Studying abroad motivates young agricultural advocate

By Sarah Trimm
An educational adventure unfolded for one CALS student as he recently traveled abroad
to gain new insight on South African agriculture and culture.
Gordon Yoder, 2013-2014 area one vice president of the Florida FFA Association, took
advantage of an opportunity to sharpen his leadership skills and knowledge on global agriculture
by attending the International Leadership Seminar for State Officers, hosted by the National FFA
Organization.
Yoder, a junior and agricultural education and communication major, said his initial
purpose for going on the trip was to expand his understanding of agriculture across the world and
to gather information to share with Florida agriculturists and affiliates. He later discussed the
personal impact of the trip.
My eyes were really opened when I saw the gap between my assumption of what South
African agriculture would be, and what it actually was. South Africans are very innovative and
productive when it comes to their agriculture industry, Yoder said.
Many agricultural commodities produced in Florida, such as citrus and beef cattle, are
also grown in South Africa. Yoder described South Africas agricultural industry as extremely
diversified.
When Yoder returned, he shared the unique experience with 83 FFA state officers
representing 23 states. The trip spanned nearly two weeks in January 2014.
Fellow 2013-2014 Florida FFA state officer, Logan Luse, also took the trip to South
Africa. He described their experience as hard to match.

This trip helped me to open up my perspective on life and have a different attitude on
the opportunities that I have, Luse said.
While in South Africa, Luse said, the group was able to learn some of the native
language, Afrikaans. They also explored the Kruger National Park and visited a small schooling
system deep in the heart of a shantytown.
Yoder and the other students raised funds from local agriculture affiliates, family
members and friends to pay the expenses for their travel. The trip to South Africa was Yoders
second time traveling abroad; his first trip out of the county was to Nicaragua on a church
mission.
Yoder said the real-world knowledge he gained from his journey has proven beneficial to
his studies in CALS by raising his awareness of the realities of international agriculture. He
noted that his interactions with the locals taught him more about South Africa than anything else.
Those are the stories I tell when I come home, and those are the times I will remember
most, Yoder said.
Yoders experience on the trip opened his eyes to the vast diversity of international
agriculture, and he can now share this knowledge with other U.S. agriculture contacts in the
future.
More information on the National FFAs international leadership seminar opportunity is
available on the visit organizations official website at: http://www.ffa.org/participate/global.
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Sources:
Sarah Trimm, AEC Assistant Director, strimm@ufl.edu, (352) 870-8559
Gordon Yoder, AEC Undergraduate Student, gordony95@ufl.edu, (850) 447-3620
Logan Luse, Former Florida FFA State Officer, Ljluse94@gmail.com, (386) 209-5623
National FFA Organization Website, http://www.ffa.org/participate/global

Publication: CALS Connection