| Overall Rating | Gold - expired |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 66.70 |
| Liaison | David Gibson |
| Submission Date | March 30, 2018 |
| Executive Letter | Download |
Hampshire College
AC-5: Immersive Experience
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
2.00 / 2.00 |
Steven
Roof Dean of the School of Natural Science Natural Science |
Does the institution offer at least one immersive, sustainability-focused educational study program that is one week or more in length?:
A brief description of the sustainability-focused immersive program(s) offered by the institution, including how each program addresses the social, economic, and environmental dimensions of sustainability:
1. NSF Clean Energy and Agriculture summer course
Working in partnership with Hampshire College and the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, Holyoke Community College was awarded an $810,000 grant from the National Science Foundation to create an intercollegiate course for students to learn how to apply clean energy technologies to small-scale sustainable agriculture practices. The collaborative program combined clean energy studies, sustainable agriculture, social justice, all in the context of economically viable small- scale farming in the Connecticut River Valley. The NSF grant covered all tuition and fees for students. The 6 week summer program was taught 2015, 2016, 2017.
Initial news story: https://www.hampshire.edu/news/2014/10/20/nsf-grant-for-cross-campus-clean-energysustainable-agriculture-programs
Course Description: https://www.hcc.edu/courses-and-programs/clean-energy-and-sustainable-agriculture%20sus-220
News story describing 2nd year of program: "Students in Summer Farm Program Learn Solar Design for Agriculture" - https://www.hampshire.edu/news/2016/09/06/students-in-summer-farm-program-learn-solar-design-for-agriculture
3. Sustainable Agriculture in China
https://www.hampshire.edu/geo/sustainable-agriculture-in-china
This course takes students to study agricultural practices in China, focusing on issues of social, economic, and environmental sustainability. Students examine the small-scale family farms that characterize Chinese agriculture, including the intensive use of chemical inputs along with new seed technology, serious problems of soil and water pollution, rising food safety concerns, and the emergence (or re-emergence) of organic agriculture and the creation of community-supported agriculture farms (CSAs) aimed at addressing these concerns among rapidly growing middle class urban consumers. The course also looks at trends toward the consolidation of family farms and displacement of older villagers forced by the economics of commercial forms of land management. Most students costs are covered by a grant from the Luce Initiative on Asian Studies and the Environment (LIASE).
Initial news story describing start of program in 2014: https://www.hampshire.edu/news/2014/04/29/400000-luce-grant-funds-research-cultural-connections
3. Paid Summer Internships at the Hampshire College Farm. The Hampshire College dairy and vegetable CSA (community supported agriculture) hire student interns to work on the farm during the summer to help with environmentally and economically sustainable vegetable production for the popular Hampshire College community supported agriculture program. Websites: http://sites.hampshire.edu/ffs/
https://www.hampshire.edu/farm/internships-and-work-study-opportunities
The website URL where information about the programs or initiatives is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
The information presented here is self-reported. While AASHE staff review portions of all STARS reports and institutions are welcome to seek additional forms of review, the data in STARS reports are not verified by AASHE. If you believe any of this information is erroneous or inconsistent with credit criteria, please review the process for inquiring about the information reported by an institution or simply email your inquiry to stars@aashe.org.