Seed Your Future is kicking off the new year with its largest student outreach initiative yet. More than 80 high school students and educators from across the Mid-Atlantic will attend the Mid-Atlantic Nursery Trade Show (MANTS) to explore real-world career pathways in horticulture and experience the industry's innovation firsthand.
As one of the nation's biggest and most influential horticulture trade shows, MANTS offers students an immersive look inside the businesses that grow, move, design, and support America's plants. Seed Your Future's goal is simple: to show young people that there are career opportunities within the horticulture industry for every skill set.
A large-scale introduction to green careers
Led by Seed Your Future Executive Director Jazmin Albarran, the student groups will tour exhibitor booths and chat with growers, landscape companies, technology developers, equipment manufacturers, distributors, and educators. Students will have the chance to ask questions, see emerging innovations, and learn how different roles across the industry work together to support each other. Educators will also gain classroom-ready insights to help connect their students to green careers.
"For many of these students and teachers, this will be their first time seeing the scope of the horticulture world," said Albarran. "When they meet business owners, breeders, designers, and researchers face-to-face, their understanding of what's possible expands. That's where interest becomes inspiration."
© Seed Your Future
Welcoming the next generation
Exhibitors at MANTS have expressed strong support for the initiative, noting that workforce development is one of the industry's most significant challenges and opportunities.
"Trade shows like MANTS open students' eyes to the green industry, and one visit can spark a career they never knew existed," said Broch Martindale of Corteva Agriscience and new president of Seed Your Future's board of directors. "Meeting students at events like this helps us show the breadth of careers available and the passion behind this work."
Seed Your Future saw firsthand at Cultivate '25 how valuable student and industry connections can be, and the 2026 expansion reflects the nonprofit's momentum in building a nationwide green workforce pipeline.
"MANTS is just the first major touchpoint of the year for students," explained Albarran. "This year, Seed Your Future is dedicated to supporting them year-round. After MANTS, you'll find us at TPIE in Fort Lauderdale, where we are partnering with FNGLA to refresh the show's long-standing Career Fair."
"Get involved," Martindale urged. "Because our industry can only grow when young people see themselves in it."
For more information:
Seed Your Future
[email protected]
www.seedyourfuture.org
