加州大学戴维斯分校

The Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems (SA&FS) major serves students interested in improving the sustainability of agriculture and food systems. This major prepares graduates to understand the interdisciplinary and systems-based aspects of sustainability and provides them with the knowledge, leadership skills and experiences required to excel in agricultural and food systems professions.

This program is designed to develop students' competencies for addressing the environmental, social, and economic challenges and opportunities associated with agricultural and food systems sustainability. The program emphasizes an experiential learning approach to sustainability education, allowing students to choose between three tracks within the major. Students in the Agriculture and Ecology track focus on crop and animal production systems, ecology, and practices that mitigate negative impacts while producing environmental and social benefits. Students in the Food and Society track focus on issues related to the social, cultural, political and community development aspects of agriculture and food systems. Students in the Economics and Policy track focus on issues related to agricultural and resource economics, policy and management. The program provides students with practical experiences through courses with on- and off-campus fieldwork and through internship placements at sites related to students' interests and focus of study.

Career Alternatives

Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems students are required to complete an internship in the field before graduation. Internships have been arranged with local, county, and state agricultural agencies, production farms and commercial processors and retailers, domestic and international non-governmental organizations, and rural and urban community development programs. Graduates are prepared to pursue a broad range of careers related to agricultural production and food system management, rural and urban community services, education and development, and agricultural and environmental sciences, as well as careers in agricultural, environmental, and economic policy and analysis. Positions may be in private industry, government and public service agencies and in the non-profit sector, nationally and internationally. The major also prepares students for graduate studies in a wide range of fields related to agriculture and food systems.