Youth in Sudbury area learning an important life skill
From pruning plants to creating the perfect compost, a group of youths in Hanmer are getting first-hand experience at all things agricultural.
“So far I’ve learned many things,” said 16-year-old Noah Lachance. “I’ve learned how to compost, how to prune tomato plants for an example, how to identify different kinds of weeds and pests of bugs and things like that.”
It’s part of a new Youth Agricultural Mentors program (YAM) that is helping teach life skills to the next generation.
“High school aged youth are really waking up to the problems with pollution and climate change and it can make you feel really anxious and sometimes hopeful,” said youth program co-lead Kryslyn Mohan.
“But when we have the skills to grow our own food and food for our community, we can help to develop a more resilient community.”
YAM is the first of its kind this year after the program received $56,900 from the Ontario Trillium Foundation in 2019. However, Sudbury Shared Harvest has been helping connect the community and nature for much longer.
“I started working here at Sudbury Shared Harvest when I was 16 years old and I had no idea what I wanted to do in the future,” said Kaelyn Charron. “I think being a part of something like this can help inspire other kids and students that don’t know necessarily what they want to go into in the future.”
Charron said she was surprised to learn that a job like this could be a career.
"I never thought that something like this could be possible and it taught me how to work with the community and really love the food that I’m eating and be more mindful about what I’m eating,” she said.
Officials said the program is about much more than just gardening.
“Day-to-day programming looks like an energizer or a team builder in the morning and then we might do a little bit of a stretch or a breath together, just to get grounded for our day,” said Mohan.
It also includes monthly webinars with the Sudbury Public Library and field trips to local gardens and farms so young people get to experience a variety of agriculture practices.
“It’s really fun and you learn a lot of things from all of it and it’s really worth it,” said Lachance.
Four weeks into the new program, officials said they're optimistic it will return next year with a new crop of students to grow their skills.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'Still so much love between us,' Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
What to know about avian influenza in dairy cows and the risk to humans
Why is H5N1, or bird flu, a concern, how does it spread, and is there a vaccine? Here are the answers to some frequently asked questions about avian influenza.
'I was scared': Ontario man's car repossessed after missing two repair loan payments
An Ontario man who took out a loan to pay for auto repairs said his car was repossessed after he missed two payments.
opinion The special relationship between King Charles and the Princess of Wales
Royal commentator Afua Hagan writes that when King Charles recently admitted Catherine to the Order of the Companions of Honour, it not only made history, but it reinforced the strong bond between the King and his beloved daughter-in-law.
Pro-plastic lobbyist presence at UN talks is 'troubling,' say advocates
Environmentalist groups are sounding the alarm about a steep increase in the number of pro-plastic lobbyists at the UN pollution talks taking place this week.
'Too young to have breast cancer': Rates among young Canadian women rising
Breast cancer rates are rising in Canada among women in their 20s, 30s and 40s, according to research by the University of Ottawa (uOttawa).
Charlie Woods, son of Tiger, shoots 81 in U.S. Open qualifier
Charlie Woods failed to advance in a U.S. Open local qualifying event Thursday, shooting a 9-over 81 at Legacy Golf & Tennis Club.
$70M Lotto Max winners kept prize a secret from family for 2 months
During a special winner celebration near their hometown, Doug and Enid shared the story of how they discovered they were holding a Lotto Max ticket worth $70 million and how they kept this huge secret for so long.
Trump's lawyers grill ex-tabloid publisher as 1st week of hush money trial testimony nears a close
After prosecutors' lead witness painted a tawdry portrait of “catch-and-kill” tabloid schemes, defence lawyers in Donald Trump's criminal trial on Friday sought to dig into an account of the former publisher of the National Enquirer and his efforts to protect Trump from negative stories during the 2016 election.