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Canadian Young Speakers for Agriculture competition 2015 winners

Nov. 11, 2015 - The Canadian Young Speakers for Agriculture (CYSA) 2015 competition winners were announced Saturday, November 7, at the Royal Agricultural Winter Fair in Toronto.

Canadian Young Speakers for Agriculture is a national, bilingual competition that gives participants an opportunity to share their opinions, ideas and concerns about the Canadian agri-food industry in a five- to seven-minute prepared speech.

Winners for 2015 are:
Senior Champion: David MacTaggart from Lacombe, Alberta; Senior second place: Simon Greenough from Newport, Nova Scotia; Senior third place: Kathryn Ringelberg from Troy, Ontario.

Junior Champion: Denesh Peramakumar form Concord, Ontario; Junior second place: Douglas Archer from Mount Pleasant, Ontario; Junior third place: Priethu Raveendran from Woodbridge, Ontario.

This 31st edition of CYSA welcomed 26 competitors aged 11 to 24 from across Canada who offered their insight and solutions regarding the following topics:

- The biggest challenge facing Canadian agriculture today is ...
- What role should government play in assisting young people entering farm businesses?
- Here's how our changing climate is affecting Canadian agriculture.
- This Canadian has significantly influenced agriculture.
- The one thing modern Canadian farmers must have is ...

Each year the renowned public speaking competition is held at the Royal Agricultural Winter Fair in Toronto. The competition is open to youth ages 11 to 24 with a passion for agriculture whether raised on a farm, in the country or in the city.

As announced after the Seniors final round, the topics for 2016 will be:
- What is the impact of public opinion on Canadian farmers?
- How would you explain a GMO to a non-farmer?
- What does the next generation of agriculture bring to the table?
- How can we improve the media's perception of Canadian agriculture?
- Old MacDonald had a farm...But what about Mrs. MacDonald?

Since the first competition held at the Royal Winter Fair in honour of the International Year of the Youth in 1985, it has gone on to become the premier public speaking event in Canada for young people interested in agriculture, with more than 900 participants in total over the years.

For more information about CYSA visit www.cysa-joca.ca.

 

November 13, 2015  By Top Crop Manager