Sustainable Farming & Food Systems: A Summer Pre-College Program

Are you interested in learning more about where your food comes from? Or how your food gets to your plate? And where does the waste go afterwards?

Join one of the leading university Sustainable Food and Farming programs in the nation for an immersion in sustainability and food systems. In this one-week course, students will gain hands-on experience in the local food system as well as comprehensive understanding of the U.S. Food System. This program will focus on three areas in our food system: sustainability and systems thinking, social justice, and agricultural leadership.

With a focus on sustainability, students will explore and analyze inequities present in our food system using systems thinking tools like concept mapping and iceberg models. Students will simultaneously gain hands-on experience at local farms and work with UMass projects like the Student Farming Enterprise. We will immerse in both theory and practice of organic food production and discuss the role of community engagement in revitalizing our food system.

Finally, students will have an opportunity to articulate their personal relationships to food, and lead each other in activities to deepen understanding of our personal actions and their impact our food system. We look forward to a fun and meaningful week together!

Sarah Berquist, Lecturer and Advisor, Stockbridge School of Agriculture.

High school students entering 10^th – 12^th grade are invited to apply at www.umass.edu/summer/precollege. Commuter or residential options available.