Iowa State University has praised the efforts of one of its students, Malcolm Smith, who will be graduating this week.
During his time with the university, he has completed internships in Uganda and taken graduate level courses in Germany. He will graduate with degrees in global resource systems and public service and administration in agriculture.
According to Smith, his time studying abroad allowed him to gain new perspectives on several areas and, in certain cases, identify the gravity of problems associated with food scarcity.
"It's been eye-opening," Smith said. "You see starving people in Africa on TV. But actually seeing that first hand really impacted me. It put into perspective the benefits I have as an American citizen — benefits a lot of people would die to have."
He served as a service-learning intern on the first internship in Uganda, working with children to plant fruits, grains and vegetable gardens. During the second internship, Smith served as a global intern and focused on an independent research project. These experiences have also formed his career goals and aims to work for the U.S. Department of Agriculture in the Foreign Agricultural Service.
"It’s so important for Americans to teach our knowledge of ag practices to other nations," Smith said.
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