What are the ingredients of change? How can you fuel and be an agent of change in your community? Rebekah Slabach serves as an extension agent of agriculture and natural resources with Virginia Cooperative Extension in Halifax County. Rebekah shares her early involvement with 4-H and Youth Conservation Camp as two educational opportunities growing up that sparked her interest and passion in agriculture and the environment. Rebekah sees her work with Extension to fuel and encourage positive change on farms and the broader community. Mindfulness, passion, and perspective are key elements for fueling change but also knowing your goals and not getting distracted by seemingly urgent needs. Soil fertility and health have to be managed for short-term and long-term profitability, resilience, and community change.

To learn more about Virginia Cooperative Extension's Natural Resource and Environmental Education programs and the Virginia's Soil and Water Conservation Districts' Youth Conservation Camp, please visit https://ext.vt.edu/4h-youth/nree.html and https://vaswcd.org/conservation-camp/

The basic information and core principles of soil health, along with two years of the 4 The Soil: A Conversation podcast archives, can be accessed at https://www.4thesoil.org/. To pledge your support to 4 The Soil, fill out the form at https://www.4thesoil.org/take-the-pledge and tell us how you are building soil resilience and health in your community.