAFSCD Shareholder Consortium, Library Shareholders, a growing number of Individual Shareholders, and our six JAFSCD Partners: |
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Rural youth play a pivotal role in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals of no poverty (SDG1), zero hunger (SDG2), and good health and well-being (SDG3). They possess the knowledge, attitudes, capacities, and skills that, if properly harnessed, can lift communities and nations out of persistent challenges like poverty, unemployment, and low agricultural productivity.
Recognizing this potential, African leaders and development organizations have implemented various policies and programs to promote youth participation in agriculture, such as the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP), the Youth Desk in the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD), and the National Youth Policy in South Africa, Malawi, and Zimbabwe.
Despite the significant investments, youth participation in agriculture across Africa is still low and desultory. Compounding this is that much of the discussion to date on the factors affecting rural youth participation in agriculture has occurred in the absence of robust and compelling evidence, leading to policy decisions being based on misconceptions about youths. In a new JAFSCD article, Factors affecting rural youth participation in the smallholder farming sector, authors Bright Mukwedeya and Maxwell Mudhara present initial findings from an exploratory research study that explores the factors affecting rural youth participation in the smallholder farming sector.
KEY FINDINGS Most of the youth in the study, more than 70 percent, expressed intentions to disengage from the agricultural sector within the next five years, indicating a growing disenchantment with farming.
The factors influencing rural youth participation in agriculture are multifaceted and intersect various disciplines, including development, health, economics, psychology, and education. Both value (e.g., intrinsic and intrinsic) and traditional factors (e.g., age, marital status and land ownership) are critical to youth decisions; combined, they provide a holistic and better understanding of the youth decision-making process. -
There is a significant disconnect between current policy provisions and the actual needs of rural youth. While the National Youth Policy of Zimbabwe prioritizes land access as a key intervention to improve youth involvement in agriculture, land ownership in the study is, paradoxically, associated with a decreased likelihood of youth participation.
RECOMMENDATIONS FOR POLICY, PRACTICE, AND RESEARCH - There is a need for a shift from the traditional, siloed approach to an interdisciplinary strategy that includes comprehensive planning, investment, and decision-making.
- Policies must be revised or updated to better reflect the needs, concerns, values, and aspirations of rural youth.
- Value factors should be included in policy decisions.
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Unlocking the potential of rural youth in agriculture! Learn about the challenges and opportunities in boosting their participation. #YouthInAg #AfricaDevelopment #SDGs #RuralTransformation Read the @JAFSCD article for free: https://doi.org/10.5304/jafscd.2024.134.014
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Photo above: A bean farmer near Masaka, Uganda. Credit: ©2009CIAT/NeilPalmer via Flickr.
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While volunteers are widespread in U.S. local food systems, they have not been the focus of data collection or research. As a result, we have limited understanding of the perspectives and motivations of local food volunteers.
In a new JAFSCD reflective essay, Developing children's local food programs: One volunteer's perspective, Jeffrey O’Hara describes insights from volunteering in Alexandria, Virginia, USA. The two initiatives he focused on were establishing a “Power of Produce” program at a farmers market and an after-school culinary and gardening program at a private elementary school. The former program has been sustained for three years, whereas the latter program was discontinued after two eight-week sessions. In this essay, Dr. O’Hara describe his motivations in conceptualizing and organizing these programs. He also describes challenges he encountered due to inexperience or capacity constraints as a volunteer. He concludes by discussing how additional research that examines the roles and motivations of volunteers could be valuable.
KEY FINDINGS - Farmers market vouchers were empowering for children to buy fruits and vegetables.
- Conceptualizing outreach activities for children at farmers markets was challenging.
- After-school farm-to-school programming was unsustainable in one small school.
RECOMMENDATIONS FOR POLICY, PRACTICE, AND RESEARCH
Research that focused on understanding volunteers’ motivations and characteristics could increase awareness about the contributions they provide. Why do people volunteer to support local foods instead of using their time in other ways, such as volunteering for some other cause? What do volunteers seek to get out of offering their time? What kind of difference can an individual volunteer make in their community? Understanding the answers to these questions might inform why farmers markets and local foods have become so established within the U.S. in recent decades.
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Interested in a volunteer’s experience in establishing children’s local food programs? #localfood #farmtoschool #farmersmarket Read the @JAFSCD article for free: https://doi.org/10.5304/jafscd.2024.134.015
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Photo above: A girl in preschool eats a lunch of local foods. |
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F2iSummit Call for Proposals Farm to Institution New England (FINE) invites you to help create the 2025 Northeast Farm to Institution Summit!
Submit your proposal(s) to organize a 2-hour strategy session, 1-hour session, or field trip at this extraordinary event in Portland, Maine in April 2025. The theme is Belonging.
FINE also welcomes other suggestions via this proposal (e.g. speakers, side meetings, topics you hope are addressed, and arts to integrate).
Questions to Tania: tania@farmtoinstitution.org
Submissions accepted until November 1, 2024, at Summit Call for Proposals |
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If you are affiliated with a college or university and want to support JAFSCD, now is the time of year when libraries order new journal subscriptions. |
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EVENT BY A JAFSCD SHAREHOLDER
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10th Annual Rich Earth Summit November 12–14, 2024
Hybrid: Virtual (Zoom) & In-Person (Brattleboro, Vermont, USA)
The Rich Earth Summit, hosted by Rich Earth Institute, is a global event dedicated to advancing urine reclamation to create sustainable and just nutrient cycles. This gathering brings together researchers, practitioners, and advocates to share knowledge and foster collaboration.
Join us at the 10th annual Summit, November 12–14, 2024 — a golden opportunity to explore the transformative power of peecycling. Together, we can pee the change! |
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