�� - Italy

Greece and Italy: Food, Culture and Agriculture - May

nicolerh — Mon, 23 Sep 2024 13:13:13 +0000

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Greece, Italy

Program Director(s):

This course provides students with a guided exploration of food, culture and agriculture in two Mediterranean countries (Italy and Greece). It exposes students to food systems from production to distribution, to marketing.

In Thessaloniki (Greece's second largest city), they will visit farms (olives, rice, grapes, herbs, greenhouses, etc.), a winery, and the American Farm School and Perrotis College. They will travel by bus through the agricultural heartland of Greece, stopping to visit a medieval monastery. In Athens, they will visit the Acropolis and Parthenon.

From Greece students will travel to Naples, Italy to visit the archeological site of Pompeii. The visit to Rome will introduce students to the United Nations Food and Agriculture organizations based there as well as the world renowned gastronomy of Italy.

Overall, the program takes a systems perspective in understanding the interactions among agriculture, food and culture, including an historical perspective looking back over 2000 years. Students will visit at least 6 UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

3 credits for GLOBE 496 or AGRON 496 or AGRON 596

Spring Semester pre-departure course meets 5:00-6:40 pm on December 5, February 6 and 13, March 6 and 27, April 10, 17, 24, and May 1

This program was offered in 2023, 2024, and 2025

Sunday, May 18, 2025 to Thursday, May 29, 2025

Department:

Global Resource Systems, Agronomy

Type of Travel:

Travel Course

Application Deadline:

Friday, November 1, 2024

Semester:

Spring

Learn more!

Year:

2025

Dean's Global Agriculture and Food Leadership Program to Rome - Summer

sfine — Tue, 03 Sep 2024 19:33:57 +0000

Coming Soon

Dean's Global Agriculture and Food Leadership Student Panel

Italy

Program Director(s):

Carmen Bain

Shelley Taylor

Program dates are tentative and subject to change

This integrated production and policy program will allow students to gain valuable knowledge, skills, and abilities with respect to global agricultural production, resources, and food issues. Students will combine coursework conducted at ISU and on-site work with professional teams in Rome to explore real-world projects focused on global food and agriculture issues. Students will work with United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) professionals. Students will present their findings to FAO at the end of the program. Students will, at the end of the program, enhance their thinking while working in a high-functioning team environment to evaluate complex issues associated with global agriculture and food issues like biodiversity, foreign food aid, food security, food safety, environmental/resource conservation, global economy and the role of the US and the UN in these issues.

GLOBE 495 spring course will be offered Tuesdays and Thursdays 3:10-5:00 pm. All students must pass this course to participate in the GLOBE 497 course for the summer.

Learn More about the Dean's Global Agriculture and Food Leadership Program

This program is typically offered every year.

Monday, May 18, 2026 to Sunday, June 14, 2026

Department:

GLOBE

Type of Travel:

Travel Course

Application Deadline:

Saturday, November 1, 2025

Semester:

Summer

Learn more!

Year:

2025

Program Director Deep Dive- Dr. David Acker

mmgrant — Tue, 13 Feb 2024 20:20:16 +0000

In just his second year co-leading the Food, Culture, and Agriculture in Greece & Italy program, Dr. David Acker, Associate Dean for Global Engagement and Professor in Agriculture Education, has successfully curated one of the most sought-after travel courses alongside Dr. Sotirios Archontoulis. Their combined expertise in the Mediterranean countries offers students a comprehensive learning experience focusing on the production, distribution, marketing, and regulations associated with the food system while exploring farms and various cultural sights.

Dr. Acker’s love story for Italy began at a very early age when his next-door neighbor moved into town during fourth grade. Although this neighbor didn’t speak English and Dr. Acker wasn’t sure where he was from, they were able to connect through their shared pleasure of soccer, something Dr. Acker recalls him being very good at. The pair’s friendship evolved over the years, and during college, Dr. Acker went to visit him in Italy after his family had moved back. That visit ultimately turned into a European tour that they travelled on together.

Dr. Acker’s international travels were just beginning. He went on to live in both Tanzania and Greece for four years in each country, work in Rome for five summers, serve twice as a Fulbright Fellow in Greece, and in his most recent role, interact regularly with Iowa State University’s campus in Uganda in his position as Director of the Center for Sustainable Rural Livelihoods. The ongoing list of Dr. Acker’s travel destinations spans far and wide beyond the aforementioned locations, but Greece and Italy are his countries of choice when it comes to immersing students in a new culture abroad.

“When I thought about places I’d love to take students, I thought of Italy, for sure, because I am passionate about it. The food, the culture, the history- it all comes together in an amazing way in Italy. I volunteered in Greece when I was a freshman in college for about a month on a farm that is also a school, and I fell in love with the place and have returned several times...so I’ve had a long-term relationship with Greece. I actually met my wife there and one of our kids was born there, so it goes beyond just hanging out.” - Dr. David Acker

Establishing the itinerary for travel courses is no easy task, but Dr. Acker and Dr. Archontoulis managed to squeeze in a visit to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization, cooking classes, guided tours of Acropolis, farm tours, visits to both the American Farm School in Thessaloniki and the Agricultural University of Athens, and so much more. He recognized the importance of summer internships and wanted to ensure that students participating in this study abroad program could still fulfill those obligations after the conclusion of the travel in late May. The pair of program leaders were also sure to build in free time for students to explore Rome, Athens and Thessaloniki to truly make the most of their experience abroad and teach them skills for how to be independent travelers.

“I like the fact that students become challenged mentally and physically when they go on a study abroad. I also like the fact that they have to question where we come from and our system. It’s so much easier to understand our system when you have something to compare it to, and I love to see that unfold for the students... they’re just becoming more critical thinkers.” - Dr. David Acker

When Dr. Acker isn’t busy being a world traveler, he enjoys running and skiing along with staying in touch with his children and grandchildren who are spread out all the way from San Francisco, CA to Amsterdam.

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Author(s):

Logan Schmitt

�� the Dean's Dean's Global Agriculture and Food Leadership Program

nicolerh — Wed, 26 Jul 2023 14:44:24 +0000

The Dean's Global Agriculture and Food Leadership program is a unique, client-based international experience analyzing and evaluating complex international issues in food security, world hunger, and sustainable resource development and policy.

Under the mentorship of ISU faculty program directors, students from the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences will combine coursework conducted at ISU and on-site work with professionals at the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) to explore real-world projects focused on global food and agriculture issues.

Skills Development: The students that participate in this program will:

assess, analyze, and evaluate complex issues
learn to do research and distinguish scientific and high-quality information
learn how to work on high-functioning teams and find solutions to complex problems
learn to identify new skills and how to integrate and develop them for other countries and specific situations
develop and evaluate a case study of a complex global issue
strengthen verbal and written professional communication skills

Cultivating Young Professionals: Students that participate in this program gain skills that benefit them for life. Alumni can be found working in diverse roles, including; veterinary medicine, nutrition, grain merchandising, ag lending, farm management, medicine, legislative policy, teaching, biology, law enforcement, marketing, and more!

Making a global impact: Each year, the FAO selects a research area for the students to evaluate complex issues associated with global agriculture and food like biodiversity, foreign food aid, food security, food safety, environmental and resource conservation, global economy and the role of the US and the UN in these issues. At the conclusion of the project, the final research is utilized by the FAO as they make policy decisions and available as a resource for other interested parties.

How to get involved:

All CALS students are encouraged to consider applying for this program.

Selection criteria includes:

Major (s) in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences
good academic standing
Junior or senior status (preferred)
willingness and interest in experiential learning and agriculture, natural resources, and food

Selected students will spend four weeks in Rome working on projects in addition to the pre-departure course the semester before. Students will spend 20 to 30 hours per week on their projects over the summer and will cumulate the program with a final research paper, presentation, or report for the FAO. Several field trips will also be organized around the project content and could include meetings with the US Mission to the UN Agencies, conferences in Rome with agricultural topics, and visits to local farms or food/agribusinesses. Learn more about the program or apply.

Past Projects:

2023:

Genome Editing in Livestock. Research paper, annotated bibliography and presentation (Animal Production and Health Division (NSAG) with Paul Boettcher, Roswitha Baumung, Rama Jalab and Gregoire Leroy)
Challenges in Livestock Phenotyping. Research paper, annotated bibliography and presentation (Animal Production and Health Division (NSAG) with Paul Boettcher, Roswitha Baumung, Rama Jalab and Gregoire Leroy)

2022:

Defining the Enabling Environment for Sustainable Production and Trade of Avocados in the United States. Research paper, presentation (Responsible Fruit Value Chains, Markets and Trade Division (EST) with MarloKaye Rankin, Michael Riggs, and EricJasper Karlsson)
Improving Standards and Methods for Capturing Wild Foods & Neglected and Underutilized Species (NUS) in Dietary Surveys. Research paper, guidance note, summary, presentation (Forestry Division with Giulia Muir (NFO), Food and Nutrition Division with Maria Antonia-Tuazon (ESN) and Office of Chief Statistician with Simona Sorrenti (OCS))

2021:

2020: Did not travel due to covid.

Utilizing Nutrition‐Sensitive Agriculture in Sierra Leone and Ghana: Analysis of Crops and Fisheries. Research paper and annotated bibliography, development of theory of change diagrams for use in FAO conference (Food and Nutrition Division (ESN) with Patrizia Fracassi)

2019:

An Evaluation of in-vitro Meat as an Emerging Commercialized Protein Source. Research paper, annotated bibliography, technical power point, and overview PowerPoint with speaking notes (Livestock Information, Sector Analysis and Policy Branch (AGAL) with Tim Robinson and Paul Boettcher)
Sustainability Implications of the Global Shift Toward Plant‐Based Diets. Research paper, annotated bibliography, technical power point, and overview PowerPoint with speaking notes (Livestock Information, Sector Analysis and Policy Branch (AGAL) with Tim Robinson and Paul Boettcher)

Additional professional development opportunity: Global Agenda for Sustainable Livestock (GASL) 9th Multi‐Stakeholder Partnership Meeting: Innovation for Sustainable Livestock Systems, September 2019, Manhattan, Kansas; both teams presented posters.

2018:

Bee Health and Populations: A Comparison of Traditional Mediterranean Agriculture vs. Intensive Agriculture Production Systems in Southern Europe. Literature review and educational tool (Economic and Social Development Department with Fatima Hachem, Tomas Buendia, Ana Islas Ramos, Michele Rude and Melissa Vargas)
Addressing Sustainability of the Mediterranean Diet (MD) & Food Waste: Educating Primary School Children. Literature review and educational tool (Economic and Social Development Department with Fatima Hachem, Tomas Buendia, Ana Islas Ramos, Michele Rude and Melissa Vargas)

2017:

State of Food and Agriculture in the World report; Contribution to the SOFA 2017 Agricultural and Rural Transformation report: How can Inclusiveness and Nutrition be Drivers to Lift People out of Poverty? Research paper, information for infographics, and presentation (Andrea Cattaneo (ESD)
State of Food and Agriculture in the World report; Contribution to the SOFA 2017 Optimization of Food Systems Transitions to Enhance Human Health: Leveraging Food Systems for Inclusive Rural Transformation report. Research paper and presentation (Andrea Cattaneo (ESD)

Complete list of past projects (2009-2023)

Questions or want to learn more about the program? Contact Carmen Bain or Shelley Taylor.

Tags:

Dean's Global Agriculture and Food Leadership Program

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Italy

Image(s):

File(s):

list_of_final_rome_projects_09-23.pdf