Nebraska Youth Institute

What is the Nebraska Youth Institute?

The Nebraska Youth Institute is a life-changing experience at the University of Nebraska where high school students engage with local leaders and experts on critical global challenges, participate in hands-on activities, and explore exciting ways to make a difference in Nebraska and around the world.

Students research issues they care about and propose their ideas to solve these grand challenges.

The Nebraska Youth Institute is hosted by the University of Nebraska - Lincoln with the generous support of the College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources (CASNR); the Department of Agricultural Leadership, Education and Communication (ALEC); the Institute of Agriculture and Natural Resources (IANR), Bruce and Kathy Maunder with the Maunder-Borlaug scholarship, The Malaika Foundation, the Nebraska Department of Education (NDE) and Nebraska FFA.

Why participate?

Students who participate in the Nebraska Youth Institute earn a $500 scholarship, recognition as a Borlaug Scholar, and qualify for internships and further opportunitie s.

At this exciting event, participating high school students have the opportunity to:

Present research and recommendations on ways to solve key global challenges in a short speech and small group discussions with statewide experts;
Connect with other student leaders from across Nebraska to share ideas, identify solutions to these problems and build lasting friendships;
Explore the issues, current research and opportunities to make a difference at the University of Nebraska
Interact with global leaders, innovators and entrepreneurs in Nebraska working to end hunger and poverty and improve food security around the world.

Papers will be evaluated by The World Food Prize Board of Reviewers. This distinguished group of educators and experts was established to mentor and personally encourage students. Reviewers write thoughtful, personalized feedback to each student who participates in the Youth Institute.

How to participate

To participate in the Nebraska Youth Institute, students research a global issue and write a three page paper under the supervision of a teacher or mentor (using the downloadable guidelines above).

Ninth through twelfth grade students are eligible to apply.

Registration and paper submission due online by: March 1st, 2021

There is no registration cost to participate in the Institute and the 2021 Nebraska Youth Institute will be virtual

For more information please contact Renee Donner at:

rdonner2@unl.edu or (402) 429-4567

Further opportunities for participants:

The Maunder-Borlaug Scholarship

By participating in the Nebraska Youth Institute, students are eligible to apply for the $2,000 Maunder-Borlaug Food Security Scholarship toward tuition in the College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources (CASNR) at UNL. The Scholarship Application must be submitted online by June 1, 2019.

The Global Youth Institute
The top high school students from each youth institute will be competitively selected as delegates to the Global Youth Institute, held every October in Des Moines, Iowa.

The Global Youth Institute is an exciting three-day program where young leaders interact with Nobel and World Food Prize Laureates and the more than 1,000 global leaders from 65 countries attending the World Food Prize's annual international symposium.

Global Youth Institute delegates will be eligible to apply for the Borlaug-Ruan International Internship.

Borlaug-Ruan International Internship s
An all-expenses-paid, eight-week hands-on experience for high school students to work with world-renowned scientists and policymakers at leading research centers in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Middle East. Borlaug-Ruan Interns get a firsthand view of pressing food security and nutritional problems in poverty-stricken areas and take part in groundbreaking research.

Students selected as delegates for the Global Youth Institute are eligible to apply for the Borlaug Ruan International Internship.

USDA Wallace-Carver Fellowships
A paid summer research or policy placement for college students at a U.S. Department of Agriculture laboratory, agency, or at USDA headquarters in Washington D.C. Wallace-Carver Fellows analyze agricultural and economic policy; assist in the management of food, nutrition and rural development programs; and take part in groundbreaking field and laboratory-based research. Fellows travel to Washington DC as part of their fellowship for a week-long high-level leadership program hosted by the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture.