Belknap County teens represent NH at national 4-H conference

WASHINGTON — Three teens from Belknap County — Emma Davidson, Oliver Leandro and Emmaline Leandro — represented the state at the national 4-H Ignite conference in Washington D.C. in early March. 

With the support of University of New Hampshire 4-H staff and youth-adult partners, the team spent the past year developing a workshop, Passion in Action: Creating Teen-Taught Curriculums. This interactive session empowered youth to design and lead their own passion-driven programs. Their dedication and collaboration led to their selection for this competitive national event.

In addition to giving their presentation, the teens toured the U.S. Department of Agriculture, listened to speakers and participated in workshops, gaining valuable insights to bring back to their community. They actively engaged in hands-on learning experiences to further enhance their leadership and knowledge.

During the conference, the team developed the Clover Campaign, a Lead to Change project aiming to increase New Hampshire 4-H membership by 2%. This initiative focuses on engaging current members in recruitment efforts and enhancing program visibility to attract new participants.

Following their presentation, the trio were nominated for the National 4-H Beyond Youth Development Award, recognizing their outstanding contributions to youth leadership and youth-adult partnerships.