Earlier this year, Christina Franc was appointed as the new 4-H Canada CEO. Though she didn’t grow up participating in 4-H herself, she moved to the region and says, “I fell in love with what 4-H does, and the mission of 4-H.” When she first came to the region she worked for Qu’anglo, before working as the executive director for the Canadian Association of Fairs and Exhibitions and briefly at United Way Canada.
When she moved here, she knew that working with 4-H was inevitable. She says, “I really am passionate about agriculture and youth development and have become fully converted. I married a dairy and maple syrup producer, and they are diehard for 4-H.” So far, she’s been loving her new job and says, “We’ve launched a new strategic plan, and I’ve really been sinking my teeth into that and how we can execute it over the next two years.”
4-H is for young people, some of whom are on track to eventually take over their family farms. When it comes to succession planning, Franc says, “I think what 4-H does really well is work on those soft skills that are going to become increasingly important in the new era of AI.” By soft skills, she is referring to skills that build good leaders like problem solving and adaptability. This helps them feel confident when they are running their own farm.
Having this kind of confidence and skills “really helps with succession and the foundation because it gets them thinking about different opportunities, different ways of operating,” Franc says. She explains that they have different programs related to STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics), the environment, and more, which helps them get the full picture of what the future could look like.
Setting kids up for these skills at a young age is important because “It’s a lot easier to teach when they’re younger. We all know children’s minds are sponges. They’re learning how to operate, and those fundamental habits and skills are being set,” Franc says. Diversifying skills is also hugely important, because succession planning requires a big understanding of operations, finances, machinery, and more. She encourages both kids and parents to look at succession planning as a “spiderweb” and see who can take over different sections and work together.
Franc makes sure to encourage kids to explore different opportunities. “Before you decide to take on the farm or invest in the farm, you absolutely should work somewhere else to see what it’s like and what they do, even if it’s another agricultural operation,” she says. It’s good to have all the information before making a choice. If taking over the farm is the right call, 4-H has programs to help make sure a successor is ready for the next step.