Agriculture and Sustainable Development

Course is usually offered in the Fall semester. I also have a developed a list of complementary courses if interested in focusing your studies on food security.

Course Description

The transition from the UN’s Millennium Development Goals to the UN’s Agenda 2030, raises the question what is agriculture’s contribution towards sustainable development? Our graduate seminar will investigate this question by first examining the Green Revolution and its uneven impact across the developing world. We will then focus on agricultural development policies and projects in Africa, where the majority of the population continues to secure their livelihoods from the agricultural sector. Throughout the course, we will move beyond a singular focus on productivity and competing approaches of agricultural development - e.g. biotechnology and organic agriculture - in order to analyze agriculture's multiple pathways towards sustainable development. Taking into account ongoing climate change and persistent gender inequality, we will ground our discussions using case studies of existing or planned projects and initiatives, with the ultimate goal of sharpening skill sets to contribute towards sustainable agricultural development from the household to the policy levels.

Goals of the Course 

This seminar will provide students with the opportunity to engage with the shift to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by actively engaging in the practice of thinking outside a one-dimensional silo by reaching beyond critical thematic areas and disciplinary boundaries to engage problem solving from a systems perspective. Starting with the premise that ‘business as usual’ in agricultural development is not an option, students are encouraged to strengthen their critical thinking by reviewing established and new innovations that are attempting to break down these silos. The course readings will engage with theories and practice of agriculture and their contribution to sustainable development through the lens of different SDGs. By the end of the course, students are expected to be able to take on learnings from the course to establish themselves as thought and practice-leaders within their future practitioner roles in the 2030 Agenda for Development. The ultimate goal of the course is hence for students to not fear complexity, but rather embrace it and make it a hallmark of their professional careers.

Throughout the course, students will have opportunities to improve their ability to read and assess critically, think creatively, and engage in independent research and improve writing skills. Outputs from the course will furthermore be published on an internet platform to strengthen their professional positioning.