Seoul City to Train 'Urban Agriculture Experts'... Recruiting 40 Participants

So far, 785 Graduates... Open to Seoul Citizens with Farming Experience, Agricultural Certifications, and More

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] The Seoul Metropolitan Government announced on the 15th that it is recruiting 40 Seoul citizens who wish to become 'Urban Agriculture Experts.' After completing the specialized course, participants can work as instructors at school gardens, urban farmer schools, and more.

Recruitment for the Urban Agriculture Expert training program begins on the 16th through the Agricultural Technology Center website. The training will be held from the 2nd to the 19th of next month and is offered free of charge.

Seoul operates the Urban Agriculture Expert training course to meet the continuous interest and demand from citizens regarding urban agriculture. Up to 2020, a total of 785 graduates from 16 classes have completed the program. After graduation, they work as instructors related to urban agriculture or serve as volunteers at urban agriculture fairs and various exhibitions.

The curriculum consists of agricultural theories and techniques necessary for activities as urban agriculture experts, including understanding the importance of urban agriculture, soil and fertilizers, eco-friendly cultivation techniques by crop, pest and disease management, vegetable gardening, and indoor horticulture. Certificates are awarded to trainees who participate in more than 80% of the course and achieve the required score on the completion exam.

The training is open to Seoul citizens with agricultural backgrounds such as graduates of agricultural schools, holders of agricultural-related certifications, farmers registered as agricultural business entities with more than three years of farming experience, those who have completed over 50 hours of agricultural education (or 100 hours of cyber education), and those with work experience at agricultural-related institutions or organizations located in Seoul.

Applicants must submit their application and related proof of experience documents by the 22nd after applying on the Agricultural Technology Center website. Documents must be submitted to the Agricultural Technology Center Citizen Education Team by 5 p.m. on the 22nd via either email or postal mail. Forty candidates will be selected through document screening, and the results will be announced on the Agricultural Technology Center website on the 30th.

Cho Sang-tae, Director of the Seoul Agricultural Technology Center, said, "This course was established to train urban agriculture leaders who can later serve as volunteers and mentors to disseminate urban agriculture technology." He added, "We hope those with agricultural experience interested in urban agriculture will take this course and become urban agriculture experts."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.