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(09/30/24) BATON ROUGE, La. — In Louisiana’s urban areas, LSU AgCenter extension agents are working to innovate, educate and improve lives. Throughout October, LSU AgCenter Extension will celebrate Urban October, a worldwide campaign the United Nations launched to focus on the opportunities and challenges created by the fast rate of change in cities.
The theme of the monthlong AgCenter campaign is Engaging Youth to Create a Better Louisiana.
Chiquita Briley, assistant extension director overseeing urban programs, said this is the AgCenter’s first year participating in Urban October.
“In the coming years, the extension team looks forward to collaborating with additional university and community partners to build on this foundation and cultivate local, state, national and global connections,” Briley said.
AgCenter programs like 4-H and nutrition and community health work with youth to help develop them into stronger leaders, better citizens and healthier individuals.
4-H focused on rural youth when it first formed. But today, the organization reaches many urban communities across the state, offering STEM projects, nutrition programs, civic opportunities, shooting sports and more.
The Louisiana 4-H Citizenship Board, which includes 4-H’ers from across Louisiana, recently volunteered with the Greater Baton Rouge Food Bank. The board members were then charged with going back to their communities and creating service opportunities for local 4-H members.
“By starting small, we can build up to achieve great things that could eventually change our world,” said Braden Benoit, board member and 4-H’er from Lafayette Parish.
Nutrition and community health agents are working in urban areas to promote healthful lifestyles. School and community gardens dot urban landscapes. Nutrition classes engage families and encourage good diets and physical activity.
An urban garden that sprung up with the help of a nutrition and community health agent in the Zion City area of Baton Rouge has community members excited about fresh fruits and vegetables for the neighborhood. But a motivation for the garden was giving youth a sense of purpose.
“We want the kids to come down so they can feel like they’re being a part of something,” said Dominco Mack, a Zion City community member. “When they put in the work, then they can see an end result.”
These AgCenter efforts are engaging youth to create a better Louisiana.
“With youth from urban, suburban and rural areas learning and working together, possibilities are endless in how engaging youth can shape the future,” Briley said.
Members of the 4-H Citizenship Board volunteer at the Greater Baton Rouge Food Bank. This example of service is part of Urban October’s mission to engage youth to create a better Louisiana. Photo by Todd Tarifa/LSU AgCenter
