It is commonly believed that young people have no future in farming, but for me, it is the opposite. I have been engaged in farming through the Golden Parauma Agriculture Cooperative. Joining the cooperative opened me up to a whole new viewpoint of how my food is produced and raised my respect for the people that work hard to produce food.
Doing farm work myself gave me a sense of satisfaction. Now, I believe that farming is not only for older people; it rather offers the young generation a chance to make a difference by growing enough food to feed the world.
Many young people are not aware of the opportunities in agriculture, and I take it as my role to help them see these. I don’t think it is because they are not interested in farming at all, but often it is because they lack the proper skills and tools to start up. If young people are offered education in agriculture, a platform to communicate their concerns to policymakers, and are introduced to new innovative tools, then agriculture can be enticing to them.
Blessel Balbuena
Philippines
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