Cluster focus

Agriculture is the art and science of culturing plants and animals for use by humans, most notably as food. Ecology is the study of the relationships among organisms and their total environment, including biological, physical and social aspects. Agroecology is the intersection of agriculture and ecology—the study of agriculture as a human endeavor embedded in society and environment.

The work of the Agroecology Cluster addresses the many practical and theoretical issues that arise from this intersection. These include ecosystem dynamics, food systems, cropping systems, relations between crop and non-crop species, nutrient cycling, the social context of the farm, and the multifunctional role of agriculture in the contemporary rural and urban landscape. Central to the cluster’s work is its embrace of agriculture’s role as the outcome of a complex process of social negotiation, and as well, its embrace of participatory research methods as a route to more accurate and relevant science. The Agroecology Cluster is centrally involved in the creation of a new Agroecology Master of Science degree, a first-of-its-kind program, and also conducts outreach through the Center for Integrated Agricultural Systems.

Cluster accomplishments

  • The cluster has worked to develop the new Master of Science professional training program that will be implemented in September 2006. Cluster faculty have already begun team teaching new courses in this area, including a course on “Agriculture’s Social Contract.”
  • Cluster faculty have secured roughly half a million dollars in grants to support research. The primary focus of the research has been to explore the agroecological effects of grass-based farming, including plant, invertebrate, and social dynamics and interactions. For this work, the cluster combines research station experimental trials with on-farm participatory research methods, working with farmers as co-investigators.
  • The cluster obtained a grant for an outreach specialist to continue to build strong connections for the program with potential stakeholders.
  • The agroecology group not only holds a weekly seminar series that draws mostly an internal audience, but also reaches out to the community via an annual major public lecture/presentation that has drawn up to 150 attendees.

Cluster structure

This group does not have a separate cluster structure; cluster faculty are integrated into a broader group of faculty conducting research in agroecology, including working with the original faculty who developed this cluster.

Cluster coordinator, faculty and lead dean

Cluster Coordinator

Cluster Faculty

Lead Dean

  • Molly Jahn, Dean, College of Agricultural and Life Sciences