Photo courtesy of Elsa Schmidt.

A Mid-Prairie FFA member participated in the World Food Prize Iowa Youth Institute at Iowa State University.

Sophia Norman was joined by 308 students from 134 schools across the state April 30th as they engaged in interactive immersion sessions which covered the topics of plant genetics, human nutrition, food security in Iowa, sustainability, and the environment. Norman was named a Borlaug Scholar at the institute. Governor Kim Reynolds and Lt. Governor Adam Gregg were among the keynote speakers for the seventh annual event, along with Acting USDA Chief Scientist Dr. Chavonda Jacobs-Young and ISU President Wendy Wintersteen. In order to participate in the institute, each student is required to write a research paper identifying a challenge affecting food security in a developing nation, then propose a solution and present their findings to a panel of peers and experts at the event. Norman presented on infrastructure issues in Ecuador.