AGR202 Food Environment and Culture (8)
Abstract
As professionals, agricultural and wine science graduates will work in a dynamic environment and society, involving personal and institutional negotiations with social and ethical issues. An understanding of the background of the issues and some core skills in different approaches to unpack them will enable graduates to engage meaningfully with these challenging areas.
The main areas to be studied in this subject include ethics and ethical frameworks, environmental and social sustainability linked to economics, the major challenges facing agricultural production and food security, and how Indigenous Australian culture and values intersect with and can inform land use and management.
By completing this subject students will improve their ability to communicate these challenges in a professionally appropriate style through a series of presentation assessments and via the teaching strategy of group work and discussion |
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+ Subject Availability Modes and Location
| Session 2 | | Internal | CY O'Connor - Muresk Institute | | Internal | Orange Campus | | Internal | Wagga Wagga Campus | | Distance* | Wagga Wagga Campus |
*This subject offering contains a residential school. Please view following information for further details.
Continuing students should consult the SAL for current offering details: AGR202
Where differences exist between the Handbook and the SAL, the SAL should be taken as containing the correct subject offering details.
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Subject information| Duration | Grading System | School: |
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| One session | HD/FL | School of Agricultural and Wine Sciences |
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| Incompatible subject(s) |
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| SCI201 |
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Learning OutcomesUpon successful completion of this subject, students should:
- Be able to explain a number of the core concepts that define the major contemporary challenges for global agricultural production and critically examine the potential future implications of one of these challenges
- Be able to recognise the inter-relationship between cultural, environmental, social and economic sustainability and discuss issues that arise for global sustainability in Agricultural contexts
- Be able to analyse the history of agricultural development in Australia from the perspective of Indigenous Australian peoples and other cultures to explain a) the historical impact of the values and beliefs of the dominant culture on the Australian landscape, and b) the potential of cultural inclusivity for the future of sustainable agricultural practice
- Be able to examine how our own and others cultural values and beliefs affect professional communication and practice and the strategies that can be employed to enhance communication across cultures
- Be able to use ethical models to review and analyse the complexity of ethically challenging issues in agriculture
- Be able to communicate, in a professionally appropriate style, about contemporary Agricultural challenges by considering multiple perspectives to arrive at a justified viewpoint
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SyllabusThe subject will cover the following topics:
- An examination of different ethical models that can be used to review and analyse the complexity of ethically challenging issues in agriculture, such as animal welfare and the use of genetic technology etc, and including the broader social and environmental issues arising from discussion about sustainability and cultural heritage will be examined.
- The core concepts that define the major contemporary challenges for global agricultural production now and into the future. Sustainability in theory, and the inter-relationship between cultural, environmental, social and economic sustainability and global issues in an agricultural context and the tensions that arise from this discussion will be examined. These concepts include issues around climate change, water availability in Australia, global and local food security, and alternative uses for agricultural land such as carbon sequestration and bio fuels. The materials and case studies examined will use contemporary issues to ensure the discussions are up to date.
- The history of agricultural development in Australia from the perspective of Indigenous Australians and other cultures. Topics will include land law and land rights, relationships to land, cultural understanding of landscapes and indigenous approaches to land management including firestick farming and bush foods and the impact of the values and beliefs of the dominant culture on the Australian landscape.
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Residential School| This subject contains a compulsory 1.5 day residential school.
To fully engage with the Indigenous cultural aspects of the course, students will participate in some activities to demonstrate local connection to country. This would include site visits and discussions with local Indigenous experts.
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The information contained in the 2015 CSU Handbook was accurate at the date of publication: 01 October 2015. The University reserves the right to vary the information at any time without notice.
