International Development Club hosts IAAS-USA National Summit

SEATTLE, Wash. – Focusing on sustainability, Washington State University’s International Development Club (IDC) last week hosted the National Summit meeting of the International Association of Students in Agriculture and Related Sciences in Seattle.

Members of IDC, a registered IAAS committee, worked all school year to plan, organize and prepare for the event, which drew students from Iowa State University, University of Illinois, University of Tennessee, Oregon State University, University of Minnesota, Clemson University, University of Nebraska, North Carolina State University, and the University of Hawaii.

WSU senior Victoria Barth , IDC club member and this last year’s IAAS-USA national director, said the theme of this year’s summit was Sustainability in Seattle.

“We based our conference around sustainability because we believe that sustainable practices are key in creating the type of world we want to pass on to future generations,” said Barth. “ And through sustainability we believe we can reach our collective goals of increasing food production, fostering natural resources, and improving human activities in a way that will be stable for future generations.”

Those who attended were able to learn more and share their own research on sustainability and agriculture through participating in a trade fair, experiencing farm, field, and market tours, and engaging in student led forums with industry leaders on sustainability in business, agriculture systems, water, development and resource management. In addition, Dr. Kim Kidwell, the Executive Associate Dean of Academic Programs, led an intercultural communication training. Keynote speeches were given by Brantley Browning, of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and Lisa Cohen, the Executive Director of the Washington Global Health Alliance.