Future Leaders in Agriculture Program Graduates Its First Cohort
· Tarım Pusulası
The Future Leaders in Agriculture Program, a collaboration between Türkiye İş Bankası and Sabancı University, has concluded its first term, graduating 17 young farmer candidates from 14 provinces.
Future Leaders in Agriculture Graduates
The first term of the Future Leaders in Agriculture Program, implemented in collaboration with Türkiye İş Bankası and Sabancı University, has been successfully completed. Within the scope of the project, designed for young people studying in agricultural faculties whose families are engaged in crop production or animal husbandry, 17 young individuals from 14 different provinces across Turkey received training. The participating students actively play a role in the production processes in various fields such as wheat, tea, hazelnuts, fruit farming, greenhouse cultivation, cattle farming, and beekeeping, alongside their families.
Interdisciplinary Comprehensive Training Program
Throughout the program held on the Sabancı University campus, participants received extensive information on the transformation in agriculture and food systems, sustainability, financial literacy, and agricultural financing. Participants met with experts in areas such as cooperativism, value-added production, branding, digital applications, circular economy, and supply chain management. On the final day of the program, students were hosted at the Türkiye İş Bankası headquarters, where they had the opportunity to present their own agricultural production projects directly to industry professionals and academics.
Academy and Field Experience Meet
At the closing event, Umut Yiğit, Marketing Manager of Agricultural Banking at İş Bankası, highlighted the young participants' field experience and made the following assessment:
"On one hand, they are receiving education in agriculture and getting acquainted with the possibilities offered by science and current developments, and on the other hand, because they are involved in production through their families, they are familiar with all the processes and the challenges in agriculture. We find the convergence of these two worlds extremely valuable."
Stating their belief in the transformative impact of the new generation, Umut Yiğit, Marketing Manager of Agricultural Banking at İş Bankası, continued his words as follows:
"We believe that the transformation needed in the future of Turkish agriculture will be carried out by a generation that can bring together academic knowledge with field experience, traditional production heritage with new technologies, and today's needs with a long-term understanding of sustainability."
Vision for Sustainable and Smart Agriculture
Pointing to the necessity of a multidimensional training approach, Prof. Dr. Cem Güneri, Vice Rector of Sabancı University, shared his views with the following words:
"The future of agriculture is no longer just about producing more; it is about developing production models that are smarter, more resilient, more sustainable, and create higher added value."
Stating that scientific and technological accumulation must be supported by economic and environmental perspectives, Prof. Dr. Cem Güneri said that young people will lead the change in the future of agriculture.