The International Collegiate Agricultural Leadership (I-CAL) Program, sponsored by the Grains Foundation, will travel to Malaysia and Taiwan this week to study international grain marketing, trade and global agriculture. Co-organized by the National FFA Organization and the U.S. Grains Council, the I-CAL program aims to give selected students the opportunity to experience agriculture on a level they may not otherwise have a chance to experience.
While overseas, the team will tour different agricultural operations including grain inspection facilities, fruit and vegetable production farms, livestock operations and open air grain, meat and animal markets. They will also meet Council experts in each country to see firsthand the world of agricultural trade and global marketing.
I-CAL team member Caitlin Kasper from the University of Minnesota said this opportunity will provide her with a better understanding of global agriculture as she pursues a career in non-traditional agricultural education.
“This program will help me better explain the importance of American agriculture to my students and help me spread the word about its role in the area of international trade,� she said.
As a student pursuing a career in agricultural education, Tim Martini of Colorado State University said he expects this travel experience will help him better communicate to his future high school students the importance of agriculture on a global level and how the United States fits into the picture.
“This experience will help me teach students new technologies or farming methods used in other parts of the world and how U.S. practices are different – or similar – to farming elsewhere,� he said.
This year’s team members include: Ronald “Wil� Baxley from North Carolina State University; Devin Burton from the University of Wyoming; Grant Christensen from Iowa State University; Lucas Fuess from Cornell University; Ashley Gatling from the University of Arkansas; Daniel Helvig from the University of Minnesota; Ryan Hrubes from Iowa State University; Caitlin Kasper from the University of Minnesota; Tim Martini from Colorado State University; Adam Miller from Ridgewater College; Amy Petersen from Utah State University and Emily Schneider from Kansas State University.
Written by Jodi Kiely, USGC Contributing Writer