Innovative Food Systems

Studiewijzer 2024/2025

Globale inhoud

In this course you will learn how to develop sustainable circular food systems, based on developing and promoting practices and technology that minimize the use of finite resources, encourage regenerative ones, prevent the loss of natural resources, and stimulate the reuse and recycling of inevitable resource losses. You will familiarize yourself with the concept of planetary boundaries and how anthropogenic practices impact key natural biogeochemical cycles. You will acquire fundamental knowledge from earth and environmental sciences, chemistry, biology and agronomy, which will serve as a basis to address and overcome challenges linked to resource and space availability, population growth, environmental pollution, zero-waste and circularity.

The course will be organised around several themes. You will start by laying a fundament through studying the biogeochemical cycling of the key elements for agriculture, C, N, S and P in the environment, and immediately apply the knowledge in a modelling exercise and laboratory practical linked to farming in The Netherlands. Subsequently, you will focus on the agrochemicals used in farming, examining their energy costs and environmental impacts, and they ways these can be calculated, traced and modelled. Moreover, you will learn about their application and implication for circular farming approaches. You will finish by combining and applying the knowledge and skills gained in your own project revolving around innovative food production schemes. Central tool will be the use of models to visualise the influence and interlinkages of the various compartments in the complex agricultural / food production systems in a systems thinking-way.

Studiemateriaal

Literatuur

• https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-031-07434-9

Leerdoelen

• Students can explain the relationship between electron configuration of atoms, their position in the periodic table, expected chemical bonding and overall properties.
• Students can describe different chemical bonds and the molecular structure and properties of common (in)organic compounds.
• Students can explain in their own words the fundamental global element cycles (C, N, O, H, P, S) and how these are impacted by natural and anthropogenic factors.
• Students can explain the general concept of planetary boundaries.
• Students can perform basic environmental analyses, to compare alternative agricultural practices, using analytical chemistry techniques.
• Students can explain how agrochemicals are produced/synthesised and how their application affects fundamental element cycles. 
• Students can use the gained knowledge on general food production strategies and circular resource use in agriculture to create their own ideas on novel solutions to improve food systems.

Onderwijsvormen

• Werkcollege
• Laptopcollege
• (Computer)practicum
• Veldwerk/excursie
• Presentatie/symposium
• Hoorcollege
• Hoorcollege
• Zelfstudie

Hoorcollege (lectures) will provide you the basic knowledge and study guidance for the digital exam. Werkcollege (seminars) will train you on researching the literature, reading scientific publications, and critically thinking at a systems level. Laptopcollege (computer lab session) will provide you hand-on training on modelling approaches. The practicum will give you a laboratory experience in soil analyses that are part of several lectures and relate to environmental problems addressed in the course. The veldwerk/excursie will connect you to real-world farms and train you on sample collection for the practicum. The project that you will develop in the second half of the course (zelfstudie) will result in a final presentation (Presentatie/symposium) in the last day of the course, which will train you in team work, science communication, and problem solving.

Verdeling leeractiviteiten

Toetsing

Half of the grade (weight 50%) comprises the digital exam at the end of period 1, and the other half comprises the group project and final presentation at the end of period 2.

Inzage toetsing

Students are welcome to have a chat about their (partial) grades as soon as they are posted during the seminars and group project time, as well as by individual appointment scheduled via email or after class.

Opdrachten

• Tutorials will be non-assessed group and individual assignments.
• The digital exam will be an assessed individual assignment. No feedback will be given.
• The project execution and presentation will be an assessed group assignment. Feedback will be given during the times allocated for working on the project and immediately after the final presentation.

Fraude en plagiaat

Dit vak hanteert de algemene 'Fraude- en plagiaatregeling' van de UvA. Hier wordt nauwkeurig op gecontroleerd. Bij verdenking van fraude of plagiaat wordt de examencommissie van de opleiding ingeschakeld. Zie de Fraude- en plagiaatregeling van de UvA: http://student.uva.nl

Weekplanning

Contactinformatie

Coördinator

• dr. P. Dalcin Martins