Finding Her Voice for the Future

Senior Environmental Science major Bentley appears at pair of high-profile international forums

By Charlie Morrison

Powered by the USDA’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) “NextGen” program, Environmental Science major Kennedy Bentley has been on a whirlwind tour in 2024, compounding her experience on an impactful study abroad trip in Senegal this summer to represent Tennessee State University and the College of Agriculture (TSUAg) at a pair of global international forums.

In September, Bentley was one of just three U.S. delegates to participate in the “Agri-Young Hackathon,” at the Group of Seven (G7) Ministers’ Meeting on Agriculture. The event, held from Sept. 26 to 28 in Syracuse, Italy, saw 30 undergraduate-level youth from the seven G7 nations come together to draft policy recommendations and present them to the group of agriculture ministers.

In late October, along with TSU Interim President Dr. Ronald Johnson, Bentley was selected to participate in a panel discussion at the internationally-recognized 2024 Borlaug Dialogue Conference in Des Moines, Iowa. The forum was moderated by the USDA NIFA Director Dr. Manjit Misra, and also featured Paul Schickler, Chair of the World Food Prize Foundation Council of Advisors and Iowa State University President Wendy Wintersteen.

The connective tissue between each of Bentley’s experiences this year has been her status as a NextGen scholar and participation in the NextGen program here at TSUAg. Scholarships and study abroad are two of the big components of the program, titled ‘From Learning to Leading: Cultivating the Next Generation of Diverse Food and Agriculture Professionals.’

The program enables 1890 land-grant universities like TSU to engage, train, and support students and build the next generation of diverse food, agriculture, natural resources, and human sciences professionals. NextGen offers students like Bentley both financial support and the opportunity to make a name for herself, and on the latter she’s made good.

And while Bentley is the first to admit that while she was proud to have represented TSU, the College of Agriculture, the NextGen program and most importantly herself with grace and intelligence at the two international forums, she’s equally proud to have represented us in Senegal, where for two weeks, she worked with the Extension program and NextGen to educate locals on best-practice canning techniques. It was there she got the travel bug.

“Originally, I wanted to go into wildlife conservation, but this experience of traveling has broadened and changed my mind a little bit,” she continues. “I want to work more on international policy with regard to wildlife with the hopes that it would allow me to travel across borders.”

The flame of Bentley’s yearning to work in international agriculture policy was unquestionably fanned by her experience in Italy at the G7, an informal forum that brings together Italy, Canada, France, Germany, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States of America to discuss global topics of importance.

Leading up to the trip, the U.S. delegation had the chance to meet with U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack in Washington, D.C., who prepped them on position points. But for Bentley, appearing at the conference was as much about bringing the world of agriculture through her lens to the community.

“Showing what people like me, young Black women or any young kid can actually achieve in the agriculture world without focusing on farming, that’s my biggest thing,” says Bentley. “I think the lens that I brought was very different, I’m not here to build my family’s farm I’m here to change the way we look at climate and the way we look at food.”

At the Borlaug Dialogue, an annual international symposium tackling the topic of global food security organized by the World Food Prize Foundation, Bentley was challenged in another way. The conference wanted to hear from young voices, and it was Bentley’s they turned to during the panel discussion.

“This generation is really focused on doing what they can do to make the most money, and I really don’t blame them, but at the same time this new generation doesn’t care to ask, ‘how are we going to change the world?’” she says. “We’re receiving kids into our industry that actually care, kids that want to make a change. That’s our audience. You can literally do anything in agriculture.”

Having tackled the G7 and the Borlaug Dialogue, Bentley is now focused on the future, specifically next semester. But for Bently’s part, the significance of the last six months’ is not lost on her.

“It was such an honor to represent as a young, Black woman, to be chosen as one of only three kids to represent the United States in Italy and then to speak at the Borlaug shows that people really want to hear the voices of those who are not always heard from,” she says with a smile. “I’m honored to have been able to make my voice heard for those who look like me.”