BSOC 4691

Food, Agriculture, and Society

Course Description

Course information provided by the 2025-2026 Catalog.

Multidisciplinary course dealing with the social and environmental impact of food production in the United States and developing countries. Agroecosystems of various kinds are analyzed from biological, economic, and social perspectives. The impacts of traditional, conventional, and alternative agricultural technologies are critically examined in the context of developed and developing economies. Specific topics include biodiversity and ecosystem services in agriculture, transgenic crops, land use for energy production, urban agriculture, and sustainable development.

Prerequisites introductory ecology course or permission of instructor.

Distribution Requirements (AFS-AG, CA-AG, OPHLS-AG, SCH-AG), (BIO-AS, GLC-AS)

Exploratory Studies (CU-SBY)

Last 4 Terms Offered 2024SP, 2023SP, 2022SP, 2021SP

Learning Outcomes

• Use conceptual and analytical knowledge to understand the complexity of food systems.
• Identify biological, environmental, and social processes that influence agricultural systems.
• Improve ability to develop and articulate a position on a controversial agricultural topic.
• Participate actively in debate and appraisal of agricultural issues with peers.
• Analyze, synthesize, and write about diverse disciplinary perspectives on agricultural issues.

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