Instructors:
Lucy Jarosz (jarosz@u.washington.edu)
Ann Anagnost (anagnost@u.washington.edu)
Course Description:
This course explores how food production and consumption creates meanings, identities, relationships, and values that extend far beyond meeting our nutritional needs. It is organized thematically to include considerations of the industrialization of food, food and health, local and alternative food systems, hunger, and food democracy movements. The learning objectives for this course are to encourage a deeper understanding of these themes, to enhance your ability to synthesize and analyze issues and debates among the topics, and to reveal how the questions and concepts introduced each session are applicable to your lives.
Readings:
Michael Pollan's The Omnivore's Dilemma (Penguin Press, 2006) is the only assigned reading for this course. But we hope it will just be the beginning of your explorations. We have included many suggestions for further reading (and viewing) for those who would like to explore food issues further.
Course Schedule:
January 14: Making Industrial Food
January 28: What to Eat?
February 11: Food and the Environment
February 25: The Contemporary Food Crisis
March 11: Toward Food Democracy: Local and Alternative Food Systems
Networking
It was suggested by a member of the class to open up a discussion area for those who would like to network with others around food issues. Please feel free to send out your feelers via a comment below.
Hi all! I'm so excited about this program and for the chance to meet other people interested in food ethics and safety.
ReplyDeleteI'm affiliated with the Women's Bioethics Project, based here in Seattle. They have great resources on current health issues and discuss them from political, social, and ethical perspectives.
Check out the blog for analysis of current events and news.
Somewhat related to networking - "Deconstructing Dinner" is my favorite food ethics podcast. They have great archives, and I recommend listening to every past show. There is a series on "how to get into a CSA", "Bucky Bucaw" and his great guide to raising backyard chickens (hilarious), and good coverage of policy and international conferences/panels with activists and corporate representatives.
ReplyDeleteEven though it is based in Canada, most of the issues are highly relevant and give a good perspective on how our northern neighbors discuss food issues.
Find an interesting commentary on the new Secretary of Agriculture in an article by Jane Black in the Feb 5 Washington Post titled Vilsack: USDA Must Serve Eaters as Well as Farmers. The link is
ReplyDeletehttp://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/02/04/AR2009020403467.html?nav=emailpage