With another exciting school year up ahead Catalyst is welcoming a brand-new youth board! We are super pumped about this year's killer group of youth excited about making a difference, and we would like to officially introduce them. Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome, and get to know, our 2012 Catalyst Youth Board! Madi   Why did you want to join Catalyst? I wanted to join Catalyst because i heard my dear friends Cassie and Alexxis...

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  So what is Catalyst?Catalyst is about action. Catalyst is Minnesota’s statewide youth movement committed to creating positive change around public health issues across the state – especially those in your own school lunch! Catalyst is open to all high school students in Minnesota. So what is the Catalyst Youth Board?The Catalyst Youth Board is leading this movement!  Youth Board members help plan the Catalyst summit, other fun events, and travel the state with Catalyst staff...

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  Youth Farm and Market project is a youth urban farming organization in Minneapolis. Their mission is to create social change through urban agriculture, youth organizing, and cultural nutrition. They are wicked group doing really interesting things. Here is a wicked video from them!    Also this is a intro video to learn more about their program. Youth Farm & Market from Youth Farm on Vimeo.

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So after watching a wickedly interesting movie about local farming, Fresh, we thought we actually see what it was like at a local farm. We had some absolutely delightful ice cream at a recent event from Cedar Summit Farms and thought, we should go there.  We were looking to get a better idea of how the food we eat gets from a place like Cedar Summit to the grocery story, to our breakfast table. It...

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Check out this amazing youth-led effort in Massachusetts!  If you've been following the Catalyst blog today, you'll notice some connections.  We have been reading up on the Youth Food Movement (a network of yout activists across the US supporting local food and sustainable agriculture), and Terra Madre (a global network focusing on these important food issues too).  Well, Project Sprout leaders are members of the Youth Food Network, and Sam Levin, a Project Sprout founder,...

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Like our post about the Youth Food Movement?  Then check out Terra Madre, and international network of farmers, students, researchers, chefs, fishermen, academics, and more - all working to support local food systems and traditions - their goals is to preserve, encourage, and support sustainable food production methods. And just as exciting, Terra Madre is all about supporting youth leadership within this movement.  At their last conference - in October 2008 in Turin, italy -...

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You can check out the Youth Food Movement at www.youthfoodmovement.org and on facebook. This network of youth activists focus on bringing good, clean, and fair food to their communities.  You can check out what they mean by that on their website - and to give you a "taste" of what they're all about, here's some of the stuff they are working on: Starting farms based on traditional methods and sustainable practices Demanding food justice and...

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It is that time of year again!  Catalyst is looking for new Youth Board Members!  WHA’TS UP WITH THE CATALYST YOUTH BOARD?The Catalyst Youth Board is leading this movement!  Youth Board members help plan the Catalyst summit, other fun events, and travel the state with Catalyst staff to help present workshops and trainings.Bottom line, the Youth Board is a big deal! It’s a great opportunity, but it is also a commitment.  Here’s an idea of...

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Check out this fun cooking challenge from students in South Los Angeles, California.  The designed and produced the challenge and the video, and they have a ton of other cool videos to share at www.marketmakeovers.org. This video looks at what kind of healthy and affordable food is available at local corner stores.  This is somethign Catalyst is hoping to look at it Minneapolis - we'll be working with some of our partners to help corner...

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This is an awesome opportunity to do something that's fun and interesting while making a difference and learning a TON! Plus, you get paid for it :) So check this out: Who: St. Paul Neighborhood Network (SPNN) Youth Programs 2009 and  St.Paul high school students     Intern Qualifications: Entering 9th-12th grade in the fall of 2009 Attend high school in St. Paul Reside in the city of St. Paul Have little to no video experience Be...

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Hello from smoke-free Mumbai, India!  It has been an exciting trip so far.  I am here with youth advocates from around the world, attending a youth pre-conference to the World Conference on Tobacco or Health. I am working with three youth from Tunisia and threee from Algeria from the American Cancer Society's Travaillons Sans Fumée (Working Without Smoke) campaign.  And there are also youth advocates and other partners from across the U.S. - New York's...

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Youth Farm and the Community Design Center are two amazing organizations doing really cool work in the Twin Cities to bring gardens into the cities and teach gardening and farming skills to youth from the metro area.  The Youth Farm & Market Project focuses on youth gardening, cooking, nutrition, and entrepreneurship, and works at nine garden sites across Minenapolis and St. Paul.  Last year Youth Farm worked with 500 youth ages 9-13 during their summer...

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I presented this at the "So How are the Children" summit in Faribault. The summit was very interesting, the group is focused on increasing youth capacity in Faribault, which is always a lofty goal. It's a very interesting organization that we hope to keep in touch with. Check out more about them here. http://www.shac4youth.org/ Team Building Presentation View SlideShare presentation or Upload your own.

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The YB met October 10th to 12th at Camp Ihduhapi in Loretto, MN to start planning for Catalyst 2009!  They are working to plan a Catalyst mini-summit, a one day summit extravaganza that will be coming up in January.  We'll have more info and application materials out ASAP, so stay tuned! They spent the weekend working like crazy to make Catalyst 2009 even more fabulous that Catalyst 2008.  They did take a quick break to...

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  Want to CHANGE the WORLD? Every day young adults across the world are doing something meaningful for their community. If you were given $1,000 in seed funding to launch your own social business, club, or organization how would you change the world? Ashoka’s Youth Venture® is leading a global movement of young changemakers who are initiating positive, lasting social change. Youth Venture encourages youth to identify a need in their community, develop an idea...

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We're always proud Mariah! Great article in the Farmington Independant.     2 from Farmington attend anti-smoking eventNathan Hansen The Farmington IndependentPublished Friday, June 20, 2008A pair of incoming Farmington High School students spent three days last week protesting what they see as the tobacco industry’s continued success attracting young smokers.Incoming FHS sophomores Mariah Geiger and Elizabeth Roorda were among more than 100 Minnesota teens who gathered June 13 in St. Paul’s Mears Park to...

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The Youth Advocates of the Year Awards honor top youth advocates from across the country — youth who have fought hard to promote tobacco prevention legislation in their home states, to reduce tobacco marketing to kids in their communities and to stop their peers from using tobacco. Check out the video profiles of this years' Youth Advocates of the Year Awardees featured below. Also check more profiles here - http://tobaccofreekids.org/campaign/yayas/2008/   National Youth Advocate of...

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What's up Catalyst, the youth board meeting has happened, and was fantastic! We planned out the summit, had a great killer quotes event, and even went to a tobacco sponsored rodeo. Itwas quite a busy weekend for sure. The current youth board lineup is from left to right - Briana Duea, Jessie Marson, Nikki Bunnel, Maggie Smith, Daniela Cano, Sara Aguilar, Diana Aquino, Jeff Cottrel, Tyler Carlson, (not pictured Alyssa Carlson, Lula Rhodes, and Mariah...

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APPLICATIONS DUE WEDNESDAY MARCH 19TH.  It's true. We have some of our beautiful youth board members graduating, so we need some new blood. It's a sweet opportunity, and also a big responsibility. Please fill out the application in Word, and send it back to us electronically.  Here are some of the basics for youth board requirements. •    Must currently be a freshman, sophomore or junior in high school.  Sorry seniors, it is a one year...

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No, the Killer Quotes Tour is not heading to Argentina. Our friends in Argentina tipped us off about the latest study of tobacco industry marketing in their country.  A research paper was released earlier this week that studied tobacco industry marketing tactics in Argentina from 1990 to 2004, focusing on tobacco industry documents from Philip Morris (Massalin-Particulares SA in Argentina) and British American Tobacco (Nobleza-Picardo in Argentina) from 1995 - 2004. They definitely found some...

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