Environment and Agriculture:
Sustainable Food Systems
--Summer Program--

To read a description about what's happening on the program as showcased in the above photo gallery, hold your cursor over the image or click the first image to see an enlarged slide show.

Photos courtesy of Emily Lund, participant in the 2010 E & A program.

Program Summary

Modern agriculture is one of the largest contributors to environmental degradation in the United States. We all eat, and yet the disproportionate environmental footprint of agriculture is rarely discussed or understood. This interdisciplinary, field-based course explores the connection between the environment and agriculture, provides a first-hand experience of food systems, and analyzes the environmental, economic, political, social and cultural issues that define modern farming. Utilizing the lenses and tools of sociology, economics, philosophy, ecology, and agronomy we will critically examine the notion of sustainability as it applies to the food system. Through lectures, in-class discussions, reading seminars, written assignments, and field study, students will examine a variety of farms and rural communities as case studies. The course uses an action/reflection model to equip students to critically analyze the environment and agriculture from a variety of different perspectives.

The Environment and Agriculture program will be framed by reading and discussion seminars that take place at the Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy in Minneapolis. At the heart of the program are intensive field experiences that include on-site study at research laboratories, agricultural policy institutes, meat-packing plants, creamery operations, conventional farms, and small-scale community supported agriculture farms. In addition, each student will prepare for and conduct a three-day immersion experience on a sustainable farm outside the Twin Cities. Students will be integrated into the busy routine of farm life, helping with planting, milking, and caring for animals. During the farm stays students will use critical frameworks to observe and interview those on the farm about the environmental, economic, and quality of life issues that contribute to decision-making. The farm stays will conclude with a community gathering and forum that brings together farmers, students, and experts in the field of environment and agriculture. The class will reconvene at the University of Minnesota-Morris to debrief the farm stay and prepare group presentations comparing and contrasting their experiences. The program will visit research facilities in the Morris area and consider the role of research and funding in sustainable agriculture, and students will spend a day in the Montevideo area exploring the role of culture and the arts in creating sustainable communities. Lastly, the class will participate in a workshop with the Land Stewardship Project on whole farm planning, and students will create and present plans for a sustainable farm operation.

General Schedule

Class meets for one full-day on a Saturday in May to prepare for the two-week intensive session that runs in the first few weeks of June. Students will be in class or conducting field study every day, all-day, during this two-week period and must not plan any other commitments during this time. In addition, there will be extensive time devoted to reading, writing, and preparing an oral presentation. The first section of the two-week intensive will be in and around the Twin Cities, with site visits within a 90 minute drive. We will then spend three to four program days on a sustainable farm, which may be at a distance from the Twin Cities, working with the farm family and completing a series of interviews with family and community members. During the second week of the program we’ll likely be stationed at the University of Minnesota-Morris. From that base, we will visit a number of farms in the central region of Minnesota. More details about the exact schedule will be available closer to the program dates.

Faculty

Extras

This program is worth 1 course credit (4 semester hours or up to 6 trimester credits).

If you have interest in other short-term programs that we offer, use the following short-cuts: