Progress 06/01/23 to 05/31/24
Outputs
Target Audience:The target audiences engaged in year 1 of the project were: 1) Youth and adult leadership teams from the five subgrantee LGUs who attended the 2024 Ignite Conference, participating in content workshops in areas of food loss and waste and HH:FLW subgrant orientation conducted by the Lead Advisor LGU, Evaluation LGU, and National 4-H Council. 2) Adults (Extension staff) working with youth on their HH:FLW projects started monthly training, coaching and resource calls in April 2024. These two target audiences are critical, central elements in achieving local success through the food loss and waste projects in their schools and communities. In Yr2, these groups will be fully engaged with these target audiences. Youth leading community activities through the Healthy Habits: Food Loss and Waste grants. Adults working in partnership with youth leading the Healthy Habits: Food Loss and Waste grants. Community partners and collaborators, such as schools, community gardens, producers/growers, etc. engaged in the Healthy Habits: Food Loss and Waste grants. Community members benefiting from the project activities. 3) 2024 Ignite by 4-H youth participants. Of the total Ignite attendees, 692 were youth and 322 adults. Youth self-reported as 57% White or Caucasian, 22% Black or African American, 9% Hispanic or Latino, 2% American Indian or Alaska Native, 2% Asian, and 8% more than one race. Youth came from a reported 515 zip codes across the United States, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands (some zip code data missing). Of the total respondents to the overall Ignite post-conference survey, 9.7% (n=61) indicated they attended Ignite as part of the HH: FLW project. Half of respondents consisted of 15 to 16-year-olds, with age ranging from 14-18 years old. Females reported at 65% and 35% male. They self-reported as White or Caucasian (46.7%), Black or African American (35%), American Indian or Alaska Native (3.3%), Hispanic or Latino (6.7%), Asian (1.7%), and more than one race (6.7%). Changes/Problems:The award was made 6/1/2023 pending: 1) NIFA's receipt of the required REEport project initiation, 2) the outcome of a full administrative review by NIFA, and 3) IRB approval. National 4-H Council and NIFA staff met regularly June-September 2023 to refine the project narrative and budget to reflect FASLP and Council goals, objectives, and metrics. The Project Initiation form was submitted 11/6/2023. While Council issued pre-award RFPs for the Healthy Habits: Food Loss and Waste (HH:FLW) subgrants portion, we were unable to move forward with other significant activities until NIFA approved the project narrative and budget/budget narrative - done on 11/28/2023 - along with approval to engage the evaluation subgrantee to complete the required IRB. The IRB determination letter submitted 12/19/2023 was approved by NIFA on 1/10/2024. With the IRB determination approved, Council was able to finalize the selection of one lead advisor and five implementation subgrantees for the HH:FLW grants in January 2024, negotiate proposal/budget adjustments in February/March, and issue subgrant agreements in March. Council staff was engaged in coaching and technical assistance with the subgrantees via email, phone and group calls since they were selected to finalize the subgrant agreements. Weheard from LGUs that vacancies within office sponsored programs have delayed communication or action related to budget questions and agreement execution. Due to the timing for issuing/negotiating HH:FLW subgrant agreements, we found the LGUs were unable or unwilling to set up accounts for their awards until the agreements were fully executed. This has delayed subgrantees from implementing their project and submission of claims in Year 1, which delayed approval and draw for these expenses. The HH:FLW subgrantees have submitted revised timelines for their implementation given the drawn out timing that was needed to get the local projects underway. They have also needed to reconfirm arrangements with school and community partners, find a new school or after-school site if necessary, and recruit additional teen leaders. We have been collecting recommendations from HH:FLW subgrantees to revise the Request for Proposals (RFP) in several areas, including clearer requirements of Ignite attendance, more detailed expectations for youth involvement on the national level in addition to support with the local implementation, per diem for travel, and updated unallowed costs to name a few. To prevent delays in HH:FLW Cohort 2 implementation, the subgrantee RFP will be released earlier and allow a longer period for submission than for Cohort 1. We also anticipate a longer period between selection of the LGUs and agreement execution to accommodate the negotiations. Fully executed agreements are expected to be in place prior to the scheduled start of local programming. CLOVER activities in the project have been delayed due to staffing issues (finding applicants with necessary technical competencies) and internal staff turnover. We expect to release the subgrant RFP for Cohort 1 for educational content development no later than early November 2024. When proposals are selected the RFP(s) for the technical developers will be released. Related to this, the competitive RFP for the CLOVER by 4-H Digital Promotion Services contract was not released in year 1 because of the educational content delay. The two elements of new CLOVER functionality, Youth Engagement and Connection to In-person 4-H Platform Functionality and Expanding Use of Content to Include Hybrid and Live/On-Demand Facilitated Workshops Functionality, have been delayed as we reassess the specific scopes of work and final features with the Extension Extraordinary Opportunities to Learn (EOL) Committee and the restructured internal CLOVER team. A competitive RFP for the Ignite by 4-H Digital Marketing Services contract was not released in year 1 as the feasibility of an onsite 4-H teen journalist to report out on health, nutrition food sustainability, food equity, and agriscience topics was reassessed given the pre-existing social media company which was to support the activity was let go prior to the 2024 Ignite by 4-H conference. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Training provided in year 1 of this project focused on the Healthy Habits: Food Loss and Waste (HH:FLW) subgrantees. The Ignite conference provided additional training and educational experiences for the larger youth audience. Initial training/orientation for the HH:FLW subgrantees took place at the Ignite by 4-H teen conference in March 2024. Teens took part in educational workshops and excursions focused on food loss and waste, and the full subgrantee teams were provided with an introduction to the project and evaluation methods and surveys. Starting in April 2024, there have been monthly group and individual coaching meetings for the subgrantees, led by Utah State University (Lead Advisor) with additional topics/input from the Univ of Nebraska-Lincoln (project evaluator) and National 4-H Council. Subgrantees were provided with the 2024 Food for Thought STEM Challenge Kit and training to support its use. Food for Thought is a collection of three engaging activities that equip kids with fundamental knowledge of factors that contribute to Food Security, how people are impacted both globally and locally, and how youth can personally contribute to creating a more food secure community. Learning activities are: Food Fighters: This collaborative board game gamifies learning about the global food supply chain. Students work together to secure their town's food supply, making strategic decisions and building teamwork skills. Chew on This: This entrepreneurial challenge encourages students to think critically about food waste reduction. By brainstorming innovative uses for food scraps, students develop problem-solving and design thinking skills. Know to Grow: This hands-on engineering activity introduces students to plant science and controlled environment agriculture. Students design and build efficient growing environments, fostering an understanding of plant cultivation and its role in food security. Evaluation training included the Food Loss and Waste Effort and Tracking spreadsheet to collect pre- and post-intervention food loss and waste audits; and track diverted foods and destination (e.g., people, animals, composting); trainings provided; and volunteers associated with the project. Additionally, HH:FLW subgrantees were trained on using the teen survey created for the youth leading local projects. The survey is used when a teen leader is at the end of their participation/service with the local project which could be after a handful of hours, or after the entire duration of the project, depending on each individual teen's role. The survey is available in English and Spanish. HH:FLW subgrantees were provided with training materials on submitting reimbursement claims and budget revisions via the Webgrants platform, and office hours were established to do one-on-one training as needed for the platform. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?
Nothing Reported
What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Throughout the year, these activities are ongoing: Monthly training/coaching sessions for Healthy Habits: Food Loss and Waste (HH:FLW) Cohort 1 (C1) subgrantees HH:FLW evaluation trainings (one-on-one and 5-state) as needed and to onboard new youth/adults Quarterly evaluation reporting for HH:FLW C1 Q1 June-Aug 2024: In-depth training on the Food Loss and Waste Effort and Tracking spreadsheet used by HH:FLW C1 evaluation HH:FLW C1 training on: 1) Reducing Food Waste From the Garden, learn how to properly harvest garden produce and once picked how to extend the shelf life, 2) Food For Thought STEM Challenge Kit (LSU AgCenter, North Dakota State University, Penn State Extension, and University of Nebraska-Lincoln at https://shop4-h.org/products/food-for-thought-kit) and 3) Guardians of the Food Galaxy (Rutgers University at https://sites.rutgers.edu/gotfg/) HH:FLW subgrantees recruit additional teens leaders for their projects and plan re-engagement activities with schools to provide broad project implementation with the new school year Competitive selection of Ignite 2025 Design Team members, ensuring each Extension Region and the 1890s are represented Q2 Sept-Nov 2024: Training for teens to support their work as Teens as Teachers in their HH:FLW implementation HH:FLW C1 subgrantees select youth and adults for LGU teams attending Ignite 2025 Utilize feedback from C1 to modify/create monthly training/coaching sessions for HH:FLW C2 Provide 3rd installment of teaching aids to HH:FLW C1 Draft and release Request for Proposals (RFP) for HH:FLW C2 subgrants Draft and release RFPs for CLOVER content creation C1 subgrants and CLOVER contractors Ignite 2025 workshops are selected, including determination of the tracks/workshops HH:FWL C1 participants will focus on during the conference Draft and release RFPs for Ignite 2025 contractors; determine educational activations and workshops focused on FLW Select contractors and secure speakers for Ignite 2025 Q3 Dec 2024-Feb 2025: Utilize feedback from C1 to modify/create monthly professional development plan/coaching sessions for C2 Select CLOVER contractors and subgrantees for CLOVER content creation C1 subgrants Evaluate proposals for HH:FLW C2 Draft and release RFPs for Ignite 2025 contractors; determine educational activations and workshops focused on FLW Select contractors and secure speakers for Ignite 2025 Plan in-person staff and HH:FLW subgrantee meeting to be held at Ignite 2025 Q4 Mar-May 2025: Programmatic and evaluation support at Ignite 2025 conference with C1 teams In-person staff and HH:FLW subgrantee meeting at Ignite 2025 HH:FLW Cohort 1 in closeout & final evaluation Begin on-boarding HH:FLW C2 with programmatic and evaluation support Provide monthly training/coaching sessions for C2 In-depth training on the Food Loss and Waste Effort and Tracking spreadsheet used by HH:FLW C2 evaluation Compile evaluation data and activities for annual REEport progress report Draft and release RFPs for CLOVER content creation C2 subgrants and CLOVER contractors
Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals?
This project specifically addresses food loss and waste reduction efforts in schools; plate waste in school feeding programs; food, garden and nutrition education through community engagement; and youth leadership skills. Those people helped most immediately in year 1 are Extension professionals, youth leaders and adult volunteers engaged in leading local implementation through the Healthy Habits: Food Loss and Waste (HH:FLW) subgrants and youth attendees are the 2024 Ignite by 4-H teen conference. Objective 1: Decreasing food loss in schools. Objective 2: Increasing waste reduction efforts in schools. Objective 3: Reducing plate waste in school feeding programs. Objective 4: Increasing capacity for food, garden and nutrition education through community engagement. Objectives 1-4 were minimally addressed in year 1 due to delays in final project approvals and local project implementation. To address objectives 1-4, the Univ of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL) created the Food Loss and Waste Effort and Tracking spreadsheet to collect pre- and post-intervention food loss and waste audits; and track diverted foods and destination (e.g., people, animals, composting); trainings provided; and volunteers associated with the project. UNL also created the teen survey for youth leading local projects, to be used when a teen leader is at the end of their participation/service. Objective 5: Increasing levels of community engagement and youth leadership skills. Youth/adult leadership teams participated in Ignite workshops and educational activations, and project orientation and evaluation overview provided by USU, UNL and National 4-H Council. Survey of these teens (n=14) showed: Based on Ignite experience, reported Interested/Very Interested in FLW strategies related to upcycling materials 64%, composting materials 71%, biofuels 71%, and biotechnology 93% 100% Agreed/Strongly Agreed that they learned one or more strategies for dealing with FLW, such as upcycling or composting materials, turning byproducts into energy, and/or better crops through technology The Agriscience keynote was the most helpful (82%) in preparation for their HH: FLW project plan According to the overall Ignite post-conference survey, 9.7% (n=61) indicated they attended Ignite as part of the HH: FLW project. Highlights for the 61 participants were: Nearly half (49.2%) participated in the Healthy Living track, with Agriscience at 26.2% and STEM at 24.6%. Strategies learned that may help reduce/prevent FLW were upcycling materials 30.6%, composting materials 46.9%, biofuels 12.2%, better crops through biotechnology 16.3% 58% responded yes to pay more attention to their own actions to reduce/prevent FLW in their daily lives 52% responded yes to give their family ideas for how to reduce/prevent FLW at home 51% responded yes to encourage their friends to make responsible choices to reduce/prevent FLW when they are together 56.1% responded Highly Satisfied with track workshops for their specific pillar 59.61% responded Highly Satisfied with the explore workshop sessions Full Ignite post-conference evaluation: One goal of Ignite was to promote positive youth outcomes - youth will have a deeper understanding of key issues in agriscience, healthy living, or STEM through learning sessions. On a scale of 1 (No), 2 (Somewhat), and 3 (Yes), almost all youth survey respondents (96%) indicated 'yes' or 'somewhat' when asked if they had a better understanding of key issues in these fields after attending Ignite. Responses to survey question on youth leadership skills were as follows: Are you willing to work hard on something difficult? Yes at 73.6% and Usually at 24.5% Before making a decision, do you stop to think about your choices? Yes at 53.1% and Usually at 39.4% Do you think about how your choices affect others? Yes at 62.0% and Usually at 32.1% Do you look for ways to involve all members of a group? Yes at 68.1% and Usually at 27.8% Do you get along with others who are different from you? Yes at 64.2% and Usually at 31.7% Are you comfortable being a leader? Yes at 64.3% and Usually at 26.1% There were 15 Agriscience workshops which had a total of 813 participants, 12 Healthy Living workshops which had a total of 744 participants, and 13 STEM workshops which had a total of 929 participants. Of the 40 workshops, 12 were related to FLW and were attended by 613 participants. Ignite also had 3 educational activations related to FLW. Power Playdough! make your own playdough from leftover flour, color it with plant and fruit scrap-based dyes, then add in battery lights to create squishy conductors. Soil Savers! create and take home a compostable seed bomb to cultivate sustainable planting to help target food waste. Eco-Quest a series of decision-making challenges, navigate the complex system of the food cycle and the affects it has on health, environment, and the economy. Through Lead to Change, teens focused on creating action plans to find solutions for real issues impacting their communities. More than 100 community action plans were developed at Ignite. There were 65 action plans submitted, of which 7 related to FLW topics. Since Apr 2024, the HH:FLW subgrantees have participated in monthly group and individual coaching meetings led by USU with added topics/input from UNL and National 4-H Council. See Training/PD question. UNL created the Food Loss and Waste Effort and Tracking spreadsheet to collect pre- and post-intervention food loss and waste audits; and track diverted foods and destination (e.g., people, animals, composting); trainings provided; and volunteers associated with the project. UNL also created the teen survey for youth leading local projects, to be used when a teen leader is at the end of their participation/service. Objective 6: Determining likely scalability and sustainability of project activities in relation to the Healthy Habits: Food Loss and Waste grants. Objective 6 was minimally addressed in year 1 due to delays in final project approvals and local project implementation. Based on the first quarter PI report, LGUs reported No (40%), Little (20%), or Moderate (40%) contribution to determining likely scalability and sustainability of project activities in relation to the HH: FLW grant. PIs Strongly Agreed to the following: Participating site(s) will continue to play an active role in FLW efforts after this grant ends (60%) Extension will continue to strengthen youth engagement across different program areas after this grant ends (80%) The community projects supported by this grant will continue after the program ends (80%) The Extension program at my LGU will continue to grow its FLW-related work after the grant ends (60%) Objective 7: Determining effectiveness of community partners and collaborations in addressing food loss and waste issues. Objective 7 was minimally addressed in year 1 due to delays in final project approvals and local project implementation. Based on the first quarter PI report, LGUs reported no (40%), little (40%), or moderate (20%) contribution to determining effectiveness of community partners and collaborations in addressing food loss and waste issues in relation to the HH: FLW grant. Across HH:FLW participating sites so far, LGUs rated the extent of the following aspects of FLW development: The local project was reflective of the diversity in the community (67% outstanding; 33% needs improvement) Extension professionals were able to engage as equal partners with community in the planning/implementing of the project (75% outstanding; 25% adequate/good) Extension operated in service of local priorities or interests (67% adequate/good; 33% needs improvement) FLW improvement work was tailored to and targeted those experiencing the greatest inequities (67% adequate/good; 33% outstanding) FLW improvement work was focused on policy, systems, and environmental change (67% adequate/good; 33% needs improvement)
Publications
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