At the North Carolina Youth Institute, teens gain research and communications skills to last a lifetime as they grapple with global food, agriculture and sustainability problems.

Claire Eveson shares her research findings during the institute's poster session in NC State's Plant Sciences Building.Intrigued by knowledge that tiny organisms living on, in and near plants can have a big influence — for good or for bad — on the world’s food supply, high school junior Claire Eveson found herself wanting to learn more.

That’s why she signed up for the North Carolina Youth Institute, an experience she now calls “life-changing.”

Eveson, of Raleigh, was among 70 teens who took part in the 2025 institute at NC State’s Plant Sciences Building in early April. The two-day event gave them the chance to interact with university students and faculty members, to take part in experiential workshops and to share their ideas for addressing global challenges in food, agriculture and sustainability.

Read the entire story here.