July 31, 2026 | Education
Summer Stories: Youth Development Program, Week 5
Agroecology projects, a field trip & preparing for the Cultivate Community Market
The Youth Development Program is a paid opportunity for high-school-age students to develop and hone various skills in preparation for life beyond the classroom. The summer session is called the Seed Crew, and is 8 weeks of working, learning, and connecting as a team.
Monday was HOT, the hottest day to date. We worked in the morning, taking plenty of shade and water breaks. We wrapped up the morning early to get some reprieve from the heat at the main office. They had the chance to have lunch and begin researching for their presentations on various agroecology topics in the air conditioning.
Tuesday, we had a field trip to the Historic Johnson County Poor Farm and the Global Food Project. We toured with the staff to learn the complicated history of poor farms in Iowa and saw firsthand how something amazing can be done with the space. We had a chance to talk to one of their community gardeners and her children about their method of growing and the importance of having access to land to grow culturally significant foods. She was also kind enough to let us sample some of the white eggplant she was harvesting.
On Wednesday, we broke into three crews. A crew of three went to support Groundswell in cafe prep. Another crew remained at thefarm to harvest onions and arugula. They also cleared a plot to prepare to plant another succession of beets. The final crew and interns went back to the Rodale Institute to work on an ongoing research project looking at the potential benefits that rotational grazing can have on growing row crops. They had a chance to see their weeding robot in action. The robot weeded between the rows of soybeans controlled by GPS, and we walked the rows and pulled ragweed from within them. We all returned in time to eat lunch together and finish with our presentations on various agroecology topics.
Thursday was filled with preparation for the Cultivate Community Market. Youth Development Program crews harvested herbs, squash, cucumbers, and greens. 
They also spent time setting up tents, washing picnic tables, putting out yard games and signs, and setting up tables for vendors. One crew went to Groundswell to bake for the market and prep pizza-making supplies. After lunch, our workshop focused on water quality and how farming impacts the water in Iowa and beyond. We looked at what farmers can do to reduce run-off and ways we as a community can impact the environment as well.