What NG means to me

Written by Greg Harris, Mount Adde, New Zealand
As I work away here at Mount Adde in preparation for my upcoming trip to the RASC Edinburgh Conference, “Experience Scotland” seems to be advancing increasingly quickly, excitement and found memories of the past flood back, and I find myself thinking of the many great friends I have made and the amazing opportunity we have all been presented. It is a great honor to be associated with the RASC and to participate in the Next Generation group with so many ambitious young people from around the globe, we are unique group and have been bought together with a common theme of Agriculture in our blood, and with the belief we can all make a positive difference.

After my trip to Zambia with the NG and seeing the reports flood in from the PNG mission I could see this is the true essence of the RASC and the NG in work. The message became clear to me “we can all make a difference in the world today” we all individually choose the way we live our lives, “small things can make a big difference” everyday we are making decisions that impact on others, the challenge for us all is to be well informed, to show leadership sound judgment in making the right choices while encouraging others to do the same.

NG’s are young people with their life ahead of them, individuals who have potential to make a difference and in many cases have already shown leadership in their respective communities. RASC brings us together, encouraging us to participate, allowing us to grow and network with the hope we will make a difference.

I recall my first involvement with RASC when I was invited to travel to Attend the RASC Conference in Calgary Canada, a country vastly different to my own but with many similarities also. We had internationally reputed lectures on Climate Change, Plant Science and Animal Genetics, which I still remember clearly and still quote from time to time, along with the Calgary Stampede - one of the biggest Agricultural Exhibition shows in the World today. Then the “Amazing African Experience” that was the NG mission to Zambia, where we not only got to see and hear but we got to live and breath the African way of life, and challenges these people face on an everyday basis. It was not lost on me the community and quality of life these people shared despite their relative poverty a lesson for all of us.

The next privilege was helping host the 23rd RASC Conference in New Zealand in 2008 where I was fortunate enough to be asked to chair the NG forum. My only regret is that time passes so quickly. So many interesting people from such a wide spectrum, this is one of the great things about the RASC and gives us all a unique experience to gain a worldly perspective of global dynamics, helping us to understand the greater issues while putting into perspective the challenges we all face in life. I look forward to Experience Scotland with great anticipation knowing it will be another experience of a lifetime.
Kind Regards Greg Harris