Diversity: Fueling Innovation
The following is an article written by Elsy Hernandez a student at King City High School in King City, California. Elsy interviewed Amy Wu when she visited the Monterey County Ag & Rural Life Museum in November 2021. Here Amy talks about what inspired her to begin profiling women innovators in agtech.
Read the story here:
Diversity: Fueling Innovation
By Elsy Hernandez-Monroy on January 20, 2022
With her new book, From Farms to Incubators, award-winning writer Amy Wu places a spotlight on the women leaders and pioneers of ag and agtech. Wu is a Chinese-American author and journalist with over 25 years of experience; Throughout her career, she has worked for Time Magazine, USA Today, and the Salinas Californian. Within the last few years, Wu has created her own multimedia platform dedicated to highlighting the brilliant women in the agtech sector. The Monterey County Agricultural & Rural Life Museum had the honor to welcome Wu in November of 2021 for a screening of her documentary film, From Farms to Incubators.
Diversity in all fields, from the workforce to media, is critical in building a future based on innovation. Innovation is brought about when we are unafraid to explore beyond the borders- when we examine situations upside-down in order to find all solutions. To limit our perspectives is to limit our capabilities. For this reason, we must include all perspectives from all backgrounds as we continue onwards. Amy Wu recognizes the significance of diversity, which is why she has dedicated a book, documentary, and multimedia platform to representing the women innovators of agtech. During her visit to MCARLM, I was able to talk with Wu and get a deeper understanding of her mission. She explained her motivation behind centering the women of agtech in her writing, “I have a real passion for telling stories and also for telling the stories of women who are contributing in this fast-growing field. In the past, nobody has really been writing about these underheard, untold stories.”
In addition to representing these women trailblazers, Wu ardently seeks to encourage more women, especially women of color, to pursue their passions. Coming from an Asian household and having been the first in her family to be born in the US, Wu acknowledges the unique obstacles those from similar backgrounds face. She elaborates,” I think there’s a lot of cultural traditions and norms that first need to be overcome internally…in Asian culture, a lot of times the traditional professions are to be maybe a doctor or lawyer, and, then, this is what you are.” This pressure can be overwhelming and prevent many from going into careers they could enjoy and excel in; thus, the importance behind Wu’s works becomes apparent.
Diversity in the workforce is pivotal since the different perspectives can bring with them unique ideas; however, diversity in journalism is just as important. Alongside offering a different take, diverse journalists are able to efficiently highlight the underrepresented achievers. This representation has the power to motivate a doubtful generation into leaping towards their passions. Wu explains,“ I think seeing a woman who works in this field who looks like you can inspire [you to] be like ‘Oh, maybe I can do that too.’” The stories she’s shared of the successful and diverse women in agtech, serve as powerful reminders to women of color that they should not limit their potential.
Furthermore, Wu seeks to promote more diversity within journalism in regards to age; She believes it is crucial that the youth be involved in journalism given that they are the future: the future reporters, the future readers, and future innovators. As the new generation of journalists arises, Wu advises that they have a sense of curiosity, open-mindedness, and adventure. She detailed,” Journalists need to ask questions and to have it in your head that there’s no dumb question. [They need] to be open-minded to new opportunities, sometimes not knowing where that might lead you.” With this, she recommends joining the school newspaper, and she suggests reaching out to local newspapers, as well. Wu explained that local publications often want more content, so writing to the editor to inquire about internships or submitting contributions could easily prove successful.
Wu believes that gaining the confidence to write when you are first starting out is essential but intimidating as well. She offers this advice to novice writers,”...realize that every piece of writing is rewriting; there’s no mistakes in a way. You just keep working on it and chipping at it like a piece of art.” She proposes that writing, even if the results aren’t great, is better than not having written at all.
Besides the traditional route, Wu also wants to place an emphasis on entrepreneurialism. With the rapid improvements to technology, the opportunity to share our stories has never been as obtainable. This growing accessibility excites Wu when she thinks of all the new stories to be shared. She described the process further,”..if you have a smartphone or you wanna make a podcast or whatever in that realm and you have the skills and the vision, you can certainly produce your own stories.” This path is especially promising for the youth; Wu believes great things are to come from our younger generation due to their fresh perspectives and understanding of technology.
Upon thinking about her future, Wu envisions herself visiting American high schools in the hopes to showcase the women who are changing the game within agtech; she sees it as an opportunity to show the youth that they can thrive in all fields of study regardless of their gender, race, or age. Amy Wu with her resilience, ingenuity, and passion exemplifies the greatness that comes from diversifying our environments.
