100 New Young Leaders Join the Journey Towards Zero Hunger

MONHEIM, Germany, May 30, 2019 /3BL Media/ – Bayer is excited to announce that it has selected the 100 participants, coming from 45 countries, for the fourth edition of the Youth Ag Summit. The 2019 Summit will take place in Brasilia, Brazil from November 4-6, in partnership with Nuffield Brazil.

The Youth Ag Summit, part of the Bayer Agricultural Education Program, brings together young change-makers aged 18-25 to tackle the challenges of how to feed a growing population by 2050. For this year’s application process, each prospective participant pitched an idea to tackle food insecurity in the context of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). In total, Bayer received over 2,800 applications from more than 140 countries. 

A local country jury reviewed each application, before a panel of experts made the final selection. This year’s crop of 100 delegates includes entrepreneurs, farmers, students, plant scientists, and economists – to name a few. Their ideas focused on tackling challenges as varied as gender equality, sustainable agriculture, youth education, food waste, and climate change. Despite their varied backgrounds and interests, all share a commitment to driving progress towards a world without hunger.

“About 800 million people around the world go to bed hungry each night, and these young innovators are eager to help solve this challenge,” said Liam Condon, member of the Board of Management of Bayer AG and president of the Crop Science Division. “The 100 delegates headed to Brazil in November all share a commitment to driving innovation in agriculture, which is vital if we are to both feed the world and ensure healthy ecosystems.”

Rodrigo Santos, Head of the Crop Science Division in Latin America said, “Latin America has an important role in the challenge of feeding a hungry planet, so we´re very happy to receive these incredible young leaders to discuss such an important topic as food security. I hope Brazil’s thriving agricultural sector inspires our delegates to develop their innovative ideas.”

Fabiano Paganella, president of Nuffield Brazil, added, “The next generation will need to create a better tomorrow. But to do that, they need to be given a voice today. The Youth Ag Summit gives young leaders the chance to learn and practice new skills – and we are excited to help deliver these opportunities to 100 new agvocates in November.”

For the 100 chosen delegates, the Youth Ag Summit will function as an idea incubator: helping them turn their ideas into reality and equipping them with the skills needed to realize their projects. They will also hear from expert speakers and participate in field trips to learn more about the agricultural industry in Brazil.

The delegates hail from the following countries:
Australia, China, India, Indonesia, Japan, New Zealand, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, Kenya, Ethiopia, Netherlands, Poland, Russia, South Africa, Namibia, Nigeria, Ghana, Spain, Turkey, Ukraine, United Kingdom, Canada, USA, Colombia, Ecuador, Brazil, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Argentina, Uruguay, Bolivia, Mexico, Egypt, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Malaysia, Nepal and Cambodia.

Visit www.youthagsummit.com to meet the delegates and to learn more about the Summit. Follow the latest news on @YouthAgSummit or www.facebook.com/YouthAgSummit 

About the Youth Ag Summit
The Youth Ag Summit movement is a community of global young leaders championing sustainable agriculture and food security and working to bridge the understanding gap between those who produce our food and those who consume it. Every two years, 100 delegates are chosen to take part in the Summit. Previous editions have been hosted in Canada, Australia, and Belgium. This year’s Summit is the first to be held in Latin America. Bayer will cover all travel, accommodation and related costs for the chosen delegates. 

The Summit is part of Bayer’s Agricultural Education Program: a holistic, long-term approach to encourage young people aged 18 to 28 to learn about sustainable agriculture. The program aims to inspire the next generation to learn more about modern agriculture and find solutions to global food security. As a research-driven company, Bayer is committed to driving societal acceptance of technology, as well as fostering a future talent pipeline of scientists. 

Find out more about the Program at www.ag-education.bayer.com, https://www.facebook.com/BayerAgEdu/, or on Twitter @BayerAgEdu.

About Nuffield Brazil 
Nuffield Brazil is a member of Nuffield International, a network established in 1947 in the UK to promote personal, professional and social development in agriculture through its activities. Its main program, Nuffield International Farming Scholarships, promotes, develops, and inspires producers and agri-professionals between 25 and 45 years of age who travel globally to bring back solutions for local issues and opportunities, and to become leaders in agriculture. With a network of more than 1.700 Nuffield Scholars around the world, participants are able to grow personally and contribute professionally through experiential travel and investigation of contemporary issues in agriculture. Components of a Nuffield scholarship include participating in the program’s annual conference, small group travel, and individual excursions to over 10 countries - totaling 14 weeks over a two year period. For more information, go to www.nuffieldinternational.org and www.nuffield.com.br.

About Bayer
Bayer is a global enterprise with core competencies in the life science fields of health care and nutrition. Its products and services are designed to benefit people by supporting efforts to overcome the major challenges presented by a growing and aging global population. At the same time, the Group aims to increase its earning power and create value through innovation and growth. Bayer is committed to the principles of sustainable development, and the Bayer brand stands for trust, reliability and quality throughout the world. In fiscal 2018, the Group employed around 117,000 people and had sales of 39.6 billion euros. Capital expenditures amounted to 2.6 billion euros, R&D expenses to 5.2 billion euros. For more information, go to www.bayer.com.

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Forward-Looking Statements 
This release may contain forward-looking statements based on current assumptions and forecasts made by Bayer management. Various known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors could lead to material differences between the actual future results, financial situation, development or performance of the company and the estimates given here. These factors include those discussed in Bayer’s public reports which are available on the Bayer website at www.bayer.com. The company assumes no liability whatsoever to update these forward-looking statements or to conform them to future events or developments.