University of Florida implements NFA/USDA grant for hot topic education in agriculture

University of Florida (UF) students are learning how communicate the gravity of issues threatening American agriculture.

 

The National Institute of Food and Agriculture, part of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, awarded a $296,000 grant to UF, Texas Tech and Colorado State, three land-grant universities, to teach students how to increase their awareness and knowledge about controversial topics in agriculture and natural resources. By increasing this awareness, the goal is for students to think more critically about hot-button topics like genetically modified organisms and climate change, says Ricky Telg, a UF/IFAS professor of agricultural education and communication and  director of the UF/IFAS Center for Public Issues Education in Agriculture and Natural Resources.

 

“We hope this grant will provide information to the students that will help them understand that any one particular issue is comprised of many, many other aspects,” he says. “And these topics were selected because they are representative of other issues that arise, such as the impact of an invasive species, and on manmade and natural disasters, as it related to Apalachicola Bay region.” 

 

UF/IFAS received $90,921 for its portion of the project. 

 

The aim for the grant is to help future agriculture leaders know how to communicate more effectively and educate the general public about how these challenges could, spread viruses like chikungunya and dengue, increase water pollution and lead to more obesity. Educating the public about these challenges may help people understand how agriculture and natural resources issues are intertwined and help everyone see the big picture in ensuring there is ample food to feed the predicted 9.5 billion people on Earth by 2050.

 

Telg and his colleagues, Assistant Professor Alexa Lamm and Lecturer Becky Raulerson – all faculty members in the UF/IFAS agricultural education and communication department -- are shooting video, collecting information and writing curriculum about these issues. These case studies will be integrated into Raulerson’s Issues in Agricultural and Life Sciences course and two other issues-based courses at Texas Tech and Colorado State this fall, Telg says. Students will be asked about the issues as they watch the videos. 

 

“I hope this initial effort will serve as a template for developing future educational materials to inform the public about these interconnected issues facing agriculture,” he says.