EXPANDING AND DIVERSIFYING CAREERS IN SUSTAINABLE FOOD SYSTEMS ALONG THE US-MEXICO BORDER

• Sponsoring Institution: National Institute of Food and Agriculture
• Project Status: ACTIVE
• Funding Source: OTHER GRANTS
• Reporting Frequency: Annual
• Accession No.: 1030734
• Grant No.: 2023-70440-40156
• Cumulative Award Amt.: $5,000,000.00
• Proposal No.: 2022-11893
• Project Start Date: Jun 1, 2023
• Project End Date: May 31, 2028
• Grant Year: 2023
• Program Code: [NEXTG]- NEXTGEN Program

Recipient Organization
SAN DIEGO STATE UNIVERSITY
(N/A)
SAN DIEGO,CA 92182

Performing Department
(N/A)

Non Technical Summary
SDSU brings together more than 32 internal and external partners, including four USDA agencies and three Mexico-based universities, to expand and diversify the workforce in food, agriculture, natural resources, and human sciences (FANH) by graduating inspired undergraduate and graduate students eligible to join the USDA FANH workforce in positions ranging from entry-level to leadership. ELP activity will involve 240 undergraduate, 18 Masters and 7 Doctoral students in focused experiential, classroom-based learning, and research-oriented solutions that bridge the practices and knowledge of Historically Excluded Communities (HECs) with new strategies for regenerative agriculture addressing climate change, environmental degradation, food insecurity and poverty. Participants will be students from Indigenous, immigrant and Mexican-origin HECs along the US-Mexico border, who will train in programs spanning research, field schools, intensive internships, symposia, classroom education and extension, within regional and binational sectors, including exposures to the work of USDA FANH agencies, field stations, scientists, and policy experts. OEP activity to diversify the pipeline of future FANH professionals will include K-12, non-traditional, and community populations, with activities delivered through 4-H, Master Gardener, Growing Hope, Climate Science Alliance, SAGE, SD County Food System Alliance, SD Botanical Gardens, two HEC-dominant high schools and tribal communities (50 scholarships to tribal students participating in workshops). SDSU participants from HECs will graduate with baccalaureate and advanced degrees, highly qualified and interested in bringing a unique set of skills, knowledge and expertise on sustainable food systems and regenerative agriculture to the next generation of the USDA FANH workforce. Process, formative and summative evaluation will measure participant behavioral change, academic progress, degree completion, and USDA career pathways knowledge, interest, and application.

Animal Health Component

30%

Research Effort Categories

Basic

50%

Applied

30%

Developmental

20%

Classification

Knowledge Area (KA)	Subject of Investigation (SOI)	Field of Science (FOS)	Percent
201	2499	1060	10%
102	0199	1070	10%
136	2499	1080	10%
111	0210	2050	10%
501	3110	1010	10%
123	5010	2060	10%
701	2499	1010	10%
604	6220	3100	10%
125	6030	2060	10%
704	6050	3000	10%

Knowledge Area
102 - Soil, Plant, Water, Nutrient Relationships; 136 - Conservation of Biological Diversity; 111 - Conservation and Efficient Use of Water; 501 - New and Improved Food Processing Technologies; 125 - Agroforestry; 201 - Plant Genome, Genetics, and Genetic Mechanisms; 604 - Marketing and Distribution Practices; 123 - Management and Sustainability of Forest Resources; 704 - Nutrition and Hunger in the Population; 701 - Nutrient Composition of Food;

Subject Of Investigation
0210 - Water resources; 0199 - Soil and land, general; 3110 - Insects; 6220 - Marketing, processing, and supply firms other than cooperatives; 6030 - The farm as an enterprise; 6050 - Communities, areas, and regions; 2499 - Plant research, general; 5010 - Food;

Field Of Science
3000 - Anthropology; 1060 - Biology (whole systems); 2050 - Hydrology; 1070 - Ecology; 1010 - Nutrition and metabolism; 1080 - Genetics; 2060 - Geography; 3100 - Management;

Keywords

historically underrepresented communities (hecs)

regenerative agriculture

sustainable food

Goals / Objectives
Project Goals and Program Priorities As the environmental and social problems associated with prevailing food systems become more evident, practitioners, policymakers, scientists, and advocates increasingly recognize the need to ensure access to sufficient, safe, nutritious, and culturally appropriate food--without threatening biodiversity, soil health, and water resources or contributing to climate change, which weakens our ability to feed future generations.San Diego State University (SDSU), a federally designated Hispanic Serving Institution, brings together over 32 partners to solidify the institutional structure that will enable students to specialize in the study of sustainable local/regional food systems. Our goal in this proposed Tier 1 project is to expand and diversify the workforce in food, agriculture, natural resources, and human sciences (FANH) by graduating inspired undergraduate and graduate students eligible to join the USDA FANH workforce in positions ranging from entry-level to leadership. We will involve 240 undergraduate, 18 masters and 7 doctoral students in focused experiential, classroom-based learning, and research oriented solutions that bridge the practices and knowledge of Historically Excluded Communities (HECs) with new strategies for regenerative agriculture to address climate change, environmental degradation, food insecurity, and poverty. We will recruit and support students from HECs in programs spanning research, field schools, intensive internships, education, and extension, within regional and binational sectors, including planned exposures to the work of USDA agencies, field stations, scientists, and policy experts. Fifty members of tribal communities-at-large will receive stipends for participation in extension activities. The educational theme will be contributions of sustainable food systems of Hispanic, Indigenous, and immigrant communities along the US-Mexico border.The activities of this Tier 1 project will include experiential learning projects and outreach and engagement projects, strengthened by curriculum development, scholarships, and academic and professional career mentorship.

Project Methods
The Strategy: Theinterrelated social and environmental challenges of our times may be best addressed in tandem through a systemic approach that incorporates multi-disciplinary expertise, considers food as a complex socio-ecological system, and engages HECs in knowledge co-production. This project will focus on the promises of regenerative agriculture to renew environmental resources, capture carbon, rebuild social connections around food, promote climate adaptation, and reinvigorate local economies by bridging HECs' practices with the development of new strategies for regenerative agriculture. A robust cluster of Co-PD-led academic centers includes the new Center for Better Food Futures and interdisciplinary Food Studies Program (BFF, FSP-Joassart-Marcelli); Binational Plants Studies Program (BPSP-Flores-Renteria); Santa Margarita Ecological Reserve (SMER-Lipson); Center for Latin American Studies (CLAS-Pérez); Watershed Science Institute (WSI-Biggs); our Oaxaca Center for Mesoamerican Studies in Mexico (OCMS-Pérez), and the Sage Project under the Center for Regional Sustainability (SAGE), along with four USDA partners and three universities in Mexico - Universidad Autónoma de Baja California (UABC), Universidad Tecnológica de los Valles Centrales de Oaxaca (UTVC), and Centro de Investigación Científica y de Educación Superior de Ensenada (CICESE). This leadership team is well-positioned to work with HECs to address a systemic educational challenge and yield important insights into the creation of more sustainable, inclusive, and equitable food systems, while training a diverse group of students and engaging them in exploration of potential USDA-FANH careers.With prior USDA support, we established and created a high-impact program coalescing around an interdisciplinary, bi-national and systemic approach to food security. The program, Transnational Approaches to Sustainable Food Futures, provides a supportive academic and advising framework to generate greater understanding of different Indigenous and immigrant farming and food practices on both sides of the US-Mexico border.Our proposed program will build upon this foundation by training students from HECs in identifying and addressing research questions through intensive, multi-week internships and graduate programs that will aim to provide solutions to address food security and environmental challenges that disproportionately burden their communities. The proposed project will apply a sustainable food systems framework that focuses on regenerative agricultural practices along the southern border, including San Diego County, Imperial County, and Baja California; this work will expand into Oaxaca, Mexico, where the practices and knowledge of Indigenous and immigrant communities built over millennia are slowly being recognized for their contributions to sustainable food and regenerative agriculture and from which significant numbers of our students and communities derive. Given the importance of income that enables HEC students to participate in educational opportunities, we will expand opportunities for paid high-impact learning activities, immersing students in research and service-learning through experiences ranging from summer-long internship and field schools to semester-long community-engaged classes and year-long research mentorship. Likewise, paid, mentored assistantships for graduate students to pursue their master's thesis and doctoral dissertations in FANH disciplines will strengthen the pipeline of diverse, highly qualified candidates for leadership roles in the USDA. The target audience includes K-12, undergraduate and graduate students from HECs. We emphasize outreach to and engagement of populations identifying as Mexican-origin and/or Indigenous along the US-Mexico border, for whom we will also develop a certificate program and other extension-based learning, to be made available to the general public as well. We will transfer professional development on effective mentoring to graduate students directly mentoring undergraduates, who will in turn mentor K-12 students and extend knowledge to community members. The goal here is to diversify the pool of prospective applicants who graduate with leadership skills and unique disciplinary knowledge and expertise, and who will be assets to FANH appointments in USDA,

Progress 06/01/24 to 05/31/25

Outputs
Target Audience: During the second year we reached 396 with transformational programmatic activities. For the seven FANH classes delivered we had a total of 255 students enrolled. We supported 22 students to conduct research associated with these classes. From the 396 students we recruited 55 students to participate in summer/intensive internships and supported them with scholarships. Over the last year we have recruited 13 additional graduate students for a total of 16 supported with this grant to perform research on FANH related projects such as development of sustainable food alternatives to create milk and novel proteins sources using algae, addressing pathogen related mortality on trees in California, providing evidence-based diabetes nutrition education tailored to the Latina population, determination of heat-islands and the effects on farms and farmers in Imperial Valley, among other. Graduate students got trained and mentored to be better prepared to join the workforce in FAHN disciplines. For our early recruitment efforts we reached 45 high school students, 100%. We worked with Chula Vista High School students who have built an edible garden to fight nutrition issues and associated issues such as obesity. Students were also guided to set up experimental designs to assess the effect of mycorrhizae on plant growth. We reached out to different students who attended the EDUFAN symposium with a total of 54 attendees. During this symposium, 42 students presented their research and innovations, 39 NextGen students presented their projects through oral and poster presentations, and 3 students supported by a partner grant. Changes/Problems:Freezing the NextGen USDA program significantly disrupted student career pipelines at SDSU, especially for those from low income socioeconomicstatus who relied on its structured internships, mentoring, and financial support. It stalled efforts to recruit students in the FANH workforce and interrupted applied research and community projects tied to sustainability, food security, and tribal partnerships. Faculty and institutional collaborators disengaged, and students faced financial hardship, delayed graduation, or lost academic opportunities. Our USDA partners were less engaged as they were struggling with a massive reorganization of the agency resulting in less exposure to USDA experiences by our students than desired. The freeze also hindered program evaluation, impact reporting, and long-term credibility with stakeholders, making future relaunch efforts more difficult especially for summer internships in 2025. These negative effects will most likely be reflected in the next report. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Our overarching goal was to prepare a skilled and inspired workforce in food, agriculture, natural resources, and human sciences (FANH) by graduating well-trained undergraduate and graduate students equipped to enter the USDA FANH workforce in positions ranging from entry-level to leadership. To achieve this, we recruited 93 students into programs spanning research, field schools, intensive internships, education, and extension, both regionally and binationally. These programs included structured exposure to USDA agencies, field stations, scientists, and policy experts. We created nine intensive internships for undergraduate and graduate students to gain hands-on learning experiences, three of which were tied to specific courses. One such internship, Agroforestry, Agriculture, and Climate Change Adaptation, supported seven students across an academic year and provided experiential learning and research opportunities in Southern California and Tanzania. All students continued conducting research after the program. Another course-related internship, Crop Water Use, Near-Surface Climate and Hydrologic Change in Agricultural Regions, focused on the Imperial-Mexicali Valley and San Diego County, supporting 14 students (eight funded by a USDA grant) studying human impacts on watershed processes and water resources, including the effects of land use change on water quality, sediment transport, and erosion. They utilized remote sensing to map land cover, hydrological fluxes, and water quality, and collaborated on research projects that trained them in hydrological methods to understand heat stress in farmworkers, and irrigation efficiency. All students presented at local conferences, with some also presenting at specialized events like AGU. To provide students with USDA research opportunities, we recruited two participants for the USDA Summer Internship led by Dr. Wallace Yokoyama at the Western Regional Research Center in Albany. These students gained hands-on experience in food science and nutrition, collaborated with USDA professionals and interns, and visited research and agricultural facilities to explore career opportunities. This experience helped students gain confidence in pursuing USDA careers and had a significant impact on them and their families. One student shared that their parents were proud and supportive, recognizing the career value of the opportunity. These paid internships were especially important for low-income students, enabling them to develop valuable research and technical skills that might otherwise be inaccessible. Two binational internships broadened students' exposure to agricultural and food innovations. The first, Plant Drought Tolerance (Cross-Border), recruited ten students and provided international research experience using advanced technologies to explore plant drought tolerance, biodiversity, and carbon capture in Baja California and California. In collaboration with USDA agencies, students visited the Institute of Forest Genetics, the Eddy Arboretum, Placerville Nursery, and El Dorado National Forest to explore USDA conservation programs and career opportunities. At these locations, students examined experimental pine crosses and utilized herbarium specimens to develop climate-related research questions. In Baja California, students studied drought-adapted irrigation systems in vineyards, visited tribal communities to learn about edible native plants, and collaborated with researchers at CICESE and UABC. At SDSU's Santa Margarita Ecological Reserve, students collected grapevine leaf samples and used molecular techniques to analyze leaf-associated fungi, including the grape pathogen powdery mildew. All participants remained engaged in plant science research and expressed strong interest in USDA careers. The second binational internship, Multi-generational Small-scale Farming, Heritage Seeds, and Healthy Cuisine: Lessons in Sustainable Food Futures, supported eight students and took place in Oaxaca and California. Participants explored the history and current practices of Indigenous Oaxacan farmers, interviewed farmers and palenque owners about the shift from milpa to agave/maguey production, and learned about nutrition outcomes in rural households. They received training in social science research methods, data analysis, and international collaboration while also studying the cultural significance of cuisine and farm-to-table practices. Among our local internships, Urban Agriculture, Hydroponics, Food Waste Recycling for Animal Feed, and Entomophagy supported five students. It focused on food sustainability, safety, chemistry, and nutrition, while exploring sustainable protein sources such as edible insects, legumes, cereals, and algae. Students analyzed nutritional content, techno-functional properties, flavor, safety, and consumer acceptance. They also studied agroecological farming, hydroponics, and the use of black soldier fly larvae to convert food waste into poultry feed, reducing greenhouse gas emissions and promoting sustainable protein production. This internship partnered with the College Area Community Garden to manage food waste. Another local internship, the Sustainable Food Research Internship, supported two students researching microalgae as a food source and developed vegan seafood flavors. They gained experience in instrumental and sensory analysis, data visualization, and explored the role of food science and technology in promoting sustainability. The program helped students critically evaluate emerging food sources and understand their potential impact. The third local internship, BrightSide Produce, supported five students and operated as a student-led produce distribution service that delivered fresh fruits and vegetables across National City, San Diego, and the SDSU campus. Its mission was to improve access to fresh produce in underserved communities while educating students about food insecurity. Interns managed produce stands, completed deliveries, developed new programs, and raised awareness about food access and food waste, all while learning about on-campus resources and community needs. We also recruited graduate students to develop high-quality research aimed at building resilience in the national food system. Fellowships enabled these students to focus on coursework, conduct original research, and participate in mentoring activities. Their efforts led to the publication of four scientific articles with students as co-authors or first authors. Graduate students also served as mentors for undergraduates, fostering a multi-level mentorship system that promoted a strong sense of belonging and professional engagement across cohorts. All students were encouraged to present at local and national conferences. 98% of the supported students participated in our local S3 and EDUFAN symposia, while others presented at specialized academic events. To cultivate community and professional development, we established the EDUFAN Symposium, where 42 students were mentored to refine their research questions and presentation skills. They received expert feedback and learned about USDA and other career opportunities. Our advisory board--comprising internal and external stakeholders from research centers, field stations, and USDA agencies--provided ongoing guidance and reviewed our progress. Students shared their experiences directly with the advisory board, which offered feedback to help improve their training and better align with the needs of the FANH workforce. Professional development was further integrated into the program through career panel discussions. One panel hosted over 80 students from diverse majors and featured local experts in FANH disciplines. The second took place during the EDUFAN symposium and included our team sharing their career journeys with NextGen students. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Between October 2024 and April 2025, the SDSU NextGen program actively engaged with students, faculty, and community members through a wide range of outreach activities, classroom presentations, and collaborative events aimed at increasing awareness and participation in food, agriculture, natural resources, and human sciences (FANH) career pathways. Dr. Flores-Renteria visited GEOG 170: Sustainable Places and Practices and introduced 15 students to the opportunities offered by the NextGen program.SDSU hosted a STEAM event that brought approximately 50 high school students to campus. During their visit, Dr. Liu's lab conducted a series of engaging, hands-on lab experiences to introduce them to scientific research and inspire interest in FANH disciplines. Continuing outreach in the classroom, Dr. Flores-Renteria presented to 20 students in AMIND 350: American Indian Environmental Managementhighlighting how the NextGen program connects environmental management with Indigenous perspectives and career opportunities. An open information session was held to share details about the NextGen program and the USDA-funded HSI grant with 45 attendees, encouraging broader student involvement. The SDSU NextGen program was also represented at external events. Program leaders presented the initiative at the 8th Annual Agricultural Research Institute (ARI) Principal Investigators Meeting for the CSU system, reaching an audience of more than 200 attendees. Dr. Flores-Renteria spoke to a group of 10 students enrolled in BIOL 596: Molecular Methods in Agricultural Sciences, deepening their understanding of the program and its research opportunities.The SDSU NextGen team traveled to the Imperial Valley campus to engage in presentations and institutional collaboration in preparation for launching the Edible Garden Project, connecting with 40 participants during the visit. As part of the program's academic enrichment activities, the NextGen Colloquium Series continued with a sessionfocused on agricultural research opportunities available at SDSU's Santa Margarita Ecological Reserve. The new year began with a key internal milestone, when all Co-PIs on the NextGen grant met with external advisory board members to review achievements, discuss future directions, and hear student reflections on their program experiences. Dr. Flores-Renteria delivered a presentation to approximately 30 participants during a Women in STEM event, offering insights into how the NextGen program supports women pursuing FANH careers. Potential project partners attended the CAL400 class session, encouraging 21 students to remain engaged with the NextGen program and consider research or internship opportunities. Dr. Flores-Renteria joined members of multiple tribal nations during the Gathering of Tribes and Conservation Organizations, co-hosted by the San Diego Botanic Garden (SDBG) and the Pala Band of Mission Indians. In this open discussion, she presented on regenerative agriculture, conservation, and opportunities within the NextGen program to an audience of approximately 100 tribal leaders and conservation stakeholders. Dr. Flores-Renteria participated in a Cultivando Raíces talk hosted by the Hispanic Student Organization, continuing the program's commitment to community engagement, cultural relevance, and inclusive recruitment in food and agriculture sciences. We created the EDUFAN symposium (Experimenting, Diversifying and Understanding Food, Agriculture and Natural Resources) to provide a platform in which 42 NextGen students disseminated their research and received feedback from co-PIs and community members. Students reported an increase in their confidence in public speaking. Our program was disseminated to High school students from Hoover High School and Chula Vista High School in order to recruit students into our pathways. Our team presented their research associated with the Nextgen grant in 81 presentations with 60 oral presentations and 21 poster presentations. Two talks were organized as part of the colloquium seres in food, agriculture and natural resources series, one presented by Dr. David Lipson and the otehr by Dr. Rodrigo Mendez Alonzo. The SDSU NextGen program and its affiliated research activities received notable attention through various news and media features, showcasing their impact and innovation. Coverage included an article in the Journal of Insects as Food and Feed, highlighting two conference abstracts presented at the Insects to Feed the World Conference in June 2024. These abstracts, titled "Eat bug, not buzz: Cultivating entomophagy through flavourful encounters" and "Exploring the flavourful world of edible insects and their aromatic building blocks", featured SDSU researchers and students and emphasized the culinary and scientific potential of edible insects. Additionally, a chapter titled "Quantification of crude and soluble protein content" was published in the book Plant-based Proteins - Production, Physicochemical and Functional Properties by Springer in December 2024, demonstrating the program's scholarly contributions to sustainable food science. These media appearances elevated the visibility of SDSU's cutting-edge research in food innovation, nutrition, and sustainability. Over the past year, SDSU researchers and students involved in the NextGen program contributed to several peer-reviewed journal publications, reflecting their commitment to advancing knowledge in sustainable food systems and plant sciences. In 2025, the journal Food Science and Nutrition Cases published an article titled "Chicatanas: The seasonal delicacy of Oaxaca", co-authored by Daisy Lopez, Cassandra Maya, and others, which explored the cultural and nutritional significance of edible insects in southern Mexico. A major contribution to plant systematics appeared in Global Ecology and Conservation, with the article "Multidirectional hybridization challenges the species barriers in Arbutus (Ericaceae) of North America", authored by Flores-Rentería and colleagues, shedding light on complex hybridization patterns in native tree species. Another important study, "Prickly Problems: Cylindropuntia's Low Genetic Diversity Despite Inbreeding Avoidance", was published in Ecology and Evolution, offering insights into genetic diversity in native cactus species. Additionally, a collaborative study titled "Heat-related rest-break recommendations for farmworkers in California based on wet-bulb globe temperature" appeared in Communications Earth & Environment, providing critical policy guidance for protecting vulnerable agricultural laborers. These publications underscore the program's interdisciplinary focus and its contributions to ecological research, food science, and environmental justice. Several awards recognized the outstanding achievements of SDSU students and programs over the past year. On October 16, 2024, a student won First Place in the Southern California Institute of Food Technologists Section (SCIFTS) Student 3MT Pitch Contest, highlighting innovation in sustainable food systems. The Alt Protein Project Speaker Series, held on November 20, 2024, received SCIFTS Student Club Funding totaling $500, supporting student-led initiatives in alternative protein research. On May 13, 2025, the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences at SDSU honored one of our students with the 2025 Research with Distinction Award, recognizing excellence in research within environmental science disciplines. Shortly after, on May 15, 2025, the SDSU College of Health and Human Services presented the Graduate Student Research Award, which included a $3,000 stipend, further supporting high-level student research in health and human sciences. These awards reflect the growing impact and academic excellence of students engaged in the NextGen program and related sustainability research initiatives. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?We will continue to perform all activities established as they have been proven to be highly effective. These are the class internships, summer internships, USDA based internships, EDUFAN symposium, high school student tours and collaborative research projects. In the future, we will host workshops and career panels focused on USDA and federal careers to connect students' curricular experiences with real-world opportunities and open pathways to meaningful careers. To foster a strong sense of community, collaboration, and professional networking, we will continue to organize the EDUFAN Symposium, where students will present their work and engage with USDA and other career opportunities. Our recruitment efforts will include mentoring high school students, organizing campus visits to SDSU, offering informational sessions, delivering targeted classroom talks at SDSU and Mesa College, and disseminating program information through our website, social media, and printed materials. Expand the curriculum to develop a class on plant, people, planet, this will track more interest for a wider range of students in the STEM areas. We have built a community garden at the Imperial Valley Campus and we are developing strategies to develop year-long internships. In the next year we expect to work with the food pantry at SDSU IV and the master gardener program to establish the remote internship program. We expect students to establish a gardening club to be able to grow their own food and be more self-sufficient. We will continue to expand and enhance our career and professional development training to better prepare students for competitive roles within USDA and other federal agencies, as well as in the broader food, agriculture, natural resources, and human sciences (FANH) workforce. These efforts will include structured workshops on how to craft targeted résumés and CVs specifically tailored to federal job applications, including an overview of USAJOBS and how to align application materials with government position requirements and qualifications. We will also guide students in preparing compelling cover letters, statements of interest, and federal KSA (Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities) responses. In addition, we will conduct mock interview sessions that simulate both in-person and virtual formats to build students' confidence and communication skills. These sessions will provide personalized feedback on how to effectively present their experiences, align their skills with agency missions, and demonstrate readiness for internships and full-time employment. We plan to integrate panels with current federal employees, recent graduates, and NextGen alumni to offer insights into career pathways and tips for navigating entry into federal service. Furthermore, we will offer skill-building modules on professional etiquette, networking strategies, and goal-setting to ensure that students are holistically prepared to enter and thrive in professional environments. These efforts will be embedded in a supportive mentoring structure, reinforcing students' career readiness while fostering a strong sense of purpose and belonging within the FANH fields. Following the advisory board suggestion, we will train students on grant proposal writing, big data analysis, and have conversations about endurance and professionalism. We will maintain an advisory board composed of internal and external stakeholders from partnering centers, institutes, field stations, and USDA agencies, who will provide feedback and evaluate our progress toward program goals during the 2nd meeting in 2026. Our program will continue to be tracked through a comprehensive evaluation framework designed to assess the effectiveness and relevance of our interventions. We expect that these initiatives will prepare students and participants with both the technical and interpersonal skills necessary to advance in their chosen careers. We will continue recruiting and supporting graduate students into research and we anticipate to have the first students defending their thesis and graduating from the masters or PhD programs. We will continue supporting economic and academically undergraduate and graduate students to present in conferences and symposia as well as to write scientific articles.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? As the environmental and social issues linked to current food systems, including increasing food prices, become increasingly apparent, practitioners, policymakers, scientists, and advocates are recognizing the urgent need to ensure access to sufficient, affordable, safe, nutritious, and culturally appropriate food. This must be done without compromising biodiversity, soil health, and water resources, which threatens our capacity to feed future generations. Regenerative agriculture seeks to address these challenges by actively restoring agricultural systems to enhance productivity, using a holistic framework that incorporates a wide range of expertise to continuously renew the land and improve the environment. For these reasons, we educate our project participants at all levels of study through a holistic approach to robust and sustainable food systems, addressing research questions across economic, social, and environmental sciences to identify effective and equitable solutions to the challenges posed by catastrophic climatic events (e.g. drought and flooding) and globalized agriculture. We continued to offer paid internships integrated into courses on Crop Water Use, Near-Surface Climate, Hydrologic Change in Agricultural Regions, Agroforestry, Agriculture, and Climate Change Adaptation. These classes prioritize hands-on learning and are designed to be inclusive, particularly for students who may not otherwise have access to research opportunities. We recruited 21 students to pursue independent research through these programs. Two undergraduates later entered graduate programs with NextGen fellowships. Interns built skills in research, advocacy, and policy development to address drought-related challenges. They measured crop water use and climate conditions in the Imperial Valley, studied impacts on water use efficiency and farmworker heat stress, collaborated with community partners to share heat stress research, and explored agroforestry and other adaptation strategies. They were closely mentored through the research process--defining questions, reviewing literature, analyzing data, and preparing papers for publication. Students presented their work at conferences and submitted reports at semester's end.During Spring 2025 91% of students taking these classes reported to be interested in pursuing a career in FANH compared to only 25% of students in control groups (not involved in these interventions). We developed seven intensive internships, supporting 55 students last year. All participants reported a strong likelihood of pursuing careers in food, agriculture, or natural resources. One student stated, "My career goal is to work at the USDA, especially because I grew up on the US/Mexican border and see firsthand the agency's importance." After these interventions a high number of participants stayed engaged in research and have been disseminating their results in conferences, symposia and publishing papers as well as engaging in community outreach and 100% of the reported to be interested in persuing a career in food,agriculture, or natural resources. To offer USDA research experiences, we placed two students in the USDA Summer Internship led by Dr. Wallace Yokoyama at the Western Regional Research Center in Albany. There, they gained lab experience in food science and nutrition, visited USDA facilities, and learned about federal career paths. One student remarked, "I feel privileged and honored to have the opportunity to work for the USDA," while another shared how their family was proud of the opportunity's career value. We offered two binational internships exposing 20 students (60% undergraduate, 40% graduate) to agricultural innovation in Baja California and Oaxaca. Students explored drought-adapted systems like grape irrigation and agave cultivation, visited tribal communities to learn about edible native plants, and collaborated with Mexican university researchers on topics such as drought tolerance, biodiversity, and carbon capture. A highlight was a visit to the USDA's Institute of Forest Genetics, where students learned about biodiversity conservation and career opportunities. One student said, "It was my first time doing agricultural genomic research... I learned how to extract DNA and perform PCR, skills I'll apply in my career in plants sciences."Overall, students in these internships increase their likelihood to pursue a career in the USDA after these internships with 100% of them feeling happy or very happy about working for the USDA. We also implemented four local internships, recruiting 26 students (20 received scholarships). These internships focused on food sustainability, insecurity, safety, waste reduction, and alternative protein sources like insects, legumes, and algae--enhancing sustainable food production and distribution. Students in these internships were exposed tofood innovation in real life experience and developed solutions to food deserts. We hosted the 2nd EDUFAN Symposium (Experimenting, Diversifying and Understanding Food, Agriculture, and Natural Resources), bringing together 54 participants, including students, researchers, urban farmers, and policymakers. A total of 42 students presented their research; 39 were from the NextGen program, and 3 were supported by the BER-RENEW iSAVe program. Five guest experts shared their career journeys and mentored students. The event inspired new participants, including one student who said, "After seeing the amazing research, I started applying for scholarships because I want to present at the 2026 EDUFAN Symposium." To reach students early, we hosted 45 students from Chula Vista High School at SDSU. They toured the community garden, visited BrightSide's food distribution program, explored the Biology greenhouse, and participated in lab workshops. Afterward, 66.6% reported greater interest in studying food, agriculture, and natural resources in college, and 55.5% showed increased interest in related careers. One student shared, "I felt united with the community and more connected with nature," while another recalled learning about plant reproduction through a fluorescent pollination lab as an eye opening experience. We continued teaching two multidisciplinary courses focused on global food system challenges and sustainable solutions. Over half of the students recruited into internships came from these classes. In "Transnational Approaches for Sustainable Food Systems," 21 students collaborated with partners on real-world projects. One group worked with Chula Vista High School to explore food deserts and stress caused by urban environments, creating a garden to study how mycorrhizal fungi improve plant nutrient uptake. Their project inspired greater interest in FANH (Food, Agriculture, Natural Resources, and Human Sciences) careers among high schoolers. In the "Sustainable Agriculture" course, 9 students explored ecological foundations of sustainable agriculture, including drought tolerance, soil degradation, water use, and agroforestry. Students reported increased motivation to pursue FANH careers. We supported 16 SDSU graduate students with fellowships to promote FANH career paths in areas such as ecology, forestry, nutrition, agroforestry, and the social sciences. These students conducted independent research, published papers, and presented at conferences. In fall 2024 and spring 2025, 100% and 86% of them, respectively, expressed strong interest in continuing careers in food, agriculture, or natural resources. On March 20th we had the Sustainability and sustainable food career panel bringing experts from different fields related to FANH careers to expose students to alternative protein production, regenerative agriculture, urban farming and sustainable food systems. We have close to 90 people attending the career panel. Students reported to increase their interest in pursuing a career in sustainable agriculture after attending the panel.

Publications

• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Changqi Liu*, Joseph Yoon, Cassandra Maya, Sami Ghnimi, Jing Zhao. (2024). Eat bug, not buzz: Cultivating entomophagy through flavourful encounters. Journal of Insects as Food and Feed, 10(S1), S139.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Jing Zhao*, Ali Raza, Joseph Yoon, Changqi Liu. (2024). Exploring the flavourful world of edible insects and their aromatic building blocks. Journal of Insects as Food and Feed, 10(S1), S108.
• Type: Other Status: Other Year Published: 2024 Citation: John J. Love, Changqi Liu, Marina Kalyuzhnaya. Using artificial intelligence and robust protein design methods for highly efficient production of milk proteins via bacterial fermentation. US Department of Agriculture (USDA)-National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA)-Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI) (USDA-NIFA-AFRI 2024-67017-42678). 08/01/2024?07/31/2026. Total award: $300,000.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Quandt (2024), Oral presentation: Climate change adaptation and agroforestry adoption: Case study of San Diego County. Natural Hazards Conference
• Type: Other Status: Other Year Published: 2024 Citation: Jing Zhao, Changqi Liu, Cristal Zu�iga. Unlocking the green potential: Genome-scale metabolic modeling for microalgae-based food innovation. US Department of Agriculture (USDA)-National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA)-Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI) (USDA-NIFA-AFRI 2024-67017-42676). 09/01/2024?08/31/2027. Total award: $595,400.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: FLORES-RENTER�A L., Alexandra Hoff, Jennings, M. (2024), Resilient restoration: Drought resilience among Southern California oak (Quercus agrifolia) populations in tribal lands. Ecological Society of America, Long Beach, California
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: FLORES-RENTER�A L., Niveditha Ramadoss, Scarlet Steel (2024). Radiant blooms: Exploring sexual dichromatism and fluorescence in Cylindropuntia wolfi. Ecological Society of America, Long Beach, California
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: FLORES-RENTER�A L., Yazm�n Lommel, Sula Vanderplank (2024). Evidence of inbreeding and low genetic diversity in a narrowly endemic island cactus (Ferocactus gatesii). Ecological Society of America, Long Beach, California
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: FLORES-RENTER�A L.; Lipson, David, Fortunato Rivas (2024). https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/162305356639451f9d03ac39a05cd165. Ecological Society of America, Long Beach, California
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: FLORES-RENTER�A L., Helen Regan, Megan Jennings, Amber Pairis, Janet Franklin (2024). Collaborative of native nations for climate transformations and stewardships (CNNCTS). Ecological Society of America, Long Beach, California
• Type: Other Status: Other Year Published: 2024 Citation: Changqi Liu , Jing Zhao (2024). Developing a masters program in food science at San Diego State University with industry partners. US Department of Agriculture (USDA)-National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA)-Higher Education Challenge (HEC) Grants Program (USDA-NIFA-HEC 2024-70003-43594). 09/01/2024?08/31/2027. Total award: $146,796.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Amy Quandt, Chie Tsujimoto, Judy Bross (2024). Presenting survey results at meeting. Avocado Growers of California Meeting
• Type: Other Status: Other Year Published: 2024 Citation: Changqi Liu (2024). Grant. Food Security Internship at SDSU Imperial Valley Campus. San Diego State University College of Health and Human Services Instructionally Related Activities (IRA). Total award: $2,000.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Amy Quandt, Fernando De Sales, Ami Doshi, Chie Tsujimoto, Judy Bross (2024). Presenting survey results at meeting. Small winegrape growers association
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Lucia Canul, Ramona Perez (2024). Highlighting Distinct Cultural Components for Inclusive Dietary Recommendations in Latinx/Hispanic Populations: A Qualitative Study in Oaxaca, Mexico. Poster Presentation at the American Public Health Association (APHA) Annual Meeting
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Lluvia Flores-Renteria (2024). Botanical approaches at the border region. Fall 2024 CSULB Biological Sciences Seminar Series
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Lluvia Flores-Renteria (2024). Expanding And Diversifying Careers In Sustainable Food Systems Along The Us-Mexico Border. STEM-NET Webcast CSU USDA Grantees
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Niveditha Ramadoss (2024). Exploring the Spiky Secrets of Sexual Systems in Cholla. 2024 Botany Speaker Series, California Botanical Society
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Lluvia Flores-Renteria (2024). NextGen Program. San Diego Botany Symposium. Co-organized by SDSU.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Allie Hoff (2024). Drought Tolerance Amongst Southern California Populations of Quercus agrifolia on Tribal Lands. San Diego Botany Symposium.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Lluvia Flores-Renteria (2024) Title: Lower Genetic Diversity in the Native Shaw's Agave in San Diego County. San Diego Botany Symposium.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Lluvia Flores-Renteria (2024). Dr. Flores-Renteria spoke to students in the class about NextGen opportunities. Clas GEOG 170 (Beryl Forman)
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Changqi Liu, Jing Zhao, James Wadman (2024). Vegan fish: Something smells funny. Southern California Institute of Food Technologists Section (SCIFTS) Student 3MT Pitch Contest
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Jing Zhao, Changqi Liu, Cristal Zu�iga, Corissa Williams (2024). Harnessing the superpower of microalgae. Southern California Institute of Food Technologists Section (SCIFTS) Student 3MT Pitch Contest
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Ramona Perez, Lucia Canul (2024). "Honoring Tradition by Applying Indigenous and Latin American Culinary Practices for Health Equity". Skidmore College Latin American, Caribbean, and Latinx Studies Fall Colloquium
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: John J. Love, Cristal Zu�iga, Jing Zhao, Changqi Liu, Haya Altammami, Shealyn Daley, Sofia Teran (2024). Protein language model-based prediction of potential allergens in Chlorella vulgaris. Southern California Institute of Food Technologists Section (SCIFTS) Student Research Poster Showcase.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Jing Zhao, Changqi Liu, James Wadman, Liana Feng, Stacey Lehrer (2024). Sensory similarity and consumer preferences of plant-based/vegan seafood analogues. Southern California Institute of Food Technologists Section (SCIFTS) Student Research Poster Showcase.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Changqi Liu, Cristal Zu�iga, Jing Zhao, Corissa Williams, Joanna Rockwell, Chih-Ling Lee, Liana Feng (2024). Nutrient composition and functional properties of microalgae as food ingredients. Southern California Institute of Food Technologists Section (SCIFTS) Student Research Poster Showcase.
• Type: Other Status: Other Year Published: 2024 Citation: Changqi Liu (2024). High School students visited SDSU and Liu's lab presented to groups with several lab experiences. STEAM Event.
• Type: Other Status: Other Year Published: 2024 Citation: Jing Zhao, Changqi Liu, Cristal Zu�iga, Corissa Williams (2024). Southern California Institute of Food Technologists Section (SCIFTS) Student 3MT Pitch Contest First Place. Award.
• Type: Other Status: Other Year Published: 2024 Citation: Lluvia Flores-Renteria (2024). Dr. Flores-Renteria spoke to students in the class about NextGen opportunities. AMIND 350 (American Indian Environmental Management).
• Type: Other Status: Other Year Published: 2024 Citation: Flores-Renteria, Joassart-Marcelli (2024). Session to inform about the NextGen program opportunities and HSI grant. NextGen Info Session.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Lucia Canul, Ramona Perez (2024). Cookbooks: A Culinary Journey Through Time. Coronado Public Library.
• Type: Other Status: Other Year Published: 2024 Citation: Lluvia Flores-Renteria, 20 SDSU and SDSU IV professors, staff and higher admin. staff (2024). SDSU NextGen team visits SDSU IV to prepare Edible Garden Project. Institutional Collaboration
• Type: Other Status: Other Year Published: 2024 Citation: Jericho Reyes, Changqi Liu (2024). Alt Protein Project Speaker Series. Southern California Institute of Food Technologists Section (SCIFTS) Student Club Funding (Total award: $500). Award.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: David Lipson, several other guests (2024). Agricultural Research Opportunities at SDSU's Santa Margarita Ecological Reserve. SDSU NextGen Colloquium Series.
• Type: Book Chapters Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Changqi Liu*, Jing Zhao, Sahil Gupta, Marta Carrillo. (2025). Quantification of crude and soluble protein content. In Plant-based Proteins  Production, Physicochemical and Functional Properties (pp 107?122); Li, Yonghui, Ed.; Springer: New York, USA.
• Type: Other Status: Other Year Published: 2024 Citation: Changqi Liu, Jing Zhao, Cristal Zu�iga, John J. Love (2024). Grant. Training interdisciplinary leaders in sustainable food science. US Department of Agriculture (USDA)-National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA)-Food and Agricultural Sciences National Needs Graduate and Postgraduate Fellowship (NNF) Program (USDA-NIFA-NNF 2025-38420-44387). 01/16/2025?01/15/2030. Total award: $246,000.
• Type: Other Status: Other Year Published: 2025 Citation: Lluvia Flores-Renteria, Kristofer Patron-Soberano, John Love, Chanqi Liu, Gena Sbeglia (2025). SDSU travel to CICESE/Cocina Shawi. Institutional Collaboration.
• Type: Other Status: Other Year Published: 2025 Citation: Board Members: Joel Kramer Steven Ostoja Sona Desai Wally Yokohama Roberto Gonzalez James Criley Waverly Ray Students: Andy Alvarez Ana Diaz Dominguez Corissa Williams Lucia Canul Brian Alvarenga Victoria Joya-Euceda Jenna Brouwer Sarah Abdelham NextGen Team: Pascale Joassart-Marceli Iana Castro Lluvia Flores-Renteria David Lipson John Love Changqi Liu Kristofer Patron-Soberano Ramona Perez Gena Sbeglia Stephen Welter Trent Biggs Amy Quandt (2025). All NextGen grant Co-PIs joined external advisory board members to talk about the grant and its achievements, activities moving forward, and listened to students' statements. SDSU NextGen Advisory Board Meeting.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Lucia Canul, Ramona Perez (2025). The Influence of Cultural Beliefs, Dietary Practices, and Migration Experiences on Nutrition Recommendations.. The Hastings Center, New York City.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Rodrigo Mendez-Alonso (2025). Sustainability applications derived from plant ecology and physiology. SDSU NextGen Colloquium Series
• Type: Other Status: Other Year Published: 2025 Citation: (Donatella Zona, Walter Oechel, Megan Jennings, Trent Biggs, Lluvia Flores-Renteria, Rulon Clark, Changqi Liu, David Lipson, Scott Kelley, John Love, Marshal Hedin, Rodrigo M�ndez Alonzo Horacio Jes�s de la Cueva Salcedo Carolina Alvarez Delgado Ana Bertha Castro Cese�a Elizabeth Ponce Domingo Mart�nez-Soto Edgardo Alfredo Sep�lveda Sanchez H. Lorena Mar�a Dur�n Riveroll David Schnider (2025). CICESE's visit to SDSU. Researchers from CICESE came to SDSU to interact with several professors at SDSU and find opportunities for collaboration. Institutional Collaboration.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Amy Quandt, Chie Tsujimoto (2025). Agroforestry as a Climate Adaptation Strategy for Farmers in San Diego County. SDSU Student Symposium
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Lluvia Flores-Renteria, Lydia Duran (2025). Investigating Genetic Spillage in Erythranthe cardinalis Common Garden Experiment. SDSU Student Symposium.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Trent Biggs, Adam Oliphant (2025). Comparing Satellite-Based Evapotranspiration Models and Groundwater Pumping Measurements for Improved Irrigation Management in a Mandarin Orchard. SDSU Student Symposium.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Aneika Perez, Pascale Joassart-Marcelli (2025). Rethinking the Benefits vs Risks of Community Gardens: From Environmental Justice (EJ) to Lead Contamination in San Diego, CA. SDSU Student Symposium.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Sierra Murrell, John Love (2025). Using the AI program AlphaFold to engineer transient tertiary structure (TTS) tags to enhance αS1-casein solubility. SDSU Student Symposium.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Anahi Martinez, Ramona Perez (2025). Role of Language Preservation & Food Knowledge Within La Mixteca Baja. SDSU Student Symposium.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Erik Lawrence, Trent Biggs (2025). Complete Water Balance of the Imperial Valley. SDSU Student Symposium.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Justin Shorty, Giovanni Gil, Lluvia Flores-Renteria (2025). A Look at CaliBaja Ethnobotany Through a Gastronomic Lens. SDSU Student Symposium.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Sofia Teran, Shealyn Daley, Haya Altammami, Changqi Liu (2025). Protein language model-based prediction of potential allergens in Chlorella vulgaris. SDSU Student Symposium.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Corissa Williams, Changqi Liu (2025). Nutrient composition and functional properties of microalgae as food ingredients. SDSU Student Symposium.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Mia Bartolovich, John Love (2025). Expressing Kinases FAM20C and CK2 to Phosphorylate Milk Protein α1-Casein via Bacterial Fermentation. SDSU Student Symposium.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Elise Piazza, Trent Biggs (2025). Understanding Drivers of Dairy Production, Effects of Drought and Farmer Adaptations in Rondônia, Brazil. SDSU Student Symposium.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Alannah Harnden, Zuniga (2025). Phototrophic-Heterotrophic Community Interactions and their Implications for the Construction of Community Metabolic Models. SDSU Student Symposium.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Lluvia Flores-Renteria (2025). Genetic Diversity of Ethnobotanical Plants in our Trinational Region. Mesa College, CA.
• Type: Other Status: Other Year Published: 2025 Citation: Flores-Renteria, Liu, Love, Castro, Patron-Soberano (2025). Students from CVHS came to SDSU to visit the different programs/labs related to the NextGen program: College Area Community Garden, BrightSide Produce stand, Biology labs, Biology Greenhouse. CVHS students received a tour that explained the activities for each program, and interactive workshops at the Biology labs. High School tudents also had some time scheduled to interact with SDSU students and ask them questions about university life during lunchtime. Chula Vista High School (CVHS) Visit to SDSU
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: John Love (2025). Sustainability and Sustainable Food Career Panel. SDSU Career Services.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: John J. Love, Jing Zhao, Changqi Liu, Kenneth Tran (2025). Chemical inhibition of enzymatic browning during mealworm (Tenebrio molitor) protein extraction. American Chemical Society (ACS) Spring 2025 National Meeting & Expo
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Changqi Liu, Cristal Zu�iga, Jing Zhao, Corissa Williams, Joanna Rockwell, Liana Feng (2025). Nutrient composition and functional properties of microalgae as food ingredients. American Chemical Society (ACS) Spring 2025 National Meeting & Expo.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Changqi Liu, Jing Zhao, James Wadman, Liana Feng, Stacey Lehrer (2025). Sensory similarity and consumer preferences of plant-based seafood analogues. American Chemical Society (ACS) Spring 2025 National Meeting & Expo.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Haya Altammami, Shealyn Daley, Sofia Teran, Changqi Liu, John J. Love, Cristal Zu�iga, Jing Zhao (2025). Protein language model-based prediction of potential allergens in Chlorella vulgaris. American Chemical Society (ACS) Spring 2025 National Meeting & Expo
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Sierra Murrell, Mia Bartolovich, John J. Love, Changqi Liu, Jing Zhao (2025). Using the AI program AlphaFold to engineer transient tertiary structure (TTS) tags to enhance ?s1-casein solubility. American Chemical Society (ACS) Spring 2025 National Meeting & Expo.
• Type: Other Status: Other Year Published: 2025 Citation: Lluvia, Flores-Renteria, Kristofer Patron-Soberano, Ramona Perez, Chris Burroughs, Gina Nunez, other SDSU IV staff members (2025). SDSU NextGen team and the organization Garden 31 visit SDSU IV to build the raised beds on the IV campus for the Edible Garden Project. Institutional Collaboration
• Type: Other Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Daisy Lopez, Cassandra Maya, Jennifer Villalobos, Shruti P. Shertukde, Trevor Toia, Jing Zhao, Angelina Trujillo, Ramona L. P�rez, Changqi Liu*. (2025). Chicatanas: The seasonal delicacy of Oaxaca. Food Science and Nutrition Cases, fsncases20250011. doi.org/10.1079/fsncases.2025.0011.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Lluvia Flores-Renteria (2025). Cultivando Ra�ces talk . Hispanic Student Organization
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Justin Shorty, Giovanni Gil, Changqi Liu, Lluvia Flores Renteria (2025). A look at CaliBaja ethnobotany through a gastronomic lens. SDSU Annual Sustainability Summit
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Sara Nadia Hemmat, Ramona Perez (2025). "Women's Strategies around Food Security: A Qualitative Study from Oaxaca, Mexico." SDSU EDUFAN Symposium.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Cayman Dabareiner, Paige Rohwer, Chie Tsujimoto, Trent Biggs (2025). Irrigation efficiency in the Imperial Valley. SDSU EDUFAN Symposium.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Adam Oliphant, Trent Biggs (2025). Remote sensing of water efficiency projects, Imperial Valley. SDSU EDUFAN Symposium.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Sierra Murrell, Mia Bartolovich, John J. Love, Changqi Liu, Jing Zhao (2025). Utilizing the AI protein design tool AlphaFold to enhance precision bacterial fermentation of bovine ?s1-casein. American Chemical Society (ACS) Spring 2025 National Meeting & Expo.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Isabel Hernandez, Jaedyn Gonzolez, Katrina Rodrigues, Trent Biggs (2025). Agricultural response to changes in water supplies, Imperial Valley, California. SDSU EDUFAN Symposium.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Erik Lawrence, Trent Biggs (2025). Water accounting in the Imperial Valley. SDSU EDUFAN Symposium.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Benjamin Wells, Trent Biggs (2025). Farmworker heat stress metrics: Field observations during work hours. SDSU EDUFAN Symposium.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Lucia Canul, Ramona Perez (2025). Culturally Informed Dietary Interventions for Chronic Disease: Oaxaca, Mexico. SDSU EDUFAN Symposium.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Sierra Murrell, John Love (2025). Using the AI Program AlphaFold to Engineer Transient Tertiary Structure (TTS) Tags to Enhance ?S1-Casein Solubility. SDSU EDUFAN Symposium.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Sydney Harrell, Jhadee Lynn Mendoza, Katie Sebrasky, Iana Castro (2025). BrightSide Produce-New Projects. SDSU EDUFAN Symposium.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Alonso Camarillo, Iana Castro (2025). BrightSide Produce. SDSU EDUFAN Symposium.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Victoria Joya-Euceda, Pascale Joassart-Marcelli (2025). Building Community in Collective Gardens. SDSU EDUFAN Symposium.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Alexandra Hoff, Lluvia Flores-Renteria (2025). Resilient Restoration: Drought Resilience Amongst Southern California Quercus agrifolia on Tribal Lands. SDSU EDUFAN Symposium.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Justin Shorty, Giovanni Gil, Lluvia Flores-Renteria, Changqi Liu (2025). CaliBaja Ethnobotany Through a Gastronomic Lens. SDSU EDUFAN Symposium.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Judy Bross, Landon Ling, Kyle Knight, Amy Quandt (2025). Remote Sensing of Agriculture in San Diego County. SDSU EDUFAN Symposium.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Tyana Ortiz, Amy Quandt (2025). Community Participation in Urban Forestry Development. SDSU EDUFAN Symposium.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Jenna Brouwer, David Lipson (2025). Phosphorus limitations in agriculture and the role of phosphorus cycling microbial communities. SDSU EDUFAN Symposium.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Vince Rivas, Lluvia Flores-Renteria, David Lipson (2025). Determining the presence of a potential novel pathogen in coast live oak (Quercus agrifolia). SDSU EDUFAN Symposium.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Eduardo Mendez, Lluvia Flores-Renteria, Clarissa Rodriguez (2025). Assessing genetic and phenotypic variation in Oak species to inform conservation and restoration efforts. SDSU EDUFAN Symposium.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Mia Bartolovich, John Love (2025). Bacterial Surface Expression of the Kinases FAM20C and CK2 for Milk Protein Phosphorylation. SDSU EDUFAN Symposium.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Liana Feng, Changqi Liu (2025). Sensory training and evaluation for vegan seafood alternatives. SDSU EDUFAN Symposium.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Chie Tsujimoto, Amy Quandt (2025). San Diego Farmer Interviews about Agroforestry and Climate Change. SDSU EDUFAN Symposium.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Yoanna Rendon, Andrew Alvarez, Lluvia Flores-Renteria, David Lipson (2025). Poster. SDSU EDUFAN Symposium.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Clarissa Williams, Changqi Liu (2025). Nutrient composition and functional properties of microalgae as food ingredients. SDSU EDUFAN Symposium.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Lydia Duran, Lluvia Flores-Renteria (2025). Investigating Genetic Spillage in a Erythranthe cardinalis. Common Garden Experiment. SDSU EDUFAN Symposium.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Masao Honda, Logan Hernandez-Baker, Jake Bates, Amy Quandt (2025). Agroforestry and Climate Change Adaptation in Tanzania. SDSU EDUFAN Symposium.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Li Danielson, David Rose, Amy Quandt (2025). Climate Impacts and Adapatation in Tanzania. SDSU EDUFAN Symposium.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Lluvia Flores-Renteria (2025). The Climate Talks event was a live podcast recording at the Digital Humanities Center. Geography Graduate Student Association for our 5th annual Climate Talks. New Climate Talks podcast series.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Lluvia Flores-Renteria (2025). Opening remarks at EDUFAN. SDSU EDUFAN Symposium.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Lucia Canul, Ramona Perez (2025). Honoring Traditional Culinary Knowledge of Latino and Indigenous Latin American Communities and Careers in Nutrition, Food and Agriculture. High Tech high School
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Lucia Canul, Ramona Perez (2025). Culturally Informed Dietary Interventions for Chronic Disease: Insights from Oaxaca, Mexico. SDSU EDUFAN Symposium.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Lucia Canul, Ramona Perez (2025). Addressing Policy Gaps for Latino and Indigenous Communities for Nutrition Equity. Herbert Wertheim School of Public Health and Human Longevity Sciences Annual Public Health Research Day.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Sara Nadia Hemmat, Ramona Perez (2025). "Women's Strategies around Food Security: A Qualitative Study from Oaxaca, Mexico." UC San Diego Public Health Research Day.
• Type: Peer Reviewed Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Flores-Renter�a, L., *Alexandra McElwee-Adame, Martha Gonzalez-Elizondo, Richard Sniezko, M. Socorro Gonzalez-Elizondo. 2025. Multidirectional hybridization challenges the species barriers in Arbutus (Ericaceae) of North America. Global Ecology and Conservation. Vol 59, e03572. ISSN 2351-9894.
• Type: Peer Reviewed Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Ramadoss, N., Steele, S. and Flores?Renteria, L., 2025. Prickly Problems: Cylindropuntia's Low Genetic Diversity Despite Inbreeding Avoidance. Ecology and Evolution, 15(4), p.e71213.
• Type: Peer Reviewed Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Parajuli, S.P., Biggs, T., Galvez, N.L. et al. Heat-related rest-break recommendations for farmworkers in California based on wet-bulb globe temperature. Commun Earth Environ 6, 359 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s43247-025-02327-9
• Type: Other Status: Other Year Published: 2025 Citation: Carolyn Stout, Changqi Liu, John J. Love (2025). 2025 Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences Research with Distinction Award. Award.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Lluvia Flores-Renteria (2025). Genetic Diversity of Ethnobotanical Plants in our Trinational Region. the Ethnobotany and Sustainable Agriculture: Bridging Traditional Knowledge and Modern Innovation for Biodiversity and Food Security symposium hosted as part of the UC Riverside Corteva Symposia Series
• Type: Other Status: Other Year Published: 2025 Citation: Robert Sanford, Changqi Liu (2025). San Diego State University College of Health and Human Sciences Graduate Student Research Award ($3,000). Award.
• Type: Theses/Dissertations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Alexandra Hoff, Lluvia Flores-Renteria (2025).
• Type: Theses/Dissertations Status: Published Year Published: 2025 Citation: Rosalinda Diaz, Lluvia Flores-Renteria (2025).
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Biggs, T.W., Parajuli, S., Quintana, P., Thompson, C., Zavala, M.A., Ciborowski, H., De Sales, F., Jones, C., Roberts, D.A., Shen, S.S., Madonia, S., 2024. Rural heat matters: Integrative analysis of farmworker exposure to heat stress in the Imperial Valley. Presented at the AGU Fall Meeting Abstracts, pp. GH12B-03.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Madonia, S., Coulter, L., Ramos, W., Davis, F.W., Ward-Baranyay, M., Markman, B., Scrivner, E., Brande, K., Fowler, J., Shuman, J.K., 2024. Evaluation and Cross-Comparison of Pre-and Post-Fire Vegetation Structure using UAV-based LiDAR and Structure from Motion Photogrammetry at Sedgwick Reserve, California. Presented at the AGU Fall Meeting Abstracts, pp. B31H-1365.

Progress 06/01/23 to 05/31/24

Outputs
Target Audience:242 students were reached in the first year with transformational programmatic activities. For the five classes delivered we had a total of 197 enrolled in participating FANH raleted classes. From students answering our evaluations, 25.4% were Latino/a/x, 2.2% Black or African-American, 49.2% White, 16.6% Asian, 1.7% American Indian/Alaska Native, 0.6% Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander, 4.4% other. A vast majority of them self-identified as females (70.8%), only 28.7% were self-identified as males, and 0.5% non-binary. For our early recruitment efforts we reached 45 high school students, 100% from historically excluded communities. We worked with Chula Vista High School students who have built an edible garden to fight nutrition issues and associated issues such as obesity. Students were also guided to set up experimental designs to assess the effect of mycorrhizae on plant growth. During Fall 2023, a total of 29 students were engaged in research developed in three classes offering internships: GEOG 360: Human Dimensions of Climate Change, GEOG 590: Community-based Geographic Research: The Food Environment, and GEOG 576: Advanced Watershed Analysis (scheduled for Spring 2024). Scholarships were awarded to 6, 7, and 2 undergraduates in each class, respectively. Students continued their research and activities into the spring semester, with a total of 15 students participating in experiential learning through these courses and continuing their research in spring 2024. In GEOG 590, 21 students were mentored to conduct audits, collect soil samples, and interview managers across 71 community gardens in urban San Diego County. In order to expose students to the challenges in our food systems and social and environmental challenges associated with climate change we delivered special modules on water management, drought tolerance, agroforestry and soil ecology into two college classes using a transdisciplinary approach. One of the classes is Transnational Approaches for sustainable food systems, with 31 undergraduate students attending in Spring 2024 and the other class, Sustainable agriculture, with 12 students enrolled in Spring 2024, a total of 43 students were targeted on these collaborative classes. We have recruited and supported three graduate students from historically excluded communities with this grant to perform research on "Determining the cause of coast live oak (Quercus agrifolia) mortality and acorn decay", "Nourishing health and planet with algae-enriched guacamole" and "Providing evidence-based diabetes nutrition education tailored to the Latina population". We reached out to different students who attended the EDUFAN symposium with a total of 54 attendees. 21 students presented form SDSU either oral or poster presentations; and 4 students from Mesa Community College presented poster presentations. We had 8 faculty attending and 8 collaborators including USDA staff, Mesa College, UC Cooperative Extension, SD County and Botanical gardens. Changes/Problems:We hired a project manager as we did not anticipate the large amount of administrative work required to manage all pieces in our program. As the program started on June 1st, we were unable to recruit students for the summer internships in year 1 (2023). This year (2024) we have 28students participating in the 8 summer internships associated to our program. We also were not able to recruit as many graduate students as we wished as most graduate programs have concluded their interview process by then. However, we were able to recruit a few existing students from three masters programs. What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Through courses, research projects, and professional development activities, we provided students with comprehensive training, mentorship, and career preparation. These efforts enabled them to contribute to meaningful research on climate change, food justice, and environmental policy while preparing them for future roles in academia, agriculture, and public service. We provided training to students through three special studies classes, recruiting and funding undergraduates through internships to engage in focused experiential learning, classroom-based activities, and research-oriented solutions. These efforts aimed to connect the practices and knowledge of Historically Excluded Communities (HECs) with new strategies for regenerative agriculture to address challenges related to climate change, environmental degradation, food insecurity, and poverty. During Fall 2023, the class internships offered were GEOG 360: Human Dimensions of Climate Change, GEOG 590: Community-based Geographic Research: The Food Environment, and GEOG 576: Advanced Watershed Analysis, scheduled for Spring 2024. Across these three classes, more than 100 students enrolled. From this group, we recruited 29 students to participate in research projects, 15 of whom received financial support, allowing them to develop independent research under close mentorship. These students focused on topics relevant to their fields of study, presented their progress at symposia, and received feedback on their work. They also participated in career development activities and were introduced to job opportunities within the USDA. In addition to these undergraduate programs, we provided research opportunities for seven graduate students across a range of projects. These included determining the causes of mortality and acorn decay in coast live oak trees, developing algae-enriched guacamole for health and environmental benefits, interviewing farmers in Oaxaca about their responses to drought, examining dietary recommendations for chronic disease patients and food accessibility in Ixpantepec, Oaxaca, exploring the potential of agroforestry for climate change adaptation in San Diego County, and investigating the production of community in San Diego's urban gardens. Each graduate student was mentored by at least one co-PI, presented their research at conferences and seminars, and received guidance on career development and USDA job opportunities. Professional development was further integrated into the program through career panel discussions. During the EDUFAN Symposium organized by the USDA NextGen team, we hosted a session called "Career Pathways in Food, Agriculture, and Natural Resources (FAN) Panel," which aimed to introduce students to career opportunities, connect them with professionals in the field, and offer practical tips for entering the workforce. The panel featured five experts: Dr. Ali Montazar from UC Cooperative Extension, Kristian Salgado-Jacobo from the UC Master Gardener Program, Monica Winters from the County of San Diego Department of Agriculture, Charles Hart, a USDA entomologist, and Dr. Andrew Vandegrift, a USDA plant pathologist. Another session led by Dr. Deborah de la Riva, a USDA entomologist-identifier, focused on applying for federal jobs, with a particular emphasis on USDA opportunities. Dr. de la Riva provided students with insights into navigating the USA Jobs web portal and crafting effective resumes. The symposium was attended by more than 50 participants and offered valuable career insights and networking opportunities. Partnership development and Networking: During this past year we have engaged with a variety of collaborators with which our students have networked and developed collaborative research and outreach. Some of these partners are: San Diego Botanical Gardens, Chula Vista High School, Master Gardener Program, USDA offices, SDSU IV campus, Mesa Community College, Urban Gardens, Universidad Autónoma de Baja California, Centro de Investigación Científica y de Educación Superior de Ensenada, Tecnológico de los Valles Centrales de Oaxaca. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?We created the EDUFAN symposium (Experimenting, Diversifying and Understanding Food, Agriculture and Natural Resources) to provide a platform in which 25 NextGen students disseminated their research and received feedback from co-PIs and community members. Students reported an increase in their confidence in public speaking. For example, one graduate student wrote "I served as a moderator for a panel session--another first in my career. I was extremely nervous when I accepted the role, but after preparing and discussing it with my advisor, I gave it my best effort, and I believe the result was successful. Both the audience and the panel were pleased with how it went. Thanks to this symposium, I gained valuable experience and feel ready to continue putting myself in similar environments and seizing opportunities that may come my way in the future." Our program was disseminated to High school students from Hoover High School and Chula Vista High School in order to recruit students into our pathways. Most students in our program disseminated their research in the annual SDSU Student Research Symposium (S3) on Feb, 2024. The PD and two co-PDs presented the SDSU NextGen program at the Presidential SDSU Sustainability Symposium on April 17th, 2024. Students and co-PIs have presented their research funded by this grant on the following venues: American Association of Geographers Annual Meeting, 121st Annual Meeting of the American Anthropological Association, Herbert Wertheim School of Public Health and Human Longevity Science's 2024 Annual Public Health Research Day, 2024 Southern California Food Industry Conference, Small Wine grape growers meeting in Temecula, AAG 2024, American Chemical Society (ACS) Spring 2024 National Meeting & Expo, 2024 National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Human Research Program (HRP) Investigators' Workshop (IWS), and SupplySide West 2023. Two senior thesis have been completed one in the Environmental Science "Analysis of Policy to Protect California Farm Workers from Heat Stress" and the other culminating Research Project "Physicochemical characteristics of Salvia columbariae and Salvia hispanica chia seeds. Our program has been disseminated through multiple media platforms such as web pages and news. For example, Dr. Liu disseminated his work on the article "Reporting on edible insects project" https://www.acs.org/pressroom/presspacs/2024/march/the-many-flavors-of-edible-ants.html Our program and paid internship opportunities were highlighted on the news under the article: "$5M USDA Grant Helps Train Next Generation of Food and Agriculture Scientists" https://cal.sdsu.edu/news/usda-grant-2023, "Imperial Valley Opportunities through USDA" https://kyma.com/education/2023/10/04/sdsu-receives-funding-to-train-latinx-and-indigenous-students-for-sustainable-food-and-agriculture-careers/ and "Empowering Latine Students through USDA Careers" https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=1028125648226810 One of our students was featured on this news "When identity intertwines with innovation" https://www.sdsu.edu/news/2024/05/when-identity-intertwines-with-innovation What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Execution of paid summer internships: Ten paid summer internships, including one in collaboration with USDA scientists at the Western Regional Research Center in Albany, have been developed this year and we will continue their execution through June-August. We have recruited at least 28 students to participate in these paid internships. Binational Internships: Cross-border internship on plant and microbial sciences: Students will learn about plant and microbial communities, their ecological interactions, and their relevance to climate change, carbon sequestration, agriculture and forestry. Students will learn laboratory (e.g. genomics, plant and soil chemistry) and field techniques (e.g., plant ecophysiology, soil science). Students in this internship travel to Baja California to visit research facilities, vineyards and tribal communities. We will also travel to northern California to visit one of the US Forest Service Offices and their operations and locally we will have a series of field experiences in Santa Margarita Ecological Reserve and natural reserves. Documenting the agave production: A group of six students is beginning work with our colleagues from the Tecnológico de Los Valles Centrales in San Pablo Huixtepec, Oaxaca on a project to document the switch from milpa to agave/maguey production. We are working in Sola de Vega (Zapotec community) for this project. Documenting uses of archeological sites in farmland: A group of two students is beginning work with our colleagues at INAH (Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia) and another community in Oaxaca. This community has archaeological ruins in their farming land that INAH wants to open to tourism so we are tasked to work with them on oral histories related to their use of these ruins in their ceremonies along with teaching us about their decision making and plans in diversifying their farming. Exploring food potentials of microalgae: The goal of this internship is to expand the applications of microalgae as a versatile food ingredient and alternative protein source. The interns will learn laboratory techniques to characterize the nutrient composition, flavor profile, physicochemical characteristics, and functional properties of different microalgae species and microalgae-based innovative food products. Developing vegan seafood flavor: The goal of this internship is to characterize sensory attributes and flavor profiles of commercial vegan seafood products and develop an easy and cost-effective way to generate seafood flavors from macroalgae. The interns are currently involved in training a seafood sensory panel and producing algal protein hydrolysates. They will perform a combination of sensory evaluation and instrumental analyses to identify the character-impact compounds in the targeted seafood. USDA Internship: Students will work alongside USDA scientists at the Western Regional Research Center in Albany, CA. The hosting scientist, Dr. Wallace Yokoyama, has a research focus on chronic metabolic diseases such as diabetes and cardiovascular diseases associated with obesity. Students will also be introduced to other research projects at the center and visit other USDA research facilities in Northern California to explore the broad range of specialties in USDA necessary to help the agricultural industry. Through this internship, students will not only gain hands-on research experiences, but also learn about career opportunities at USDA. Brightside Internship: BrightSide delivers fresh produce to partner stores in National City and the South and Southeast regions of the City of San Diego, within and surrounding the San Diego Promise Zone. As a result of BrightSide Produce's distribution services, the majority of residents in these communities have access to a retailer that offers fresh, affordable produce within a ten-minute walk of their homes. The student-powered non-profit tackles food and nutrition insecurity in San Diego County by: 1) distributing fresh produce to corner, liquor, and convenience stores, and small markets in underserved communities, 2) growing produce and sourcing from local farmers, and 3) reducing food waste through produce rescue, donations, and composting. Food Waste Diversion to Healthy Protein: For this project, the USDA funded summer interns will be working on research in which pre-consumer food-waste is collected from the SDSU Children's Center and converted to healthy protein by initially feeding it to black soldier fly larvae (BSFL). The students will also be working under the guidance of Prof. Changqi Liu on the nutritional characterization of the protein content of the BSFL as well as eggs produced by chickens at the SDSU facility. The protein content of the BSFL and the chicken eggs will be characterized in Prof. Liu's laboratory. The nutritional profile of the eggs produced from the food waste to BSFL to chickens will be compared to that of standard eggs obtained from local supermarkets. Exploration of Alternative Protein Feedstocks for Agricultural Livestock: The purpose of this project is to explore the production of BSFL as an alternative source of protein for livestock as it is anticipated that traditional agricultural sources of protein, such as soy and grains, may be negatively impacted by global warming and associated climate change. The students will measure the length and width of the BSFL on a daily basis using a UM12 USB 5MP Digital Microscope/Camera. These growth experiments will be run in triplicate in order to teach our students the importance of experimental variability and statistical analysis. Production of Protein Fibers from the Bovine Milk Protein αS1-Casein: In this internship we explore alternative sources of raw materials, such as protein-based fibers, that are biodegradable, can potentially replace plastic material, and will not cause the extensive damage being caused by petroleum-based plastics. We are using bacteria to produce the αS1-casein milk protein and then we will explore its ability to create protein fibers that can be spun into useful materials that are biodegradable and could potentially replace many nonbiodegradable plastic materials. We have recruited five PhD and two new master students who will be supported starting the next academic year. The other three graduate students recruited the previous academic year will continue being supported under our program. We will offer two class-based internships: GEOG 360: Human Dimensions of Climate Change, GEOG576 Advanced Watershed Analysis during Spring 2025 aiming to recruit 6 students from each class in research experiences. Our students at Imperial Valley lack access to food despite being at the center of one important agricultural area in our Nation. We have ongoing efforts to create edible gardens and plant fruit trees and work with the food pantry office to teach students how to grow food locally and sustainably. For this goal, we are partnering with the UC Master Garden Program and garden31 who trains formerly incarcerated people. The EDUFAN symposium: This symposium will be organized again in April 2025 and we will incorporate changes on the schedule and activities based on the feedback from the survey conducted on the 2024 symposium. We plan to engage 90 people in this event. Outreach of High school students: We will engage at least 45 High school students from historically excluded communities and tour them around SDSU and develop activities they can participate during their visit to encourage their recruitment into college and FANH disciplines.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? We developed three different paid class internships that incorporate experiential learning to make it accessible to students from historically underrepresented communities who might not be able to engage in research otherwise. We recruited 29 students of which 15 were supported (12 undergraduate and 3 graduate), 47% from historically excluded communities and 60% females to work on independent research associated with these opportunities. Two of these undergraduate students were recruited as graduate students supported with NextGen fellowships. Students in these internships: Developed a tool box to help them advocate for change and policy making to address climate change. Quantified crop water use and near-surface climate conditions in the Imperial Valley, which impacts both water use efficiency and farmworker heat stress. Work with community partners representing farmworkers to distribute research information about heat stress. Worked to compile a list of all community gardens within the urbanized area of San Diego County and complete audits (to gather data on size, plants, infrastructure, amenities, etc.) and semi-structured interviews of managers and growers and Tested the soil samples for heavy metal contamination in 71 gardens. Students were closely mentored as they defined a research project, reviewed the relevant literature, analyzed data, and prepared a paper for eventual publication. They presented their work in progress at conferences during the spring and submitted a report at the end of the semester. We created the EDUFAN Symposium: Experimenting, Diversifying and Understanding Food, Agriculture and Natural Resources to engage students and connect them to researchers, urban farmers, policy makers, USDA staff and other collaborators (54 people participated): This event bridges economic, social, and environmental sciences to identify sustainable and equitable solutions to food system and ecosystem challenges. During the event, 25 NextGen students presented their projects through oral and poster presentations, including 4 students from Mesa Community College. All the students had the opportunity to hear from and interact with a list of 7 guests from local USDA agencies, experts, and other agriculture stakeholders from the region, who spoke about their career pathways and helped students with advice to plan their incursion in the agricultural job market. This event had a strong impact on our students. For example, one student said: "Hearing the perspectives of people from the FANH career pathways panel was very useful in considering different career options. Also, receiving and answering questions about my presentation was a great way to get feedback on the research I have done." Additionally, we sent three students and one staff member to participate in the USDA 100th Annual Agricultural Outlook Forum/NextGen AOF, Feb 12-16, 2024 in Washington DC. One student stated the following about the experience: "This forum provided a unique opportunity to meet, exchange ideas, and discuss timely issues at the forefront of America's agriculture with producers, policymakers, business, government, and industry leaders was nothing short of a dream for me. NIFA staff toured us through historic monuments of America's agricultural legacy on a well-tailored agenda filled with jaw-dropping moments that encapsulated what it's like to work for USDA." Four students and one faculty member, Co-PI for the NextGen program, attended the NextGen Summit in Washington, DC, May 14th- 17th, 2024. One student gave this testimonial about their participation: "It was my first time in DC and I was very fortunate to visit the USDA headquarters. I learned about the different agencies and professions provided by the USDA that I could choose from and how I can contribute my skills and knowledge to their mission. I never thought about having a future career with the USDA, but now that I had a chance to learn more about it and the different fields they have, I hope to contribute to its mission as a plant researcher." In order to recruit students at earlier stages, we hosted 45 students from the Chula Vista High School who visited SDSU to interact with professors and undergraduate students who talked about their work on the NextGen program. During their visit the high school students 1) visited the SDSU Community Garden, 2) learned about the food distributing program BrightSide, 3) had a guided visit to the Biology Department greenhouse, and 4) had interactive workshops in three different Biology Department laboratories. We found out that 68% of the students declared that their visit to SDSU had made them more interested in studying topics related to food, agriculture, and natural resources in college. Also, 68% of the respondents declared that they were more interested in pursuing a career in an area related to food, agriculture, or natural resources due to their field visit to SDSU. One of the students reported: "I learned the variety of majors in bio, and it was so interesting. Seeing what they do and how they do it made me realize how wonderful it was. Thanks to the field trip I realized how passionate I am about Biology so I decided to choose it as a career." Curriculum development: Two multidisciplinary classes across colleges were created to teach students current global challenges associated with our contemporary industrial and global food system and sustainable approaches. Both classes are hubs to recruit students into summer internships with at least 50% of students supported with internships are recruited from these two classes. For the class "Transnational approaches for sustainable food systems" we have leveraged efforts to allow students to have experiential learning opportunities and connect with our collaborators and write advocacy briefs. In this class, we exposed 30 students to the challenges of our current agricultural practices and food security, which cause significant social and environmental burdens and discussed solutions to create a more sustainable and equitable food system. Several class projects were developed in collaboration with our partners to explore real problems in our community and incorporate solutions. For example, one of the groups collaborated with Chula Vista High School students and teachers to study how food deserts areas, where food is either unavailable or of poor nutritional quality, are also associated with concrete jungle creating obesity and stress in our students. Students developed a garden to examine the use of mycorrhizae fungal and how plants can improve nutrient acquisition with them. One of the outcomes resulted in increased interest from the high school students to pursue a college degree in FANH careers. A second collaborative class was developed, ENV496 Sustainable agriculture. In this class we created specific modules on water management, drought tolerance, agroforestry and soil ecology. During this class 12 students got exposed to a) Ecological foundations for a more resilient and sustainable agriculture and costs and solutions in food production including soil degradation and desertification, water consumption and pollution, pesticides, energy costs. Students reported an increased interest in pursuing a career in agriculture and natural resources after taking this class. We have supported three graduate students with fellowships to enhance participation of historically excluded groups into FANH careers, such as ecology, forestry, food and social sciences, Nutrition, Agroforestry. Students have developed independent research projects, perform experiments and write these reports during the past year.

Publications

• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Khoury, C. Plenary Speaker Session: Global Change in Food System Diversity.EDUFAN, San Diego State University, San Diego California, April 12th, 2024.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Alvarado Martinez, S. Exploring Flavors of Edible Ants. EDUFAN, San Diego State University, San Diego California, April 12th, 2024.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Rockwell, J. Nourishing Health and Planet with Algae-Enriched Guacamole. EDUFAN, San Diego State University, San Diego California, April 12th, 2024.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Smith A. How Farm Acreage and Valuation Vary in San Diego County. EDUFAN, San Diego State University, San Diego California, April 12th, 2024.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Rivas, V. Determining the Cause of Coast Live Oak (Quercus agifolia) Mortality and Acorn Decay. EDUFAN, San Diego State University, San Diego California, April 12th, 2024.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Ortiz T & Cisneros S. Land Access, Gentrification, and Urban Agriculture Opportunities in San Diego. EDUFAN, San Diego State University, San Diego California, April 12th, 2024.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Madonia S. Climate and Heat Stress in the Imperial Valley. EDUFAN, San Diego State University, San Diego California, April 12th, 2024.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Ennamorato A. & Thomas T. Agroforestry as an innovative tool for CC adaptation in SD County. EDUFAN, San Diego State University, San Diego California, April 12th, 2024.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Garret D. & Proton N. BrightSide Produce - Food Production, Aggregation, and Distribution Approaches. EDUFAN, San Diego State University, San Diego California, April 12th, 2024.
• Type: Other Status: Other Year Published: 2024 Citation: Featuring Panelists: Dr. Ali Montazar, Kristian Salgado-Jacobo, Monica Winters, Charles Hart, Dr. Andrew Vandegrift (Moderated by Karina Cerda). Career Pathways in Food, Agriculture, and Natural Resources (FAN) Panel Session. EDUFAN, San Diego State University, San Diego California, April 12th, 2024.
• Type: Other Status: Other Year Published: 2024 Citation: Dr. Deborah De La Riva. Applying to USDA Jobs and Job Opportunities. EDUFAN, San Diego State University, San Diego California, April 12th, 2024.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Sierra Murrell, Marina Kalyuzhnaya, Changqi Liu, John Love. Using AI and Protein Design to Produce Milk Proteins via Bacterial Fermentation. EDUFAN, San Diego State University, San Diego California, April 12th, 2024.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Cerda K., Flores-Renteria L. Tri-trophic interaction: Two fungi and a pine tree. EDUFAN, San Diego State University, San Diego California, April 12th, 2024.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Carr, D. Quantifying Heat Stress and Labor Intensity for Farm Workers in The Imperial Valley. EDUFAN, San Diego State University, San Diego California, April 12th, 2024.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Luna Reyes. Analysis of Seawater as a Potential Source of Agricultural Water. EDUFAN, San Diego State University, San Diego California, April 12th, 2024.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Azelya Yazzie. Testing Data Collection Methods for Plant-Pollinator Interactions and Connectivity: A Pilot Study in Urban San Diego. EDUFAN, San Diego State University, San Diego California, April 12th, 2024.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Alvarado Martinez, Oral: Exploring flavors of edible ants: A path to sustainable gastronomy and consumer acceptance. SDSU Student Research Symposium, Feb 29th to Mar 2nd, 2024, San Diego, CA.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Carrillo, Oral: Better space parties with algae-enriched guacamole. SDSU Student Research Symposium, Feb 29th to Mar 2nd, 2024, San Diego, CA.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Lopez, Poster: Chapulines blue corn cricket chips: Jump to a more sustainable snack. SDSU Student Research Symposium, Feb 29th to Mar 2nd, 2024, San Diego, CA.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Villalobos, Oral: Identification of flavor active compounds in micro- and macro-algae. SDSU Student Research Symposium, Feb 29th to Mar 2nd, 2024, San Diego, CA.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Cramton, Baker,Poster: Nutrition composition and flavor profile of chia seeds. SDSU Student Research Symposium, Feb 29th to Mar 2nd, 2024, San Diego, CA.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Rockwell, Oral: Unlocking seafood flavors from macroalgae: A sustainable, vegan approach. SDSU Student Research Symposium, Feb 29th to Mar 2nd, 2024, San Diego, CA.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2023 Citation: Liu, C. Forging pathways to sustainable food innovations through interdisciplinary collaborations. SupplySide West, 10/28/23-10/31/23.
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Cramton, Baker, Alvarado Martinez, Lopez, Esparza. Poster presentation, Algae as a precursor of seafood flavor in alternative seafood. American Chemical Society (ACS) Spring 2024 National Meeting & Expo. 03/17/24-03/21/24
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Cramton, Baker, Alvarado Martinez, Lopez, Esparza. Poster presentation, Exploring flavors of edible ants: A path to sustainable gastronomy and consumer acceptance. American Chemical Society (ACS) Spring 2024 National Meeting & Expo. 03/17/24-03/21/24
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Rockwell, Vernazza, Cramton, Esparza, Lopez, Williams. Poster presentation: Better space parties with algae-enriched guacamole. 2024 National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) Human Research Program (HRP) Investigators Workshop (IWS). 02/13/24-02/16/24
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Bross, Judith. Oral presentation of farm survey results. AAG 2024. 4/20/2024
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Bross, Ennamorato, Smith, Thomas, Uribe, Fisher, Monteverde, Zuniga. Oral presentation of farm survey results. Smallwine grape growers meeting in Temecula, CA. 5/13/2024
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Flores-Renteria, Liu, Joassart-Marcelli. Oral presentation about Expanding Sustainable Food and Agriculrture Education at SDSU. SDSU Sustainability Summit. 4/17/2024
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Ortiz, Tyana; Cisneros Esteban. Oral Presentation: Land Access, Affordability, and Agriculture in Urbanized San Diego. SDSU Student Symposim (S3). 3/1/2024
• Type: Theses/Dissertations Status: Accepted Year Published: 2024 Citation: Madonia, Samantha. Senior thesis (Env Science): Analysis of Policy to Protect California Farm Workers from Heat Stress. 4/29/2024
• Type: Other Status: Other Year Published: 2024 Citation: Daisy Lopez, Ana Gaxiola Alvarez, Jessica Borough, Adriana Martinez. Student Product Development Competition (Third Place). 2024 Southern California Food Industry Conference. 3/12/2024
• Type: Theses/Dissertations Status: Accepted Year Published: 2024 Citation: Carrillo, Marta. Physicochemical characteristics of Salvia columbariae and Salvia hispanica chia seeds. Culminating Research Project. 4/15/2024
• Type: Other Status: Accepted Year Published: 2024 Citation: Lopez, Daisy. Irwin Zahn Spirit of Innovation Prize. Award. 5/11/2024
• Type: Other Status: Accepted Year Published: 2024 Citation: Lopez, Daisy. School of Exercise and Nutritional Sciences Outstanding Undergraduate Student. Award. 5/11/2024
• Type: Other Status: Accepted Year Published: 2023 Citation: Salgado, Sophia. Grant awardee: Southern California Future Food Speaker Series (Total award: $1,700). Student Success Fee. 11/20/2023
• Type: Other Status: Accepted Year Published: 2023 Citation: Wadman, James. Grant awardee: Eating Insects Conference with Chef Joseph Yoon as Keynote Speaker and Multi-Course Tasting of Delicious Bugs (Total award: $8,690). Student Success Fee. 11/20/2023
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Canul, Lucia. Informing Culturally Collaborative Chronic Disease Prevention and Management Strategies through Ethnographic Fieldwork In Oaxaca, Mexico (Awarded Outstanding Poster Presentation). Herbert Wertheim School of Public Health and Human Longevity Sciences 2024 Annual Public Health Research Day. 5/1/2024
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Canul, Lucia. Navigating Cultural and Collaborative Dietary Strategies: An Ethnographic Approach to Understanding Dietary Behavior in Oaxaca, Mexico. SDSU Student Symposium. 2/1/2024
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2023 Citation: Perez, Ramona; Canul, Lucia. Lets Not Do Another Dietary Intervention: collaborative dietary strategies. 121st Annual Meeting of the American Anthropological Association. 11/13/23
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Sager, Raychel; Zubaidi, Yasmeen. Poster: A Geographic Exploration of Disparities in Community Garden Capacity. SDSU Student Symposium. 3/1/2024
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Schilling, Cameron. Poster: More than Soil: Digging Deeper Into the Relationships of Space, Equity, and Policy of Urban Agriculture in San Diego, CA. SDSU Student Symposium. 3/1/2024
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Joya Euceda, Victoria; Napoles Robledo, Osvaldo. Poster: Growing Together: The Production of Community. SDSU Student Symposium. 3/1/2024
• Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Joya Euceda, Victoria; Napoles Robledo, Osvaldo. Oral presentation: Growing Together: Community Gardens and Social Equity in San Diegos Urban Agriculture Landscape. American Association of Geographers Annual Meeting. 4/19/2024
• Type: Websites Status: Published Year Published: 2024 Citation: Expanding and Diversifying Careers in Sustainable Food Systems along the US-Mexico Border Webpage: https://binationalstudies.wixsite.com/sdsu-nextgen