June 16 – 29, 2016
Two Weeks. Seven Schools. Discover the Future of Food.
“First,” “Most,” and “Highest” most often describe the Vermont food system. Whether you intend to put down roots in Vermont or study and reside elsewhere, now is your chance: work with Vermont’s food system leaders for three weeks in June, and earn three undergraduate or graduate credits that may be transferred to your school. You will traverse the state, learning from farmers, policy experts, food justice advocates, agricultural education specialists, land conservationists, and “Vermontrepreneurs.” Ea
ch day, you’ll move from the farms, processing facilities, businesses, and policy centers that make the Vermont food system one of the most unique case studies in the nation. Discover the successes of Vermont’s food system – and the challenges for the future.
Questions on the Vermont Food Systems Study Tour? Contact Rachel Arsenault at RArsenault@vtc.vsc.edu or call at 802.728.1677.
Vermont Food Systems Summer Study Tour Syllabus and Schedule
Points of focus include:
- Vermont Technical College – Dairy Begins and Ends with a “C”: Cattle, Carbon, and Capital
- New England Culinary Institute – From Farm Gate to Chef’s Plate
- Sterling College – Restoring the Ecosystem that supports Our Food System: From Underground Biology to Nutritious Food
- University of Vermont – Building an Urban Food System From the Ground Up
- Middlebury College – Small State in the Big Picture: Leadership for a Climate of Change in Global Food Systems
- Green Mountain College – Conservation at the Core: Biodiversity, Land, Energy, and Water Quality
- Vermont Law School – Food System Advocacy: Leading the Nation in GE/GMO Labeling
Courtesy of Vermont Farm to Plate
Tuition and course fee (covers all credits, food, lodging, travel, and associated activities): $3500
NEW! Audit the Vermont Food Systems Summer Study Tour (includes food, lodging, travel, and associated activities): $3175
Credits: Three undergraduate or graduate credits available (SFS 2000/MSFS 5100), credits will transfer to home institutions
At the conclusion of the study tour, you will have a unique insider’s perspective on what it takes to create a just, sustainable, and resilient food system. Whether you are creating a life as an activist, farmer, entrepreneur, or policy maker, this course will provide you with invaluable tools for helping your own community transform the way in which it sources, grows, processes, purchases, and contemplates food.
What will you learn on the Vermont Food Systems Summer Study Tour? Check out the Tour Chronicles and Through the Students’ Eyes from the 2015 Tour.
Summer Study Tour Schedule-at-a-Glance
| Date | Study Location | Theme/Activity | |
| TU* | 6/14/2016 | UVM* | UVM Food Systems Summit* |
| WE* | 6/15/2016 | UVM* | UVM Food Systems Summit* |
| TH | 6/16/2016 | Vermont Tech | Arrive and Settle at Vermont Tech – Farm BBQ |
| FR | 6/17/2016 | Vermont Tech | Dairy Begins (and ends) with “C”: Cattle, Carbon, & Capital |
| SA | 6/18/2016 | NECI Sterling |
From Farm Gate to Chef’s Plate |
| SU | 6/19/2016 | Sterling | Restoring the Ecosystem that Supports Our Food System: From Underground Biology to Nutritious Food |
| MO | 6/20/2016 | Sterling to UVM | Intervale & City Market Tours & Presentation |
| TU | 6/21/2016 | UVM | Farm to Healthcare, School, & College |
| WE | 6/22/2016 | UVM to Middlebury | Farm to Institution |
| TH | 6/23/2016 | Middlebury | Food Systems – Local to Global |
| FR | 6/24/2016 | Middlebury to GMC | Leading Climate Change |
| SA | 6/25/2016 | GMC | Conservation at the Core: Biodiversity, Land, Water, & Energy |
| SU | 6/26/2016 | GMC | Conservation at the Core: Biodiversity, Land, Water, & Energy |
| MO | 6/27/2016 | Vermont Tech | Carbon Mapping in the Food System |
| TU | 6/28/2016 | VLS | Practice to Policy |
| WE | 6/29/2016 | VLS to VTC | Practice to Policy Closing Banquet |
| *optional event | |||
Sight is a faculty, seeing, an art. -George Perkins Marsh, 1864.
