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Call for contribution!
The young generation plays an important role in extension and rural advisory services. It has to solve many of the current global issues and will face new ones. To rise to the challenge, young professionals working in extension and rural advisory services should be paid greater attention, provided an opportunity to share their experiences, voice their concerns and communicate the challenges and opportunities for youth in extension.
We believe that there are many interesting and rewarding opportunities in this professional field that must be better communicated. The image of agriculture, and in particular advisory services, must be made more attractive to young people.
Therefore GFRAS: Global Forum for Rural Advisory Services and YPARD : Young Professional’s Platform for Agricultural Research for Development have joined forces to advance a joint mission of promoting the field of agriculture and extension among young people.
Youth and extension/advisory services e-discussions
We welcome your active participation to online discussions on issues surrounding youth and extension/advisory services, from 5th September to 30 October 2011 on the YPARD forum in preparation of the international conference on extension in Nairobi.
These discussions will specifically be on the challenges and opportunities in extension, related to youth:
- Share your experiences, challenges, and successes as a Young Professional in extension. Share some of your questions and ideas on this topic.
- Share your testimony as an Experienced Professional (perhaps not a ‘youth’ yourself) and present key challenges and opportunities of working with young professionals in extension and rural advisory services.
We will launch two spaces for discussions on the YPARD forum. Please, contribute and feel free to propose your own discussion topics related to extension/advisory services and young professionals. The outputs will include a poster and document making recommendations based on the discussion to the international conference in Nairobi in November. Expected outcomes include increased and more rewarding participation of young people in agriculture and advisory services.
Bringing these discussions to decisions and actions
What’s your benefit in contributing to these discussions? The ideas, experiences and challenges you express will be brought to the table by YPARD, GFRAS and Young representatives at the international conference in Nairobi in November. Therefore your voice will be heard at a strategic level to inform for decision-makers on those topics that impact you!
Do not forget: E-DISCUSSION on Extension/advisory services and Young Professionals
From 5th September to 30th October 2011 on YPARD Forum
Take your chance, contribute, get a voice, make a change!
Need some help to get started?
You would like to contribute but don’t know exactly how to get started? Please, contact us for advice and suggestions! We are glad to help and we are looking forward hearing from you! info@ypard.net
Note that you must be registered and logged in YPARD website to contribute (register here). It just requires some minutes; just follow the instructions! If you meet any issue, please, contact us!
More about the Organizers
GFRAS is the Global Forum for Rural Advisory Services. Its purpose is to provide a space for advocacy and leadership on pluralistic, demand-driven rural advisory services within the global development agenda that promote sustainable rural growth and help the poor. This will contribute to the ultimate goal of reducing hunger and poverty worldwide. GFRAS has three functions:
- Providing a voice within global policy dialogues and promoting improved investment in RAS
- Supporting the development and synthesis of evidence based approaches and policies for improving the effectiveness of RAS
- Strengthening actors and for a in RAS through facilitating interaction and networking
YPARD, the Young Professional’s Platform for Agricultural Research for Development, has a mission to serve as a global platform through which young professionals (under 40) can express their ideas and realize their full potential towards dynamic agricultural research for development. YPARD is a movement of young professionals. It creates spaces for deliberation and interaction. At the heart of YPARD as a movement are its members, who are encouraged to become active in their area, spread the news about YPARD to other young professionals, encourage a stronger voice of youth in their own organizations and share their views and ideas with other young professionals in the network.
In order to realize its vision, YPARD has the following strategic objectives,
- To facilitate exchange of information and knowledge among young professionals across disciplines, professions, age and regions.
- To broaden opportunities for young professionals to contribute to strategic ARD policy debates.
- To promote agriculture among young people.
- To facilitate access to resource and capacity building opportunities.
Source: YPARD
