Recipient Organization
California State University, Fullerton
800 N. State College Blvd., Room KHS-121
Fullerton,CA 92831
Performing Department
Anthropology
Non Technical Summary
This proposal requests funding to develop and implement a regional conference focusing on urban agroecology and sustainable food systems in research and education at southern California colleges and universities. Cal State Fullerton (CSUF) is among a number of colleges and universities in southern California that has developed or have plans to develop such programs. Students will derive direct benefits from participating in the planning, organization, and attendance at the proposed conference. A potential outcome of the conference is a consortium of southern California colleges and universities to pursue opportunities for research and teaching collaboration.
Animal Health Component
100%
Research Effort Categories
Basic
(N/A)
Applied
100%
Developmental
(N/A)
Goals / Objectives
The proposed project entails the following performance objectives:Engage 10 undergraduate and 5 graduate students from underrepresented groups in the planning and organization of a regional conference on urban agroecology and sustainable urban food systems in higher education. Participation will develop leadership skills through collaboration and working with a diverse team to achieve a time-limited complex outcome. In addition, participants will expand their knowledge of FANH sciences in a multidisciplinary framework, which will be relevant to future career trajectories.Recruit 50 undergraduate and 10 graduate students from underrepresented groups and 20 faculty to prepare and present results of research in the areas of urban agroecology and sustainable urban food systems, and provide a venue for presentation. Participating students will enhance their research skills as well as knowledge of FANH sciences through experiential learning.Attract 75 undergraduate and 15 graduate students from underrepresented groups and 30 faculty to attend a regional conference on urban agroecology and sustainable urban food systems in higher education. Attendees will be exposed to a wide variety of research from the FANH sciences, as well as career information related to USDA and other opportunities.Southern California higher education institutions will outline elements of MOUs and other collaborative initiatives in the areas of urban agroecology and sustainable urban food systems that will be pursued post-conference with a goal of establishing a regional consortium. This will strengthen the ability of these institutions to support the academic development and career attainment in FANH sciences of members of underrepresented groups.
Project Methods
While all of these institutions lie within a confined geographic area spanning a radius 100 miles from Fullerton, there has been limited opportunity for cross-fertilization and discussion. We propose to bring faculty, students, and staff from all of the above institutions to CSUF for a two day conference in the spring of 2021. The first day of the conference will consist of themed main sessions with speakers and presentations, all focused on research and education activities, pedagogical approaches, community engagement processes, and other aspects of agroecology and sustainable food systems research and education. Speakers and presenters will be recruited through an open call to be distributed widely at each institution as well as through social media. A program committee led by the PI and co-PI and consisting of representatives from at least five of the participating institutions will develop the program, evaluate submissions with the goal of inclusivity across dimensions of type of institution, students, focus (research, pedagogy. community engagement, etc.), population served, and scale. There will be breakout sessions focused on developing a store of best practices that will be accessible via website and other venues post-conference.The second day of the conference will be focused on planning a consortium relationship among southern California CSUs, and possibly other institutions, that have educational and research programs in urban agroecology and sustainable food systems. This consortium will be poised to develop large scale collaborative proposals to NIFA programs and other agencies that will leverage the talent and expertise dispersed across institutions in the furtherance of strengthening opportunities for student learning. In particular, the kinds of experiential activities intrinsic to urban agriculture have been shown to have pronounced effects on student engagement, retention, and time to graduation. These effects are even more pronounced among students from historically underrepresented groups (McKay and Estrella 2008). At the end of the second day, we hope to have outlined elements of MOUs and other collaborative initiatives that will be pursued post-conference.The PI and co-PI will work with the program coordinator to develop the general outline of the conference. CSUF undergraduate and graduate students will be recruited from U-ACRE and other student organizations with a focus on food, sustainability, and related areas. Outreach will also be conducted through the student resource centers on campus, such as the Chicano/a & Latinx Resource Center, the Pan African Resource Center, the Inter-tribal Council, the Asian American and Pacific Islanders Resource Center, Disabled Student Services, and the LGBT Resource Center. We will also reach out through the student portal.Once a student organizing committee is established, the PI, co-PI, and program coordinator will mentor students in developing a call for abstracts and outreach to southern California higher education institutions. As responses are received, the program coordinator will mentor students in professional communication with potential participants. The program coordinator will be primarily responsible for the logistic planning, with student assistance. The PI, co-PI, and program coordinator will mentor students in construction of the program. On the days of the conference, the program coordinator will guide student volunteers and interface with University Conference Center personnel. The program coordinator will also be the primary point of contact for attendees, and will attend to issues as they arise, and will consult with the PI on a continual basis.