Via online journal., Today’s food production and consumption go hand in hand with immense damages to humans and nature. Change is needed, but where to start and which direction to go? This article tries to give an interdisciplinary answer by taking recourse to a vision, that is, an ideal image of the future which is drawn upon ethical reflection and beyond the limits of actual political and economic constraints. The main purpose of this paper is to show that generating and discussing visions can be a powerful process in order to regain ability to act in the face of the complex challenges of our time and that Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) plays an important role to enable current and future generations to become actors of change. First, a students vision on agriculture and society in 2050 is presented, followed by a theoretical examination of visions, their potentials, limits and practical implications. Subsequently, the results of a field analysis of current innovative solutions to local agriculture are given. These include intercultural gardens and community supported agriculture. Claiming that a sustainable development can only be reached if people are not only able to envision a desirable future, but to develop small scale, locally adapted solutions as answers to challenges such as climate change, this paper then focuses on the competence oriented educational concept of ESD. Here, an approach of integrating ethics in the course of studies of agricultural sciences implemented by a student’s initiative serves as practice example.
15 pages., ISSN-1042-0541, Via ERIC., Employers have identified oral and written communications skills to be the most important skills graduates should possess when entering the workforce. In order for faculty to better understand their students' oral and written communications skills, they should understand what apprehension the students have toward oral and written communications. Specifically, no studies have been found that explore communication apprehension (CA) or writing apprehension (WA) in agricultural communications students. The purpose of this study was to qualitatively explore agricultural communications students' perceptions of CA and WA. Participants believe agricultural communications instructors set up an environment that is conducive to changing behavior. However, students realized and identified areas of improvement that could help them lower their CA and WA. Recommendations for practice are provided in order to help alleviate CA and WA in agricultural communications students.
James F. Evans Collection, The shared hopes of farm ownership in America motivated many Black farmers and educators during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Although an independent Black yeomanry was not to be, and a host of factors have combined to remove Black Americans from farming, the quest has not been a vain one. Black land-grant institutions continue to redefine their mission in a changing world and in the process maintain their relevancy. (original).
James F. Evans Collection, Research and extension program priorities of land-grant colleges of agriculture have received considerable attention over the past several decades. In contrast, undergraduate education has received comparatively little attention. However, this may be changing. Negative publicity about declining undergraduate enrollments and stressed budgets for agricultural college teaching programs at some institutions are leading some deans and faculties alike to examine their undergraduate programs and consider how curricula and courses can better meet student and employer needs. Unless this is done, research and extension programs, as well as teaching programs, will be adversely affected. (original)
