LOCATION: http://www.aliberlow.com/

DESCRIPTION: Small steps can create big changes in your community’s food quality and food security, helping to get more healthy food to more people and support a better food system. Ali Berlow shows you dozens of things that anyone can do, from creating a neighborhood kitchen for preserving fresh food to mapping farmland, connecting food pantries with food producers, starting a school garden, and organizing a community composting initiative. Every action you take can help keep farmers on the land and family farms intact, keep money in the local economy, reduce the carbon footprint associated with food transportation, and preserve local landscapes. If you’ve had enough of E. coli scares, disappearing farmland, pesticide problems, and hunger in your community, this inspiring book will show you exactly how one person really can make a difference.

TAGS: required reading

LOCATION: http://www.aliberlow.com/

DESCRIPTION: If you are raising chickens, turkeys, or other poultry for meat and lack easy access to a humane, local slaughterhouse, this guide shows you how to put together a slaughtering and processing unit that will accommodate any type of poultry and can be moved from farm to farm. These units can be funded, built, and used by a community of small farmers, or you can develop one by yourself and use it as part of a business. This book covers the mechanics of constructing the unit, government regulations, the permitting process, sanitation, safety, and much more.

TAGS: required reading

LOCATION: Highland County, Virginia

DESCRIPTION:

Allegheny Mountain Institute believes in the power of food to build vibrant, healthy communities. 

That's why AMI fully sponsors, trains, and empowers Fellows to become teachers and advocates for a food system that is socially, environmentally, and economically just. Selected Fellows spend six months in experiential, residential Farm and Food Study at AMI’s Allegheny Farm Campus, followed by a Community Action Year, applying their training in partnership with regional non-profit organizations. 

The AMI Fellowship builds strong leaders who successfully work to transform the food system. AMI alumni go on to work as farmers, educators, scientists, food entrepreneurs, designers, non-profit leaders, policymakers, and lifelong leaders in the food movement.

TAGS: independent, alternative

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LOCATION: various locations globally

DESCRIPTION: A gap year is an experiential semester or year "on," typically taken between high school and college in order to deepen practical, professional, and personal awareness. The American Gap Association is a 501(c)3 nonprofit accreditation and standards-setting organization for Gap Years that is recognized as such by the US Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission. Gap Years are more than for students who aren't "ready for college." And while many bonafide Gap Year students are indeed either burnt out of traditional academia or simply not clear about what they want from four years at university, the impression that a Gap Year is not a precursor to college is simply false: indeed, within one year of completed a Gap Year, 90% of students are actively enrolled in a four-year institution.

TAGS: independent, alternative

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LOCATION: Online

DESCRIPTION: The online Master of Science (MS) in Nutrition Education from American University gives you the advanced knowledge and skills to turn your passion about nutrition into a life-long career helping better the lives of others. Delivered through an innovative online platform, you’ll gain focused theoretical and practical training in the field of nutrition.

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: Sicily (Vittoria + Cantina Occhipinti) - Italy

DESCRIPTION: November 5 – December 8, 2022 

Cook the Farm encourages students to experience, think and taste what is in front of them. This inaugural edition of Cook the Farm will explore many parts of hidden Sicily through the lens of food and wine. While some of the focus for the five weeks will be on wine-making themes and the various characteristics of Sicilian wines, much of the week explores the practices, people, tastes, and traditions of Sicily’s food culture. Lectures, presentations and field work sessions by subject matter experts (agronomists, enologists, professors, food professionals, etc.) are joined with group discussion to further the conversation about food and food systems. Site visits to cheesemakers, flour mills, farms and more allow insight into the cultivation and production of local products. Cooking demos and community cooking classes will share how local ingredients and practices come together in the kitchen.

The importance here is a keen interest  in food, wine, place, and taste. While Cook the Farm was started by the Anna Tasca Lanza Cooking School, Cook the Farm Meets Arianna Occhipinti is by no means a cooking course nor is it exclusively based on wine. There will be family style cooking lessons, but the main focus will be linking taste to territory. Be ready to engage with local surroundings, gain insight into Sicily’s food and wine history, and explore what role food and wine play in your life, wherever you are in the world.

Participants will be housed in the nearby town of Vittoria and the Occhipinti winery will be central headquarters for the five-weeks. Cost: €8,200

For more info: https://annatascalanza.com/cook-the-farm-meets-arianna-occhipinti/

TAGS: independent, short term, alternative

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Elizabeth spent 17 years at Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts, developing pioneering global brand marketing strategies, including food and beverage offerings and services. Insatiably curious and a lifelong learner, Elizabeth shares her love of food at duckandcake.blogspot.com, featuring seasonal recipes and culinary adventures from Michelin-star meals to greasy spoon burger joints. Her love of all things culinary brought her to Cook the Farm to further explore the intersection between food, culture, community and sustainability. You can read about her Sicilian adventures at http://epizzinato.wixsite.com/duckandcaketravels. Contact Elizabeth Pizzinato

Rachael loves to learn, and shares this love teaching high-school English, history and horticulture. She is a passionate gardener and in 2017 this brought her to the Cook the Farm program at the Anna Tasca Lanza School. Rachael is also an enthusiastic home cook, focusing on preparing (and preserving) her own, seasonal produce and on cooking for friends and family. She loves cheese-making and dreams of one day owning a dairy cow. Contact Rachael Lebeter

LOCATION: Asheville, North Carolina

DESCRIPTION: ASAP's mission is to help local farms thrive, link farmers to markets and supporters, and build healthy communities through connections to local food. We offer educational opportunities during the year, notably our Business of Farming Conference to help small farmers build stronger businesses. Check out our resource of farmer tools, and join us for a workshop or community event. Learn more at http://asapconnections.org.

TAGS: independent, short term

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LOCATION: Alexandria, Virginia

DESCRIPTION:

The Challenge:  The average American farmer is 58 – even older in Virginia – and is nearing retirement. The USDA estimates the nation needs 100,000 new farmers to replace them over the next decade. Hundreds of thousands of American veterans, including those who volunteered for the military after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, are separating from the service every year and seeking meaningful careers in the civilian sector.

The Opportunity:  Americans are increasingly purchasing local and organic food – the market share grew more than 10 fold in the last decade, despite a major recession. Veterans are 45 percent more likely to start their own businesses than other Americans. And they have the physical and mental toughness to forge successful careers in agriculture. Years of service have honed their ability to lead; to work independently or as part of a team; to plan, adapt, and overcome crises; and to accomplish whatever mission is before them.

The Solution: Pay veterans to learn how to farm. Help them find affordable land. Provide easy market access for the food they produce to satisfy the robust and growing public demand. And reinvigorate the farm sector with skilled new growers, eager to begin their next phase of life.

Arcadia’s Veteran Farmer Program is a multilayered, hands-on educational program that develops new farmers; capitalizes on the growing market in local, sustainably grown foods; and encourages entrepreneurship and job creation.

The Veteran Farmer Program has three components: the Veteran Farmer Reserve Program (12 months), the Veteran Farm Fellowship Program (9 months) and Veteran Farmer Land Access (ongoing).

TAGS: independent, alternative

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LOCATION: http://www.zingtrain.com/building-a-great-business

DESCRIPTION: This series of books by Zingerman's co-founding partner Ari Weinzweig examines the basic building blocks of the culture and structure we know now as Zingerman's. These approaches are applicable whether you're running a law office,a library, a restaurant, a record label, a software firm, or an organic farm - they are the behind-the-scenes "secret" stuff that goes into making a very special, sustainable business of any kind.

TAGS: required reading

LOCATION: Online

DESCRIPTION: Growing public demand for health information has created a need for communicators and marketers with a thorough understanding of health and nutrition issues. As a student in the bachelor of science in nutrition program, you will have an advantage the ability to apply nutrition principles in a variety of fields based on one of the following tracks.

Food and Nutrition Management: Students develop an understanding of how different food industries operate (commercial, institutional) and how to manage each type of operation. Students are exposed to the variety of food delivery methods, have an opportunity to operate a retail kitchen and gain an understanding of food service procurement. Additionally, this track requires students to earn their ServSafe Manager certification that demonstrates their food safety knowledge during food production and service.

Nutrition Communication: Students develop expertise in the communication of health and nutrition information. Nutrition courses provide expert content to enable students to provide evidence-based information to consumers and health professionals. This track provides students with a strong background in research methods, statistics, nutrition, health care and communication skills.

Food Studies: Students develop expertise in food and food production through course work in nutrition, food systems, sustainability and food marketing. This track allows students to select courses within the field based on personal interest and professional career goals.

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: Online

DESCRIPTION: The online MS in Nutrition (Dietetics) is based on scientific foundations of nutrition and reinforces essential skills in project management, interpretation of research literature, critical inquiry and problem-solving. Offered by ASU’s School of Nutrition and Health Promotion, this non-thesis program is available only to registered dietitians with at least one year of experience.

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: Asheville, North Carolina

DESCRIPTION: Our goal: Permaculture School’s goal is to provide educational programs that inspire students to walk their talk in their own backyards, neighborhoods, and cities by putting what they learn into practice.

Our mission: Permaculture School’s mission is to deepen and proliferate permaculture practices and ethics with the goal of creating regenerative communities, resilient culture, and a world that works for all beings.

Our Team: Permaculture School collaborates with an extensive network of local instructors, practitioners and community partners, as well as national and global leaders of their field. To find out more, click on the links below.

TAGS: long term, short term, alternative

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LOCATION: Sandstone, Minnesota

DESCRIPTION: Established in 1968, the Audubon Center of the North Woods (ACNW) is a private, non-profit 501(c)3 residential environmental learning center (RELC) and green retreat & conference center on Grindstone Lake near Sandstone, MN – 90 miles north of Minneapolis/St. Paul. We offer a great variety of outdoor and environmental education experiences for people of all ages – youth, families and adults – and are an ideal K12 school field trip and student travel destination. In addition to our on-site programs and camps, ACNW provides outreach programs throughout the region, including various undergraduate, graduate, and teacher training programs through our Audubon College. 

TAGS: long term, short term, alternative

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LOCATION: Shanagarry, County Cork, Ireland

DESCRIPTION: Ballymaloe Cookery School first opened its doors in 1983 and has been teaching students from all over the world and all walks of life since then. Unlike any other cookery school in the world, we are situated on our very own fully certified 100 acre organic farm.

TAGS: short term

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LOCATION: http://www.kingsolver.com/books/animal-vegetable-miracle.html

DESCRIPTION: " This is the story of a year in which we made every attempt to feed ourselves animals and vegetables whose provenance we really knew . . . and of how our family was changed by our first year of deliberately eating food produced from the same place where we worked, went to school, loved our neighbors, drank the water, and breathed the air. "

TAGS: required reading

LOCATION: http://politicsoftheplate.com/

DESCRIPTION: " This book began as an attempt to answer what I thought were a couple of simple questions. Why can’t (or won’t) modern agribusiness deliver a decent tasting tomato? And why can’t it grow one with a similar nutritional profile to the tomatoes available to any housewife during the Kennedy administration? My investigations into the mysteries of modern tomato production took me on a circuitous journey from my garden in New England to a research greenhouse at the University of California Davis, to the rocky fields of a struggling produce farmer in Pennsylvania, and to the birthplace of tomatoes in the remote coastal deserts of northern Peru. But I always found myself coming back to where it all started for me—Florida. "

TAGS: required reading

LOCATION: Kenmore, Washington

DESCRIPTION: Bastyr University is a nonprofit, private university offering graduate and undergraduate degrees, with a multidisciplinary curriculum in science-based natural medicine. Recognized globally for its rigorous curriculum and strong research, the University has a primary campus in Kenmore, Washington, and a second campus in San Diego, California.

Bastyr's international faculty teaches the natural health sciences with an emphasis on integrating mind, body, spirit and nature. A pioneer in natural medicine since its inception, Bastyr continues to be in the forefront of developing the model for 21st-century medicine.

TAGS: long term, short term

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Chloe is a graduate of the University of Gastronomic Sciences Masters in Food Culture and Communications, High Quality Products. Previously, she completed a Holistic Nutrition and Culinary Arts program at Bauman College in Berkeley, as well as a Bachelor of Science program in Nutrition and Culinary Arts from Bastyr University. She works as a private chef and consultant, and describes herself as an ever-aspiring food education professional. Contact Chloe Friedland

LOCATION: Online, Berkeley, California

DESCRIPTION: Established in 1989, Bauman College is an accredited college that offers comprehensive, affordable education in holistic nutrition and culinary arts and federal financial aid for students who qualify. Our goal is to change the way people consume food from convenience to conscious eating. We are committed to spreading personal, community, and global wellness through increased awareness of the healing power of fresh, whole foods. Our Nutrition Consultant Training Program and our  Natural Chef Training Program are offered 100% online, while rooted in Berkeley California. Learn more.

TAGS: long term, short term

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Chloe is a graduate of the University of Gastronomic Sciences Masters in Food Culture and Communications, High Quality Products. Previously, she completed a Holistic Nutrition and Culinary Arts program at Bauman College in Berkeley, as well as a Bachelor of Science program in Nutrition and Culinary Arts from Bastyr University. She works as a private chef and consultant, and describes herself as an ever-aspiring food education professional. Contact Chloe Friedland

LOCATION: Berea, Kentucky

DESCRIPTION: Berea College is one of a small number of liberal arts colleges in the United States offering an academic program in agriculture and natural resources (ANR).  The ANR Program’s curriculum provides all students with a sound foundation in ANR with flexible options to pursue training in particular areas of interest.

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: http://milkweed.org/shop/product/389/

DESCRIPTION: Beth Dooley arrived in Minnesota from her native New Jersey with preconceptions about the Midwestern food scene. Having learned to cook in her grandmother’s kitchen, shopping at farm stands and making preserves, she couldn’t help but wonder, “Do people here really eat swampy broccoli, iceberg lettuce, and fried chicken for lunch every day?”

These assumptions quickly faded as she began to explore farmers’ markets and the burgeoning co-op scene in the Twin Cities, and eventually discovered a local food movement strong enough to survive the toughest winter. From the husband and wife who run one of the largest organic farms in the region to Native Americans harvesting wild rice, and from award-winning cheesemakers to Hmong immigrant farmers growing the best sweet potatoes in the country, a rich ecosystem of farmers, artisanal producers, and restaurateurs comes richly to life in this fascinating book, demonstrating that even in a place with a short growing season, food grown locally and organically can be healthy, community-based, environmentally conscious, and—most of all—delicious.

TAGS: required reading

LOCATION: Binghamton, New York

DESCRIPTION: A versatile program in a growing field, Sustainable Communities integrates environmental protection, economic vitality and social equity to solve the challenges of communities around the world. Through a custom education and job training, you will be prepared to become a leader in shaping sustainable communities to protect people and the planet. Learn more at https://www.binghamton.edu/sustainable-communities/

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: Milwaukee, Wisconsin

DESCRIPTION: The North American Biodynamic Apprenticeship Program (NABDAP) helps aspiring farmers develop the skills and knowledge they need to build successful organic and biodynamic farms. The program combines:

• 24 months of structured on-farm training and mentoring
• An independent, on-farm project
• Classroom study in biodynamics

TAGS: long term, alternative

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LOCATION: Boston, Massachusetts

DESCRIPTION: Cofounded by Jacques Pépin and Julia Child, the Master of Liberal Arts (MLA) in Gastronomy is a unique, multidisciplinary program that encompasses the arts, the humanities, and the natural and social sciences. Students in the program examine the role of food in historical and contemporary societies from a variety of perspectives—gaining a holistic view of the impact of food, food science, and nutrition on world civilization.

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: Corbett, Oregon

DESCRIPTION: In-depth instruction will help participants understand the nuts and bolts of sustainable, small scale, market farming. We provide 550 hours of field instruction, growing over 40 different crops during the course of the season. Two intensive training days per week make this program accessible for those wanting an in-depth farmer training experience in a part time capacity.

With 1.5 acres in production, Bridge City Farm School focuses on training sustainable, small scale, market farmers on a real working farm in Corbett, OR.  Annual row crops, a mixed orchard, poultry, and honeybees provide students with an opportunity to participate in the joys and challenges of farm life, just 40 minutes outside of Portland, OR. 
 

TAGS: long term, alternative

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LOCATION: Fairbanks, Alaska

DESCRIPTION: Calypso Farm and Ecology Center's 5 month, residential Farmer Training Program provides participants the production experience, creativity, and business planning skills necessary to start their own small farm or food project. 

Established in 2000 by Tom Zimmer and Susan Willsrud, Calypso is a non-profit educational farm in Fairbanks, Alaska. Through hands-on education programs like the Farmer Training Program, field trips, summer camps, workshops and a network of school gardens, Calypso works to encourage local food production and environmental awareness at every age. Calypso's on-farm production includes animals, fiber and 3 acres of vegetables for CSA, local restaurants and community markets. 

TAGS: short term, alternative

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LOCATION: Hardwick, Vermont

DESCRIPTION: The Center for an Agricultural Economy (CAE) is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization located in beautiful Hardwick, Vermont. Our mission is to build a regenerative, locally based, healthy food system by engaging the greater Hardwick community through collaboration opportunities, educational outreach and providing infrastructure.

TAGS: independent

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LOCATION: Pittsboro, North Carolina

DESCRIPTION: Developed in partnership with the North Carolina Cooperative Extension and with input from the Carolina Farm Stewardship Association, the curriculum is about better growing methods. Sustainable agriculture focuses on production that renews resources. The program is about more than environmental awareness. It is also about the farming community.

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: Lander, Wyoming

DESCRIPTION: The Central Wyoming College's Alpine Science Institute, located near Lander, Wyoming is seeking aspiring small and mid-scale farmers to join our Beginning Farmer training cohort which runs from April through December each year. CWC offers a comprehensive farmer training and farm incubator program with the goal of increasing the number of economically and environmentally sustainable farm businesses in our region. The program provides small-scale agropreneurs with the knowledge and skills to start and successfully operate their own independent farm business. Crop production training focuses on growing in high elevation, short growing season environments utilizing regenerative and biodynamic practices. The Crop Production Practicum is offered April through September each year.  The business of farming is taught through a comprehensive farm business course where participants create their own farm business plan. This course is offered during the fall each year. The farm incubator provides 1/8 acre plots, access to water, equipment and mentoring to support beginning farm entrepreneurs.

***Full scholarships are available for the 2022 program. Scholarships cover all program costs and fees (housing excluded).***  Housing is available on a first come, first-served basis for the duration of the five-month training program.

TAGS: short term

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LOCATION: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

DESCRIPTION: Food Studies is the interdisciplinary domain that includes agricultural and culinary history as well as sociological, cultural, political, economic, and geographic examinations of food production and consumption. At the heart of Chatham’s Food Studies curriculum model are a number of common preparatory, experiential, and core courses that allow students to develop shared knowledge bases and community-based networks. The core courses provide all students with disciplinary training in both natural and social sciences, linking real world problems with ethics, theory, history, communication, research skills, and experiential learning.

TAGS: long term

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Stephanie completed the Masters of Arts in Food Studies in May 2016. Her concentration was in food policy, and she focused her studies mainly on sustainable agriculture and dairying. Contact Stephanie Box

LOCATION: San Francisco, California

DESCRIPTION: The Cheese School of San Francisco is the only independent institution of its kind in the nation. We are devoted to helping you maximize your enjoyment and appreciation of cheese. Our philosophy is “eating is learning” and we treat our students to a cornucopia of education and tasting events, both structured and informal.

TAGS: short term

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LOCATION: Wiscasset, Maine

DESCRIPTION: Chewonki is an environmental education organization based in Wiscasset, Maine, that inspires transformative growth, teaches appreciation and stewardship of the natural world, and challenges people to build thriving, sustainable communities throughout their lives. Chewonki began in 1915 as a camp for boys but has grown to comprise the boys camp; adventures for girls; semester school for outstanding high-school juniors; traveling natural history programs that our teachers take to libraries, schools, and other community venues; an outdoor classroom for visiting school groups; and wilderness trips for teens, adults, and families. Through its educational initiatives, Chewonki demonstrates and teaches the importance of living sustainably.

TAGS: short term, alternative

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LOCATION: http://chrisguillebeau.com/

DESCRIPTION: " When I set out to visit every country in the world, I never imagined that the greatest lessons would come from the community I found online and throughout the planet. "

TAGS: required reading

LOCATION: Bar Harbor, Maine

DESCRIPTION: Understanding food and its production requires insights from history, anthropology, economics, politics, ecology, botany, chemistry, and so on. Accordingly, we have a diverse and interdisciplinary set of classes in the area of farming and food systems, such as Agroecology, Edible Botany, The Art and Science of Fermentation, and Agriculture and Biotechnology. In addition to learning about the ethics, anthropology, and politics of food, there are lots of opportunities to get your hands dirty. Literally. The college owns and operates two organic farms. Classes make use of these farms, and there are opportunities to work on the farms both during the school year and during the productive summer months.

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: New York, New York

DESCRIPTION: The Executive Education Program in Conservation and Environmental Sustainability provides an in-depth and fundamental understanding of conservation science and practice through case study analysis, practical tools, training, and environmental policy, practice, and application courses where environmental issues are discussed, debated and examined. The program has two tracks: the traditional track of Conservation and Environmental Sustainability, and our recently launched Sustainable Food Systems track. Classes can be taken individually or in pursuit of a non-credit bearing certification. 

TAGS: short term

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LOCATION: New York, New York

DESCRIPTION: The Earth Institute Center for Environmental Sustainability is dedicated to the development of a rich, robust and vibrant world within which we can secure a sustainable future. Through a diverse array of strategic partners in science, education and outreach, the center builds unique programs that promote human well-being through the preservation, restoration and management of biodiversity and the services our ecosystems provide.

The Summer Ecosystem Experiences for Undergraduates (SEE-U) program provides undergraduate students of all majors with a global understanding of ecology and environmental sustainability. The SEE-U program gives you the opportunity to participate in a combination of lectures and labs, while conducting environmental fieldwork in unique natural settings around the world.

The SEE-U NYC: Agro/Food Systems course offers an introduction to ecology and environmental sustainability through the lens of the agro-ecosystems in New York City and its surrounding environs.

The SEE-U Costa Rica: Agroforestry and the Ecology of Coffee course seeks to teach students about the environmental, social, and economic factors that surround coffee production in Costa Rica. The class will travel to different locations within Costa Rica to conduct field research, talk to farmers and other stakeholders, and gain on-the-ground knowledge of the issues.

TAGS: long term, short term

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LOCATION: Rensselaerville, New York

DESCRIPTION: The LongHouse Food Scholars Program is a residential, immersive experience that is designed to give the skills for researching, reporting, and creating food stories for print, radio, and television. Under the tutelage of working media professionals, scholars create multimedia content—some of which may premier at LongHouse Food Revival (our yearly gathering of food media producers, editors, and writers) or as part of the LongHouse online journal. The Food Scholars Program is structured like a newsroom, intense and fast-paced, with distinct deadlines and deliverables. Working with masters of their craft, scholars write feature stories, create online content, shoot and edit slideshows, conduct interviews, gather oral histories, and create online content. They also learn the basics of recipe development, food styling, food photography and pod-casting.

TAGS: independent, short term

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LOCATION: Arlington, Virginia

DESCRIPTION:

TAGS: independent, short term, alternative

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LOCATION: Geneva, New York and Online

DESCRIPTION: EnoCert is a new certification program offered by the Cornell Enology Extension Lab. This program is intended for current winery employees who would like to expand their practical knowledge of winery operations, or for motivated amateurs. All courses will be offered in one or two-day mix and match modules.  Our goal is to provide a recognizable standard of training for participants who earn EnoCertification. Visit our website for course descriptions.

TAGS: short term

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LOCATION: Ithaca, New York

DESCRIPTION: MPH- Food Systems and Health students will learn to take a systems approach to assess and coordinate policies or interventions that ensure safe and sustainable land use, food production, food storage, food processing, food delivery, and consumption. This will include training in toxicology, food safety, food and water security, and/or nutrition. Students will learn how to engage local and global communities to assess systems or needs, develop interventions from a One Health approach, and lead monitoring and evaluation processes to ensure public health needs are being met.

Food Systems for Health graduates are prepared to address the health needs and inequities of our rapidly changing world and build sustainable food system solutions.

Students in the Food Systems and Health Concentration will:

• Engage in systems thinking to address complex food systems.
• Learn topics in nutritional security, food justice, food safety, and epidemiology.
• Use interdisciplinary methods from ecology, plant science, economics, sociology and more.
• Have hands-on opportunities for community-based and engaged public health in local and international contexts.
• Apply holistic, One Health, and Planetary Health perspectives to public health.

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: Doylestown, Pennsylvania

DESCRIPTION: The Organic Farming Program is a 36-credit, one-year certificate program offered through a partnership between Delaware Valley University and Rodale Institute. The program can lead to a rewarding career producing food in a way that restores, maintains and enhances the natural world. Organic agriculture promotes and enhances biodiversity, biological cycles and soil biological activity. It is based on minimal use of off-farm inputs. 

Students who complete the program leave with the knowledge and experience necessary to start a small-scale organic farm or, work for an organic operation. The program offers assistance with job placement and developing business plans so that graduates can easily move right into rewarding careers in organic agriculture.

TAGS: long term

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Joe completed the one-year 36-credit Organic Farming Certificate Program in May 2017. He is continuing at Delaware Valley University by putting those 36 credits towards a Degree in Sustainable Agriculture. In addition to taking classes, Joe is working and farming on the side, and one day hopes to own a small scale farm. Contact Joe Grato

LOCATION: Various locations

DESCRIPTION: The EcoLeague is a consortium of liberal arts colleges dedicated to environmental stewardship, social change, and educating students to build a sustainable future. The EcoLeague is comprised of six member colleges across the United States including Alaska Pacific University in Anchorage, AK; College of the Atlantic in Bar Harbor, ME; Dickinson College in Carlisle, PA; Green Mountain College in Poultney, VT; Northland College in Ashland, WI; and Prescott College in Prescott, AZ. Learn more.

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: Various locations

DESCRIPTION: We are a school for ecological justice, bridging the gap between learning and doing, and cultivating a generation of leaders realizing visionary solutions. Eco Practicum hands-on programs are part think-tank, part action-workshop, part travel-adventure. Meet experts, connect with peers, engage your biosphere, and gain practical tools to change our systems for the better. Learn more and view upcoming events.

TAGS: short term, alternative

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Nicole is currently finishing her Masters of Science in Food Systems and Society through Marylhurst University where she has focused most of her studies on the underlying structural causes of hunger. She received a full scholarship from Good Food Jobs to participate in the School of Ecological Justice's NYC Eco-Practicum. Nicole is and will always be committed to solving the social aspects of food system issues in the communities she lives in. Contact Nicole Brand

LOCATION: St. Paul, Minnesota

DESCRIPTION: Egg|Plant Urban Farm Supply is your source of supplies and inspiration for your own backyard homestead. We sell seeds, plants, soils and tools for small-scale urban kitchen gardens, as well as backyard chicken-keeping supplies, canning and preserving, fertilizers and pest control, all with an organic and sustainable focus. We believe your backyard garden and homestead can be beautiful, edible and sustainable, and we want to help you make that happen. 

We offer a variety of classes on everything from chicken-keeping to cheesemaking to seed-starting, most Saturdays of the year.   The chicken-keeping classes are taught by our staff, and we partner with a number of area experts to bring you a fun and informative learning experience in our other classes.

TAGS: short term

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LOCATION: http://www.indiebound.org/book/9780547750330

DESCRIPTION: In 2001, Fast Food Nation was published to critical acclaim and became an international bestseller. Eric Schlosser's expose revealed how the fast food industry has altered the landscape of America, widened the gap between rich and poor, fueled an epidemic of obesity, and transformed food production throughout the world. The book changed the way millions of people think about what they eat and helped to launch today's food movement.

TAGS: required reading

LOCATION: online

DESCRIPTION: Are you a college or high school student interested in working to create a more just and sustainable food system? Are you looking for a deeper understanding of social issues and your place as an advocate in the movement? Would you like to be part of a supportive community of like-minded changemakers? If so, apply now to Factory Farming Awareness Coalition’s Advocacy Institute! 

The Advocacy Institute is a 16-week or 8-week leadership development internship for college and high school students. Students will gain hands-on professional experience and learn effective advocacy skills. Interns in the program will examine our food system’s impact on animals, climate change, biodiversity loss, social justice, and public health and make critical contributions to institutional campaigns and an overall cultural shift toward a more just, sustainable food system. Interns in the Advocacy Institute will gain:

• Exposure to a wide range of approaches to improving the food system
• Hands-on professional experience
• Evidence-based social change strategy skills
• Analytical and critical thinking skills
• Effective communication training
• Career networking and mentorship opportunities
• Competency in technological, political, and business solutions to end factory farming
• Connections with movement leaders in nonprofit, business, and policy
• Lifelong membership and professional development in the Leadership Collective, and
• A community of caring and supportive activists!

TAGS: independent, short term, alternative

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LOCATION: Online and in Bergen, Norway

DESCRIPTION: This 3-year, part-time program is for those who wish for a holistic education in local gastronomy. The core of the education is based on knowledge of food quality, food production, food culture and food tradition. The students receive a training focused on local food culture, with a broad foundation in the cultural heritage of the Nordic kitchen. Upon completion of the course, students will have a good foundation for running a competent food company, holding a position that serves cities, tourism companies or the daily food industry. Other relevant fields of work may be food distribution, food journalism or as a teacher of food science.(Programs currently offered in Norwegian only) To learn more, visit https://www.jamk.fi/en/Education/global-education-services/post-graduate-diplomas/pgd-sustainable-food-business/

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: New York, New York

DESCRIPTION: Farm School NYC's mission is to train NYC residents in urban agriculture, in order to build self-reliant communities and inspire positive local action around food access and social, economic, and racial justice issues. Farm School NYC offers urban agriculture training through a certificate program as well as a wide range of individual courses. Our courses are taught by experts in the field and focus on a wide range of topics from social justice issues, to urban planting techniques, to grassroots community organizing. Through engaging, place-based education, Farm School classes cultivate future leaders in NYC's food justice movement.

TAGS: long term, short term

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Carena is currently enrolled in the Citywide Certificate in Urban Agriculture program through Farm School NYC. Her studies focus on understanding the underlying social and environmental issues that affect access to healthy and local foods within communities. Carena graduated with a B.S. in Biological Sciences from Hampton University and will be attending NYU to Master in Food Studies starting in Fall 2017. Contact Carena Miles

James is a 2016-2017 student in the Citywide Certificate in Urban Agriculture program, at Farm School NYC. James works full time as a community planner, and has previously studied social science, philosophy, and public policy. James is passionate about furthering equality, advocating for justice, and defending the environment. James believes Farm School NYC is working to equitably decentralize the food system, and he's happy to talk with anyone that might be interested in joining. Contact James Amenta

LOCATION: Oakland, California

DESCRIPTION: Food Craft Institute (FCI) is a non-profit educational institution founded in 2011 with the mission to reshape the U.S. food landscape by creating a permanent sector of viable artisan food businesses. We firmly believe that revitalization of the American food system requires a deep understanding of honest entrepreneurship rooted in an appreciation for both traditional and novel foodmaking techniques. Neither a business school or a culinary institution, our alternative approach combines classroom sessions focused on practical business skill development and on-the-ground entrepreneurial mentorship, supporting the regrowth of lost foodways and craftsmanship. Whether in the practitioner facility of a master craftsman or with a strategist in our Oakland classroom, FCI courses are structured to challenge and manifest your personal stance to the question:“What does food craft mean to you?”

TAGS: short term, alternative

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LOCATION: San Francisco Bay Area

DESCRIPTION: Food System 6 is an innovative non-profit based in the San Francisco Bay Area whose mission is to support the world’s most promising entrepreneurs who are transforming how we grow, produce and distribute food.  FS6 runs a comprehensive accelerator program that includes a wide range of business and organizational support designed to help entrepreneurs accelerate their growth and their impact. The 4 month program combines business and organizational development skills with a broad education of the food system to provide a holistic perspective for emerging innovators.  Sessions combine presentations, workshops and individual work sessions with customized / tailored support.

We access a broad network for our entrepreneurs to leverage.  We bring together domain experts, committed mentors, investors, capital, researchers, customers throughout the supply chain and community perspectives needed to prove out concepts and build an innovator’s ability to scale and maximize their impact.

We operate two cohorts per year composed of a mix of 9 to 12 for-profit and non-profit innovators.
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TAGS: short term, alternative

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LOCATION: Hesperus, Colorado

DESCRIPTION: The Old Fort at Hesperus is a growing and multi-faceted answer to farmer training in the Four Corners region. Welcoming everyone from college interns for brief summer experiences to incubator farmers ready to start a business, the Old Fort offers good (and challenging) growing conditions, supportive and knowledgeable staff, a lively farming community, and rich resources for high elevation market farming.

Incubator farmers receive low-cost access to land, water, and mentorship for up to five years. Farmers-In-Training co-manage a plot of land and receive hands-on training. We welcome applicants from across the country, especially those seeking training in high desert farming. 

TAGS: long term, short term

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LOCATION: Reggio Emilia, Italy

DESCRIPTION: The Food Innovation Program is a 12-month full time Master’s Program that offers aspiring food innovators and entrepreneurs an invaluable experience in enhancing their professional goals and personal growth. The Program is structured in three distinct phases with final thesis project. First phases is the INSPIRATION Track in Reggio Emilia, Italy that offers an intense and comprehensive academic experience combining classical and innovative educational methodologies, such as foresight training and design thinking. Once complete, students then go through the ASPIRATION Track to expand their entrepreneurial horizons and engage in the cross-pollination of ideas, cultures and culinary traditions through a global tour of Silicon Valley, California, Shanghai and other Asian cities. Finally, the PERSPIRATION track includes laboratory training and prototyping in the Officucina, the unique kitchen maker-space designed specifically for the Food Innovation Program.

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: http://garynabhan.com/i/

DESCRIPTION: Since Coming Home to Eat was first published in 2001, the local food movement has exploded, and more people than ever are “going green” in an effort lead healthier, more eco-friendly lives. Gary Nabhan’s year-long mission to eat only foods grown, fished, or gathered within 220 miles of his Arizona home offers striking, timely insights into our evolving relationship with food and place—and encourages us to redefine “eating close to home” as an act of deep cultural and environmental significance. As an avid gardener, ethnobotanist preserving seed diversity, and activist devoted to recovering native food traditions in the Southwest, Nabhan writes about his long campaign to raise awareness about food with contagious passion and humor.

TAGS: required reading

LOCATION: http://garynabhan.com/i/

DESCRIPTION: Chasing Chiles looks at both the future of place-based foods and the effects of climate change on agriculture through the lens of the chile pepper—from the farmers who cultivate this iconic crop to the cuisines and cultural traditions in which peppers play a huge role. Over a year-long journey, three pepper-loving gastronauts - an agroecologist, a chef, and an ethnobotanist - set out to find the real stories of America’s rarest heirloom chile varieties, and learn about the changing climate from farmers and other people who live by the pepper, and who, lately, have been adapting to shifting growing conditions and weather patterns. They put a face on an issue that has been made far too abstract for our own good.

TAGS: required reading

LOCATION: http://georgeannebrennan.com/

DESCRIPTION: Georgeanne Brennan moved to Provence in 1970, seeking a simpler life. She set off on her many adventures in Provençale cuisine by tracking down a herd of goats, a cool workshop, some rennet, and the lost art of making fresh goat cheese. From this first effort throughout her time in Provence, Brennan transformed from novice fromagère to renowned, James Beard Foundation Award-winning cookbook author and food writer. A Pig in Provence is the story of how Georgeanne Brennan fell in love with Provence. But it’s also the story of making a life beyond the well-trodden path and the story of how food can unite a community. In loving detail, Brennan tells of the herders who maintain a centuries-old grazing route, of the community feast that brings a town to one table, and of the daily rhythms and joys of living by the cycles of food and nature.

TAGS: required reading

LOCATION: various locations globally

DESCRIPTION: Think big. Imagine if you had a year to shape your own education. How would you design it? What can you learn when you close the textbook? Passion? A new language? A global perspective? Where would you build your classroom of one? Learn more about the program.

TAGS: independent, alternative

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LOCATION: Cold Spring, New York

DESCRIPTION: Glynwood's Hudson Valley Farm Business Incubator (HVFBI) is an ideal stepping stone for farmers ready to build their own farm enterprises. The Incubator reduces barriers to success for new farm businesses by providing access to land, housing, shared equipment, infrastructure, business and financial training, technical assistance and mentoring, advanced practical skills workshops, and strategic community relationships. It is a deeply hands-on program: Glynwood staff and other agricultural experts are closely involved in our participants’ business development. Launching farm-based businesses in the supportive, low-risk environment of the Incubator greatly increases the likelihood of business viability and success.

Glynwood's apprenticeship program is designed to provide a solid foundation in sustainable agricultural practices and in-depth training in managerial skills for apprentices with some previous experience.

TAGS: short term, alternative

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LOCATION: Online

DESCRIPTION: For two decades, Green Mountain College has placed social and environmental sustainability at the very core of our graduate and undergraduate academic programs. Green isn’t a word we throw around casually. We practice what we teach. Green Mountain College faculty members possess a unique combination of real world experience, academic achievement and online teaching expertise to create a deep, enriching learning experience. The professional networks they create provide you with pathways to new relationships and fresh opportunities.

TAGS: long term

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Andrea is a graduate of the Master of Science in Sustainable Food Systems from Green Mountain College, as of May 2015. She completed this online program with a full time job and family. She has worked in higher education and workforce investment working to create family sustaining jobs for farmers through building local and regional food markets. She completed her undergrad in psychology and political science from Winona State University. She has lived across the country, but is currently in Wisconsin. Contact Andrea Huggenvik

LOCATION: Poultney, Vermont

DESCRIPTION: The way humans produce food can intensify problems like global warming, water scarcity and energy shortages. Farming methods can also become part of the solution for a more habitable world. Green Mountain College’s Sustainable Agriculture & Food Production program shows students how to take part in the current food revolution that is transforming farming and how we view food. In the program, agriculture and food systems are presented through the lenses of history, anthropology, the natural sciences, philosophy, business, economics, and art. The College’s 22-acre Cerridwen Farm serves as an agricultural laboratory right on campus. And the farmhouse provides office and classroom space for the Farm & Food Project and other regional organizations.

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: http://gretchenrubin.com/

DESCRIPTION: Many habit experts offer one-size-fits-all solutions. But as we all know through hard experience, no magic formula exists. The secret, Rubin explains, is to pinpoint the specific strategies will work for us. From finding the right time to begin a new habit, to setting up a counter-intuitive system of reward, to using the pleasure of treats to strengthen our good habits, Rubin identifies the 21 strategies that will allow every reader to find an effective, individual fit.

TAGS: required reading

LOCATION: Ithaca, New York

DESCRIPTION: Groundswell Center for Local Food & Farming offers affordable courses, training programs, land access, and one-on-one consultations for growers and food producers in the Finger Lakes Region of NY. We work to address inequalities in the food system by integrating equity and justice work in all of our programming and prioritizing support for refugees and underrepresented producers. Guided by our commitment to a just and sustainable food system, our programming is led by farmers and mentors active in food, farming, and social justice.

TAGS: long term, short term

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LOCATION: Online

DESCRIPTION: GLi is the first center in Italy to create and provide Food Studies related study abroad programs to international universities. GLi works actively with professors, professionals, farmers, entrepreneurs and designers to create and develop specialized Food Studies programs. Our courses promote critical thinking through field research, analysis & interactions with communities, with visits to territories that are vital for food production & food culture. GLi’s programs and cross-disciplinary courses focus on food related topics such as food culture, media & communication, nutrition, sustainable markets, food businesses and more.

GLi is the headquarters for a number of study abroad programs such as the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Hobart and William Smith Colleges, and the University of Massachusetts Amherst. We have expanded our popular summer program of ‘Critical Studies on Food and Sustainability’ to Vietnam and Japan, in addition to Rome. We also offer a wide variety of personalized internships all over Italy, and opportunities for research, study and academic collaboration. Come and join us for an interactive, transdisciplinary study experience, deep into the wide-reaching world of food.  

TAGS: independent, short term

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LOCATION: Amherst, Masschusetts

DESCRIPTION: The study of food, agriculture, and rural life brings together faculty and students interested in the central intellectual, political, scientific, and cultural issues that dominate contemporary discussion of food and agriculture. The program combines a diverse academic curriculum with practical experience at the Hampshire College Farm Center, an organic working farm, and workshops with visiting writers, artists, and scholars. Students gain experience with the complex issues of sustainability through internships and apprenticeships with farms and advocacy groups.

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: http://www.curiouscook.com/

DESCRIPTION: The first edition of On Food and Cooking appeared in 1984. I wrote it to translate technical food science into cook-friendly kitchen science, something that had not yet been done in a systematic, comprehensive way. It gradually became a standard reference, the book to which food lovers and professional chefs worldwide turn for an understanding of where our foods come from, what exactly they’re made of, and how cooking transforms them into something new and delicious. And it contributed to the rise of the modern experimental approach to cooking.

TAGS: required reading

LOCATION: Garberville, California

DESCRIPTION: Since 1978, Heartwood Institute has been a leading Healing Arts school, teaching massage therapy and integrative medicine. Since its inception, Heartwood has taught thousands of students from around the world, empowering and transforming people's lives. Now, Heartwood is embarking on a new journey of healing: regenerating the land, and building community. We are dedicated to promoting social and environmental abundance through the research, education and demonstration of sustainable living practices. We lead by example and model alternative ways of living that build stronger communities, regenerate the environment and achieve economic prosperity. We offer a holistic, hands-on approach, focusing on cultivating healthy relationships with all that sustains us – our land, our farm, our community. As we begin implementing our Permaculture Design Plan on our 200 acres, we invite you to join us on a journey of mutual learning and community building. We will be offering classes and residential programs in farming, land restoration, the culinary arts and an artist residency.

TAGS: short term

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LOCATION: various locations globally

DESCRIPTION: Hippohelp is a free map-based platform connecting hosts with travellers around the world. Travellers provide a few hours of work per day for the hosts, in exchange for free food and accommodation.

TAGS: independent, alternative

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LOCATION: Multiple locations in California

DESCRIPTION: The Agricultores del Valle - New Farmer Training Program - at Huerta del Valle, provides farmer training in a way that highlights ecology, resource conservation and food/social justice. Their mission: Together we can shift our local food system towards a healthy, nutritious, and a regenerative one. 

​In this program, participants will get a combination of theory and hands-on practice through presentations, field days, workshops, panels, activities and guest lectures. For information on site locations in California, and how to register, visit https://www.huertadelvalle.org/farmer-training-program.html.

TAGS: short term, alternative

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LOCATION: Bloomington, Indiana

DESCRIPTION: The minor in the anthropology of food offers students the opportunity to explore the ways in which food relates to culture and society, economics, globalization, identity, health, and history. Anthropology faculty teach courses that specifically target food and food systems around the world using ethnographic, bioanthropological, archaeological, and linguistic methods and data. The department offers courses concerning the global trade in food products, famine, attitudes about eating and food preparation, ceremonial and symbolic aspects of food production and preparation, and perspectives on food and health in both modern and ancient human populations.

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: Bloomington, Indiana

DESCRIPTION: The Food Studies concentration is organized so that each student will draw on the diversity of knowledge of all anthropological subfields, while pursuing specialized training in one of the four traditional subfields. Depending on the specific interests of the student, his/her field or major will be Archaeology, Social/Cultural, Linguistics, or Bioanthropology, with the Anthropology of Food constituting an inside minor within one of those subfields.

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: New York, New York

DESCRIPTION: The award-winning Institute of Culinary Education (ICE) was established in 1975 and has since grown to be one of America’s leading centers for culinary education and recreational cooking. ICE offers comprehensive career training programs in the Culinary Arts, Pastry & Baking Arts, Culinary Management and Hospitality Management. ICE also operates the nation’s largest recreational cooking, baking and wine program, offering over 2,500 classes to 26,000 students annually.

For more information about ICE, please visit our website at ice.edu or connect with us @iceculinary on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.  Watch our videos on YouTube at: https://www.youtube.com/iceculinary

TAGS: long term, short term

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LOCATION: New York, New York

DESCRIPTION: A groundbreaking farm-to-table program designed for those who want to be stewards of tomorrow’s most celebrated cuisine. Chef Dan Barber, Blue Hill, and Stone Barns Center for Food and Agriculture join us in offering an education that will change you and your culinary career.

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: Ames, Iowa

DESCRIPTION: The Sustainable Agriculture Interdepartmental Graduate Program at Iowa State University builds on a solid foundation of agricultural science and provides students opportunities to cross traditional disciplinary boundaries. Our program was the first in the U.S. to offer both an MS and PhD with a major in Sustainable Agriculture and is the only graduate program that allows students to pursue a true interdisciplinary curriculum that includes the biological, social, and economic elements of sustainability.

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: http://foodjobsbook.com/

DESCRIPTION: 150 Great JOBS for Culinary Students, Career Changers and FOOD Lovers. Maybe you’re considering culinary school, or about to graduate, or looking for an exciting career change. Translate your zest for flavor into a satisfying profession.

TAGS: required reading

LOCATION: http://www.chelseagreen.com/fullmoonfeast

DESCRIPTION: In Full Moon Feast, accomplished chef and passionate food activist Jessica Prentice champions locally grown, humanely raised, nutrient-rich foods and traditional cooking methods. The book follows the thirteen lunar cycles of an agrarian year, from the midwinter Hunger Moon and the springtime sweetness of the Sap Moon to the bounty of the Moon When Salmon Return to Earth in autumn. Each chapter includes recipes that display the richly satisfying flavors of foods tied to the ancient rhythm of the seasons.

TAGS: required reading

LOCATION: http://judithjonescooks.com/

DESCRIPTION: From the editor of some of the world’s greatest cooks - including Julia Child and James Beard - a passionate and practical book about the joys of cooking for one. Here, in convincing fashion, Judith Jones demonstrates that cooking for yourself presents unparalleled possibilities for both pleasure and experimentation: you can utilize whatever ingredients appeal, using farmers’ markets and specialty shops to enrich your palate and improve your health; you can feel free to fail, since a meal for one doesn’t have to be perfect; and you can use leftovers to innovate - in the course of a week, the remains of beef bourguignon might be reimagined as a ragù, pork tenderloin may become a stir-fry, a cup or two of wild rice produces both a refreshing pilaf and a rich pancake, and red snapper can be reinvented as a summery salad. It’s a fulfilling and immensely economical process, one perfectly suited for our times - although, as Jones points out, cooking for one also means we can occasionally indulge ourselves in a favorite treat.

TAGS: required reading

LOCATION: http://judithjonescooks.com/

DESCRIPTION: Living in Paris after World War II, Jones broke free of bland American food and reveled in everyday French culinary delights. On returning to the States she published Julia Child’s Mastering the Art of French Cooking. The rest is publishing and gastronomic history. A new world now opened up to Jones as she discovered, with her husband Evan, the delights of American food, publishing some of the premier culinary luminaries of the twentieth century: from Julia Child, James Beard, and M.F.K. Fisher to Claudia Roden, Edna Lewis, and Lidia Bastianich. Here also are fifty of Jones’s favorite recipes collected over a lifetime of cooking-each with its own story and special tips. The Tenth Muse is an absolutely charming memoir by a woman who was present at the creation of the American food revolution and played a pivotal role in shaping it.

TAGS: required reading

LOCATION: Jyväskylä, Finland

DESCRIPTION: Sustainable food is a multi-disciplinary program aiming to develop the students’ understanding of the environmental implications of food production and consumption, focusing on correct and sustainable choices while promoting healthy nutrition and enjoyable food experiences. This program incorporates several core issues related to global environment, health problems as well as megatrends including healthier and responsible lifestyle. The program consists of three modules: Nutrition and Health, Sustainable Food Consumption, and Sustainable Business, giving a holistic view on sustainable food. Experiential learning methods are used, e.g. each module includes a study tour to a Nordic country and company visits. Corporate projects offer students multiple opportunities of international networking. The program can be tailored both at the bachelor and master levels. (Program in English) To learn more, visit https://www.jamk.fi/en/Education/global-education-services/post-graduate-diplomas/pgd-sustainable-food-business/

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: http://www.indiebound.org/book/9780452296008

DESCRIPTION: In this indispensable guide, Dr. Katharine Brooks provides a road map for twenty-somethings, replacing obsolete thinking that "major = career," and instead using positive psychology, mapping techniques, and experimental wanderings to help job seekers reframe their skills. Brooks provides effective strategies to help readers mine their academic and life experiences for new insights into landing jobs with the best employers, and finding alternatives when the situation calls for a Plan B. You Majored in What? offers a practical and proven approach to reframing experiences, discovering overlooked opportunities, and finding a true calling, regardless of your undergraduate major or the state of the job market.

TAGS: required reading

LOCATION: Norwich, Vermont

DESCRIPTION: Our Baking Education Center welcomes all bakers, no matter your skill level or baking interest. Classes range from introductory demonstrations for beginners to intensive week-long courses for the professional, with a wide variety of hands-on classes for both adults and children.

TAGS: short term

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LOCATION: Minneapolis, Minnesota

DESCRIPTION: The Land Stewardship Project (LSP) is a private, nonprofit organization founded in 1982 to foster an ethic of stewardship for farmland, to promote sustainable agriculture and to develop sustainable communities.

LSP is dedicated to creating transformational change in our food and farming system. LSP's work has a broad and deep impact, from new farmer training and local organizing, to federal policy and community based food systems development. At the core of all our work are the values of stewardship, justice and democracy.

TAGS: long term, short term

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LOCATION: http://mfkfisher.com/books.htm

DESCRIPTION: In 1929, a newly married M.F.K. Fisher said goodbye to a milquetoast American culinary upbringing and sailed with her husband to Dijon, where she tasted real French cooking for the first time. The Gastronomical Me is a chronicle of her passionate embrace of a whole new way of eating, drinking, and celebrating the senses. As she recounts memorable meals shared with an assortment of eccentric and fascinating characters, set against a backdrop of mounting pre-war tensions, we witness the formation not only of her taste but of her character and her prodigious talent.

TAGS: required reading

LOCATION: http://mfkfisher.com/books.htm

DESCRIPTION: In Alphabet for Gourmets, M.F.K. Fisher arranges a selection of her essays in a whimsical way that reveals the breadth and depth of her passion. From A for (dining) alone to Z for Zakuski, "a Russian hors d'oeuvre," Fisher alights on both longtime obsessions and idiosyncratic digressions. As usual, she liberates her readers from caution and slavish adherence to culinary tradition-- and salts her writings with a healthy dose of humor.

TAGS: required reading

LOCATION: http://mfkfisher.com/books.htm

DESCRIPTION: M.F.K. Fisher, whom John Updike has called our "poet of the appetites," here pays tribute to that most delicate and enigmatic of foods - the oyster. As she tells of oysters found in stews, in soups, roasted, baked, fried, prepared à la Rockefeller or au naturel - and of the pearls sometimes found therein - Fisher describes her mother's joy at encountering oyster loaf in a girls' dorm in he 1890's, recalls her own initiation into the "strange cold succulence" of raw oysters as a young woman in Marseille and Dijon, and explores both the bivalve's famed aphrodisiac properties and its equally notorious gut-wrenching powers. Plumbing the "dreadful but exciting" life of the oyster, Fisher invites readers to share in the comforts and delights that this delicate edible evokes, and enchants us along the way with her characteristically wise and witty prose.

TAGS: required reading

LOCATION: http://mfkfisher.com/books.htm

DESCRIPTION: Written to inspire courage in those daunted by wartimes shortages, How to Cook a Wolf continues to rally cooks during times of plenty, reminding them that providing sustenance requires more than putting food on the table. M. F. K. Fisher knew that the last thing hungry people needed were hints on cutting back and making do. Instead, she gives her readers license to dream, to experiment, to construct adventurous and delicious meals as a bulwark against a dreary, meager present. Her fine prose provides reason in itself to draw our chairs close to the hearth; we can still enjoy her company and her exhortations to celebrate life by eating well.

TAGS: required reading

LOCATION: http://mfkfisher.com/books.htm

DESCRIPTION: In Serve It Forth, her first book, M. F. K. Fisher takes readers on an animated journey through culinary history, beginning with the honey-loving Greeks and the immoderate Romans. Fisher recalls a hunt for snails and truffles with one of the last adepts in that art and recounts how Catherine de Medici, lonely for home cooking, touched off a culinary revolution by bringing Italian chefs to France. Each essay makes clear the absolute firmness of Fisher's taste - contrarian and unique - and her skill at stirring memory and imagination into a potent brew.

TAGS: required reading

LOCATION: http://michaelpollan.com/books/in-defense-of-food/

DESCRIPTION: In Defense of Food shows us how, despite the daunting dietary landscape Americans confront in the modern supermarket, we can escape the Western diet and, by doing so, most of the chronic diseases that diet causes. We can relearn which foods are healthy, develop simple ways to moderate our appetites, and return eating to its proper context - out of the car and back to the table. Michael Pollan’s bracing and eloquent manifesto shows us how we can start making thoughtful food choices that will enrich our lives, enlarge our sense of what it means to be healthy, and bring pleasure back to eating.

TAGS: required reading

LOCATION: http://michaelpollan.com/books/the-botany-of-desire/

DESCRIPTION: Every schoolchild learns about the mutually beneficial dance of honeybees and flowers: The bee collects nectar and pollen to make honey and, in the process, spreads the flowers’ genes far and wide. In The Botany of Desire, Michael Pollan ingeniously demonstrates how people and domesticated plants have formed a similarly reciprocal relationship. He masterfully links four fundamental human desires - sweetness, beauty, intoxication, and control - with the plants that satisfy them: the apple, the tulip, marijuana, and the potato. In telling the stories of four familiar species, Pollan illustrates how the plants have evolved to satisfy humankind’s most basic yearnings. And just as we’ve benefited from these plants, we have also done well by them. So who is really domesticating whom?

TAGS: required reading

LOCATION: http://michaelpollan.com/books/cooked/

DESCRIPTION: In Cooked, Michael Pollan explores the previously uncharted territory of his own kitchen. Here, he discovers the enduring power of the four classical elements - fire, water, air, and earth - to transform the stuff of nature into delicious things to eat and drink. Apprenticing himself to a succession of culinary masters, Pollan learns how to grill with fire, cook with liquid, bake bread, and ferment everything from cheese to beer. In the course of his journey, he discovers that the cook occupies a special place in the world, standing squarely between nature and culture. Both realms are transformed by cooking, and so, in the process, is the cook. 

TAGS: required reading

LOCATION: http://michaelpollan.com/books/the-omnivores-dilemma/

DESCRIPTION: In this groundbreaking book, one of America’s most fascinating, original, and elegant writers turns his own omnivorous mind to the seemingly straightforward question of what we should have for dinner. To find out, Pollan follows each of the food chains that sustain us - industrial food, organic or alternative food, and food we forage ourselves - from the source to a final meal, and in the process develops a definitive account of the American way of eating. His absorbing narrative takes us from Iowa cornfields to food-science laboratories, from feedlots and fast-food restaurants to organic farms and hunting grounds, always emphasizing our dynamic coevolutionary relationship with the handful of plant and animal species we depend on. Each time Pollan sits down to a meal, he deploys his unique blend of personal and investigative journalism to trace the origins of everything consumed, revealing what we unwittingly ingest and explaining how our taste for particular foods and flavors reflects our evolutionary inheritance.

TAGS: required reading

LOCATION: East Lansing, Michigan

DESCRIPTION: Students engage in the management of the 15 acre certified organic farm including its 20,000 sq ft of passive solar greenhouse space and the Student Organic Farm production for its primary markets including a 48 week CSA, 7 month on campus farm stand, sales to campus dinning services and other wholesale accounts. The farm also has pigs, cattle, laying hens, and honey bees. Students develop competencies in farm skills through skills trainings and by engaging in the day-to-day work and operation of the farm. Hands-on-training is combined with workshops, lectures, readings, and assignments that build participants’ knowledge and understanding of organic farming principles and practices.

This training program prepares graduates for careers in organic farming, urban agriculture / community gardening, and other sustainable agriculture related careers. Program participants who satisfactorily complete the program will earn a Certificate from MSU Student Organic Farm, MSU Department of Horticulture and the MSU Center for Regional Food Systems.

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: East Lansing, Michigan

DESCRIPTION: The Department of Community Sustainability offers a Bachelor of Science degree program with a major in Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources Education. The bachelor’s degree program is designed to prepare students for careers as school-based agriculture, food and natural resources teachers at the secondary level, careers in agricultural and natural resource education fields, or professional or graduate school program.

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: Marine on St. Croix, Minnesota

DESCRIPTION: Since 1983, the Minnesota Food Association (MFA) has been working to build a local and sustainable food system in Minnesota and the St. Croix River Valley. In 1998, MFA began training immigrants new to farming in the United States using farm land in the Wilder Forest, near Marine on St. Croix, in Washington County, MN.  During the 2007 and 2008 seasons, MFA developed the Big River Farms Farmer Training Program.  

The Big River Farms Training Program provides primarily immigrant and minority farmers with instruction and certification for organic vegetable production, access to resources and markets for growing, distributing and selling those vegetables, and a forum in which they can develop and practice business skills.  Farmer Participants have access to demonstration/production plots for growing vegetables and receive valuable training in farm business goals and practices.

Currently, the integrated training program provides land to approximately ten (10) Farmer Participants each year, and its participants sell produce into two or more channels, including the Big River Farms CSA.

TAGS: short term

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LOCATION: Bozeman, Montana

DESCRIPTION: The Sustainable Food and Bioenergy Systems (SFBS) B.S. degree program is an exciting, innovative interdisciplinary program from Montana State University that promotes the sustainable production, distribution, and consumption of food and bioenergy. You will experience collaborative learning, directed coursework, and hands-on training as you progress through one of four program options: Sustainable Food Systems, Sustainable Crop Production, Agroecology, or Sustainable Livestock Production. 

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: Berkeley, California

DESCRIPTION: Multinational Exchange for Sustainable Agriculture (MESA) connects sustainable farming leaders around the world for participatory training and cross-cultural exchange to strengthen local, resilient food systems worldwide. Since 1997, MESA has connected over 1500 farmers, activists and advocates and helped start nearly 250 small-scale farms and food justice projects worldwide. A non-profit, 501(c)(3) organization, MESA enables cross-cultural exchange around global practices of sustainable agriculture. The training is a two-way exchange to spur innovation and preserve traditional techniques worldwide and advance a farmer-led grassroots movement to transform the global food system. Training programs focus on ecological production practices, processing, direct marketing, community organizing and education, and organic crop research and breeding.

TAGS: independent, short term, alternative

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LOCATION: New York, New York

DESCRIPTION: Founded in 1977 by Annemarie Colbin Ph.D., Natural Gourmet Institute for Health & Culinary Arts is the leader in professional health-focused culinary education. NGIHCA’s comprehensive Chef’s Training Program trains students to meet the demand for culinary professionals who make the connection between food and health. Offered both as full- and part-time programs, it is where you will learn essential cooking techniques, principles of nutrition, methods for sourcing sustainable ingredients, and culinary business practices. Licensed by the New York State Department of Education, it is the first culinary program dedicated to healthful cooking to be accredited nationally.

TAGS: short term

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An experienced environment and health charity fundraising executive and consultant who in 2008 turned her long involvement with volume vegetarian cooking and healthy nutrition into a career as a freelance kitchen manager and chef. Contact Ruth Tovim

Alyse is constantly trying to figure out how to make the restaurant model more responsible and sustainable. She was most recently the Sous Chef at Terrine in Los Angeles, and just moved to New York for a new project. Alyse graduated from the Natural Gourmet Institute's Chef Training Program in 2014 and has been cooking professionally ever since. Contact Alyse Dufour

LOCATION: Lowell, Massachusetts

DESCRIPTION: The New Entry Sustainable Farming Project farmer training programs help new and prospective farmers learn what it takes to run a small farm operation, from the very basics in Explore Farming!, to the intricacies of business planning and farm management in our seven-week Farm Business Planning Class. Our Incubator Farm Program provides on-the-ground experience, while our field training, livestock workshops, and specialized advanced workshops delve into the nitty gritty of growing fresh, healthy food.

To find out more about where you fit in to our curriculum, or to speak to a staff person about any of our farmer training programs contact Janel Wright, 978-654-6745, janel.wright@tufts.edu

TAGS: short term

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LOCATION: New York, New York

DESCRIPTION: Food Studies at NYU is one of the first master’s degree programs in the US devoted to food scholarship. Employing approaches from the humanities and social sciences, the program prepares students to analyze the current American food system, its global connections, and local alternatives. The program examines cultural, political, economic, environmental, and geographic approaches to food within local, urban and global contexts.

TAGS: long term

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Haley is currently pursuing her Master’s Degree in Food Studies at New York University with a focus on creating sustainable food systems. Haley has a B.A in Sociology and Spanish from Wesleyan University and a graduate certificate in Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems from Tufts University’s Friedman School of Nutrition. Contact Haley Baron

LOCATION: New York, New York

DESCRIPTION: All of us must eat and drink, and do so daily to obtain the energy and nutrients we need for growth and health, and to enjoy the social and cultural experiences we strongly associate with food. The study of nutrition and food provides a solid academic education and practical training for a variety of career opportunities. These fields also encompass some of the most critically important - and hotly debated - issues affecting modern society, among them world hunger and problems related to safety, bioengineering, and globalization of food.  Through positions in health care, business, government service, private practice, the food and food service industries, and educational and community programs, nutrition and food professionals help individuals and the public make better informed choices about food and nutritional health. Learn more.

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: Fort Collins, Colorado

DESCRIPTION: The Northern Colorado Farm Business Accelerator is a 3-year program offering beginning farmers an alternative entry point to establishing a farm business and a pathway to affordable, long-term land access. The program provides a bridge to business viability for those with existing farm skills and experience through low-cost access to everything needed to launch a successful farm business: land and water, infrastructure, technical support, marketing assistance, mentorship, and business education in partnership with CSU Extension's Building Farmers Program. 

TAGS: long term, alternative

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LOCATION: Ashland, Wisconsin

DESCRIPTION: Fisheries and wildlife ecology will prepare you for a career studying and managing wild populations of animals for multiple uses. At Northland, you will learn the basics while studying populations of wolves, flying squirrels, sharp-tailed grouse, trout, and sturgeon, to name a few. Our courses and lab work cover anatomy, physiology, genetics, and ecology, so you’ll know your animals inside and out. Our intensive Field Techniques class provides a month of hands-on, outdoor learning and collaboration with local wildlife and fisheries professionals. We also emphasize the human dimensions of managing animal populations and the interests of different stakeholder groups.

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: various locations globally

DESCRIPTION: NUFFIELD is an organisation that awards individuals with life changing opportunities that span their personal and professional lives, with a view to developing agricultural sector leaders and innovators of the future. We have funding available to sponsor overseas travel and assist with a period of study, and we're always looking to attract new candidates. If you are farming yourself, or work in an industry associated to agriculture and rural industry, then please take the opportunity to explore the website and find out what Nuffield has to offer.

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: Occidental, California

DESCRIPTION: OAEC offers the longest consistently running two-week Permaculture Design Certification course in the West. Immerse yourself in information, ideas and inspiration on how to design sustainable, regenerative systems in balance with your home ecosystem. Our School Garden Teacher Training supports schools to integrate the school garden into multiple subject areas using place-based, experiential learning.

TAGS: short term

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LOCATION: Brooklyn, New York

DESCRIPTION: Oko Farms is New York City's only outdoor aquaponics farm and education center. On our 2,500 square foot site, we utilize aquaponics-- a hybrid of aquaculture and hydroponics-- to raise freshwater fish alongside a variety of herbs and vegetables in a recirculating ecosystem in the big city. Uniquely adaptable to urban spaces where easy access to good soil and water may be scarce, aquaponics uses a fraction of the water of conventional industrial aquaculture and agriculture systems.         

Oko Farms aims to provide people with the skills and knowledge necessary to harness this sustainable farming technology for the benefit of their communities, from educators bringing aquaponics to the classroom, to home enthusiasts looking to start their own aquaponics farms. Participants in our seven-month comprehensive aquaponics training program learn all aspects of operating a seasonal aquaponics urban farm, from plant propagation and fingerling introduction in the spring, to their eventual harvest in the fall. For those who cannot make a full season's time commitment, we offer on-site hands-on workshops and educational tours that serve as a perfect introduction to the exciting world of sustainable agriculture through aquaponics.

TAGS: independent, short term, alternative

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LOCATION: Whidbey Island, Washington

DESCRIPTION: The Organic Farm School (OFS) offers a full-time, 8-month, expe­ri­en­tial training pro­gram designed for aspir­ing farm­ers to learn and prac­tice the skills they need to run a small-scale organic farm. Through attend­ing weekly lec­tures, dis­cus­sions, and demon­stra­tions on top­ics includ­ing organic crop and livestock pro­duc­tion, soil sci­ence, busi­ness plan­ning, and direct mar­ket­ing, as well as coop­er­a­tively man­ag­ing the eight-acre student farm, par­tic­i­pants receive a thor­ough edu­ca­tion in organic small farm man­age­ment. With the skills and knowl­edge gained and a busi­ness plan in hand, pro­gram grad­u­ates know what it will take to start or man­age their own small organic farm.

TAGS: short term

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I came to the program with very little farm experience. I grew up gardening with my family but not to the scale and volume that OFS operates. The most useful skills I learned were the crop and business planning, but above all I think the most valuable thing I gained was confidence in myself as a farmer. I learned how to trust my intuition and also how to back it up with relevant resources and research. Contact Amber Keeney

LOCATION: http://pamelaslim.com/bodyofwork/

DESCRIPTION: These days it’s increasingly rare to have a stable career in any field. More and more of us are blending big company jobs, startup gigs, freelance work, and volunteer side projects. We take chances to expand our knowledge, capabilities, and experience. But how do we make sense of that kind of career—and explain it? Pamela Slim, the acclaimed author of Escape from Cubicle Nation, gives us the tools to have meaningful careers in this new world of work. She shows how to find the connections among diverse accomplishments, sell your story, and continually reinvent and relaunch your brand.

TAGS: required reading

LOCATION: Wanaque, NJ

DESCRIPTION: Passaic County Community College offers programs that prepare you for in-demand careers or transfer to your Bachelor's degree. Our Guided Pathways provide an academic road map, giving focus to a student's educational journey and thereby supporting student access.

Guided Pathways is a National movement to help students clearly identify their education and career goals. Enhanced support services keep students on track toward graduation and ensure students gain the skills and knowledge to pursue the career they want. 

Some of our offerings: Certificate of Achievement in Culinary (16 Credits), Certificate of Achievement in Baking (16 Credits), Career Certificate in Culinary Arts (32 credits), Career Certificate in Baking (32 credits), A.A.S. in Culinary Arts (60 credits), A.A.S. in Pastry and Baking Arts (60 credits).

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: Sebastopol, California

DESCRIPTION: The Permaculture Skills Center is a 5-acre demonstration site and educational institution dedicated to sharing regenerative land development and management practices. Our commitment is to empowering the next generation of aspiring land stewards and farmers with a foundation of ecological literacy, practical landscaping and design skills, business planning, and production techniques. Programs include lectures, farm tours, hands-on experiences via real world projects, and mentorships. Join us for our annual Farm School or Ecological Landscaper Immersion.

TAGS: short term

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LOCATION: Online

DESCRIPTION: Purdue Global's Bachelor of Science in Nutrition is designed to prepare graduates to enter this exciting field in which the health and lives of others may be significantly improved through your knowledge and skills. Examples of the curriculum in this degree include how dietary choices can contribute to a healthy lifestyle and acquiring an understanding of digestion, absorption, and metabolism of foods. There is also a comprehensive capstone project that allows students to apply their knowledge to real-world scenarios. The degree is offered online, adding time and location flexibility. 

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: Rice, Washington

DESCRIPTION: Quillisascut Farm is an honest example of a rural, small-acreage livestock based farmstead that includes a small orchard and extensive gardens that supply 90 percent of the produce served and preserved for year-round meals that nourish farmers and guests. It is home to about 50 goats, mostly female of random ages, an ever expanding and contracting flock of poultry (ducks and chickens) three dogs, barn cats, two humans and wildlife too numerous to mention. The farm is our learning lab!

Learning more about growing, cooking and eating real food, delicious food, not only saves us time, money and adds inestimable quality to our lives, it saves our waistlines too. Each farm to table workshop celebrates the bounty of foods fresh from the farm, and is tailored to explore a defined area of interest developed around what is seasonally happening on the farm. Workshop schedules are a balance of discussions, lectures, farm tours, guest speakers and hands on activities.

TAGS: short term, alternative

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LOCATION: Santa Fe, New Mexico

DESCRIPTION: The Quivira Coalition’s New Agrarian Program partners with ranchers and farmers on regenerative agricultural operations to create opportunities for comprehensive, full-immersion, hands-on education from expert practitioners in real-life professional settings. NAP works closely with carefully selected producer mentors who are dedicated land stewards; practice beyond organic, regenerative methods of food production; provide excellent animal care; and are natural teachers for young agrarians. This 8-12 month apprenticeship program offers training in all aspects of a resilient agricultural enterprise and targets young people with a sincere commitment to life at the intersection of conservation and regenerative agriculture.

TAGS: long term, alternative

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LOCATION: Providence, Rhode Island

DESCRIPTION: Fresh thoughts about today’s greatest challenges.

Students in RISD’s Nature–Culture–Sustainability Studies Master’s program develop scholarly expertise in the rapidly evolving field of interdisciplinary environmental studies. Working closely with faculty experts in the environmental humanities and social sciences, they embark on self-directed pathways of research in focus areas such as Anthropocene studies, climate change cultures, green urbanisms and sustainable design futures.

Graduates of the program will be well positioned to make vital contributions in the realms of environmental advocacy, public policy, education, urban planning and more. They will also be poised to pursue advanced doctoral study in humanities and social science fields.

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: New Brunswick, New Jersey

DESCRIPTION: The Rutgers Grape and Wine Science Certificate Program will provide students with the foundational knowledge of grape and wine science – grape growing, winemaking, and business operations following the path of grapes from the field, to the winery, to the glass. Students will gain the competencies they need to prepare them for positions in the industry.This intensive introductory program will feature four weeks of classroom instruction, complemented by hands-on workshops. Following this, students will complete a four-week winery internship where they can put their new knowledge and skills into practice.

TAGS: short term

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LOCATION: http://ruthreichl.com/

DESCRIPTION: Comfort Me with Apples picks up Reichl’s story in 1978, when she puts down her chef’s toque and embarks on a career as a restaurant critic. Her pursuit of good food and good company leads her to New York and China, France and Los Angeles, and her stories of cooking and dining with world-famous chefs range from the madcap to the sublime. Through it all, Reichl makes each and every course a hilarious and instructive occasion for novices and experts alike. She shares some of her favorite recipes while also sharing the intimacies of her personal life in a style so honest and warm that readers will feel they are enjoying a conversation over a meal with a friend.

TAGS: required reading

LOCATION: http://ruthreichl.com/

DESCRIPTION: At an early age, Ruth Reichl discovered that "food could be a way of making sense of the world. . . . If you watched people as they ate, you could find out who they were." Her deliciously crafted memoir, Tender at the Bone, is the story of a life determined, enhanced, and defined in equal measure by a passion for food, unforgettable people, and the love of tales well told.

TAGS: required reading

LOCATION: San Diego, California

DESCRIPTION: The Sustainable Agriculture program is housed within the Life Sciences Department at City College and offers a hands-on approach to becoming a professional and/or academic in the fields of sustainable agriculture and market farming. We offer an Associate's degree for those planning to continue education in agriculture at a university as well as three certificates of performance and achievement for those interested in developing a background in agriculture, working in the industry or starting their own business.

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: San Francisco, California

DESCRIPTION: Our Certificate Programs are designed to balance academic fundamentals with relevant industry exposure. You will simultaneously dive into a rigorous in-class curriculum while being instantly immersed into the San Francisco food community. With an emphasis on how and why things happen, we're not looking to graduate recipe dependent students. You'll have a firm grip on the science behind the recipes, building a confident level of intuition that you'll take with you no matter what career you choose to pursue.

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: San Francisco, California

DESCRIPTION: SFCS offers the largest program of hands-on recreational cooking classes in the Bay Area. Our 5,200 sq ft. facility functions as a vibrant culinary center for book signings, chef dinners, celebrity demonstrations, and private cooking parties.

TAGS: short term

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LOCATION: http://www.wildfermentation.com/the-art-of-fermentation/

DESCRIPTION: Art of Fermentation is the most comprehensive guide to do-it-yourself home fermentation ever published. Sandor Katz presents the concepts and processes behind fermentation in ways that are simple enough to guide a reader through their first experience making sauerkraut or yogurt, and in-depth enough to provide greater understanding and insight for experienced practitioners.

TAGS: required reading

LOCATION: Welbeck, England

DESCRIPTION: The School of Artisan Food offers the UK’s first advanced diploma qualification in artisan baking. Our diploma programme is a 10-month full-time vocational course. If you’re furthering your education, wanting to change career direction, or following a lifelong passion, the School of Artisan Food offers the academic excellence and practical application required for you to fulfill your personal and professional goals.

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: Welbeck, England

DESCRIPTION: Get back in touch with real, handmade food with a School of Artisan Food course. From introductory practical classes to professional training sessions and Advanced Diploma qualifications, there is something to fit all interests and schedules.

TAGS: short term

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LOCATION: Online

DESCRIPTION: By the end of this course, you'll know what you need to do to pave your way towards a more lucrative and fulfilling freelancing career. You'll be confident enough to be your own boss, and you'll know how to put your goals in motion. Whether you're currently freelancing full-time or you're stuck in a job that you want to get out of, Seth shows you what it takes to be an accomplished freelancer - or, as he calls it, “a warrior without a king."

TAGS: independent, alternative

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LOCATION: https://simransethi.com/breadwinechocolate/

DESCRIPTION:

In the last century, we have lived—and eaten—through the most dramatic shifts ever experienced in food and agriculture. While much of this is invisible, what we do know is that food is beginning to look and taste the same, whether you’re strolling through a San Francisco farmers market, at a Midwestern potluck—or a McDonald’s in India. Ninety-five percent of the world’s calories now come from only 30 species, and a closer look at America’s cornucopia of grocery store options reveals that our foods are primarily made up of only corn, wheat, rice, palm oil and soybeans. Food itself – the most delicious, diverse varieties of food—is being lost, slowly and irrevocably.

But it doesn’t have to be this way.

Join award-winning journalist Simran Sethi as she travels from wild coffee forests in Ethiopia to cocoa plantations of Ecuador, from the brewery to the bakery and the temple, to meet scientists, farmers, chefs, wine makers, beer brewers, coffee roasters and chocolate connoisseurs to discuss the reasons for this loss and learn what it means to experience food in a whole new way, tasting foods more deeply through each one of our senses in order to savor—and save—the foods we love.

TAGS: required reading

LOCATION: Shutesbury, Massachusetts

DESCRIPTION: Established in 1978, Sirius Eco-village has pioneered community, sustainability, spirituality, and education. With over 35 years of experience and tens of thousands of visitors, Sirius serves as a role-model for individuals and communities aspiring to be a part of the solution.

TAGS: short term, alternative

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LOCATION: Online

DESCRIPTION: Skillshare is a global learning community for creators. Anyone can take thousands of online classes or even teach a class themselves. Our mission is to provide access to high-quality learning. We believe that everyone is creative, and that giving people tools to harness their creative power has the potential to change lives for the better. Not creativity defined as an artist but creativity defined as a mindset, as a mental toolkit, as a set of building blocks, as a way of solving problems, and as a means to live a more interesting life. By teaching the skills needed in tomorrow’s world, Skillshare empowers creators to pursue the work they love today.

TAGS: independent, alternative

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LOCATION: Minneapolis, Minnesota

DESCRIPTION: Spark-Y is a 501(c)(3) non-profit that empowers youth through action-oriented labs focused on sustainability and entrepreneurship. We integrate interdisciplinary curriculum with hands-on agriculture systems, such as aquaponics, mushroom growing, spirulina cultivation, and vermiculture into high-school and K-8 classrooms throughout the Twin Cities metro where we serve over 600 youth annually. Spark-Y also offers a Summer Internship Program during which up to 30 high school and college students are given the chance to become stakeholders in hyper-focused, results-driven projects. A select few of these youth have gone on to become staff members of our organization.

TAGS: short term, alternative

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LOCATION: Brooklyn, New York

DESCRIPTION: Square Roots offers a 13 month, full-time program, for classes of 6-12 Resident Entrepreneurs. These individuals are typically taking their first steps as an entrepreneur in the food industry. Over the course of the year, Resident Entrepreneurs get hands-on experience running a fully operational farming business. It is their responsibility to manage, run, and execute a business plan supported by Square Roots. We believe well-rounded real food leaders should have experience in the four pillars of Farming, Business, Community, and Leadership; therefore, throughout the year, the Resident Entrepreneurs will also participate in skill-based training, professional development, and experiential learning in each of these pillars.

TAGS: alternative

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LOCATION: Craftsbury Common, Vermont

DESCRIPTION: Sterling College’s summer continuing education courses are inspired by the artisans and the landscape of the Northeast Kingdom of Vermont, and our focus on environmental stewardship. Our two-week and four-week summer short courses offer unparalleled opportunities in ecology, outdoor education, sustainable agriculture, environmental humanities, and sustainable food systems. These hands-on classes and field studies allow students to gain inspiration, skills, and new perspectives.

TAGS: short term

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LOCATION: Craftsbury Common, Vermont

DESCRIPTION: Studying sustainable food systems means taking an ecological approach to the future of food and food production. Students will examine the social, cultural, and ecological impacts of the way food is produced, consumed, and regarded. Learn more here. 

The Sterling students who get a degree in Sustainable Agriculture will learn how to build a future of small farming that doesn’t exacerbate climate change, water scarcity, or pollution. Students have hands-on classes in how to raise crops for human food and fiber needs, how to measure and tend to soil health, and how to work with draft horses. Learn more here. 

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: Pocantico Hills, New York

DESCRIPTION: Currently, only 6 percent of farmers in the United States are under the age of 35, and the number of farmers and ranchers across the country is declining. Increasing the number of beginning farmers successfully practicing resilient agriculture lies at the heart of Stone Barns Center’s mission to create a healthy and sustainable food system. The Growing Farmers Initiative is our comprehensive program to help beginning farmers get the training, resources and guidance to create economically and ecologically resilient farm enterprises. We give them the knowledge and hands-on experience to grow delicious, nutritious food and to become responsible stewards of the land.  Together with partners, we seek to remove the barriers that stand in the way of their success, whether those be access to land, prohibitive capital costs, or marketing and distribution challenges.

TAGS: short term

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LOCATION: Copenhagen, Denmark

DESCRIPTION: Suhrs is a Danish Folk High School, a type of school offering education on topics ranging from arts to philosophy to sports. It's less formal than college, with an emphasis on personal development and not on tests or prerequisites. Suhrs is in the middle of Copenhagen – we care about food, culture, gastronomy, health and good ingredients. If you attend a course at Suhrs Højskole you will gain fundamental knowledge regarding food, raw ingredients, consumption and gain the necessary timing of food preparation and grip of the kitchen. Furthermore, you will gain insight into various fields, such as health and sustainability in order to create a sound framework for your life. (Programs in Danish only)To learn more, visit https://suhrs.dk/about-suhrs-hoejskole-in-english/

TAGS: short term

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LOCATION: Gaithersburg, Maryland

DESCRIPTION: Sunflower Bakery’s Pastry Arts Training Program provides 600 hours of bakery instruction, on-the-job training, employee development, and an internship for adults 18 and over with learning differences. Individualized training with professional pastry chefs in Sunflower’s production kitchen prepares you for employment in bakeries, supermarkets, restaurants, and catering companies. 

Apprenticeship training: we also offer a less intensive path to employment. This is a 10-12 week basic skills development training plus 80 hours of on-the-job training.  This training teaches a specific set of marketable skills. Unlike the full Pastry Arts training, there is no internship. Instead, apprentices will receive an evaluation and a description of skills learned during their OJT experience, to include on a resume. Sunflower Bakery will determine an applicant’s placement in the full Pastry Arts training or the Apprenticeship training.

TAGS: short term

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LOCATION: Morrisville, NY

DESCRIPTION: Whether you are interested in fruits and vegetables, milk and meat, tractors and tools, flowers and plants, or business and trade, SUNY Morrisville has the right agriculture program for you. With choices in agricultural business, agricultural engineering technology, agricultural mechanics, agricultural science, animal science - dairy, dairy management, horticulture, horticulture business management, and landscape architectural studies, you will find the right “field” to explore your own field of interest.

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: Austin, Texas

DESCRIPTION: Located in Austin, Texas and founded in 1993, with roots dating back to 1975 as Austin Community Gardens, Sustainable Food Center is involved in every step of our local, Central Texas, food system. SFC's mission is to cultivate a healthy community by strengthening the local food system and improving access to nutritious, affordable food. SFC envisions a food-secure community where all children and adults grow, share, and prepare healthy, local food.

From seed to table, SFC creates opportunities for individuals to make healthy food choices and to participate in a vibrant local food system. Through organic food gardening, relationships with area farmers, interactive cooking classes and nutrition education, children and adults have increased access to locally grown food and are empowered to improve the long-term health of Central Texans and our environment. Browse their available classes here.

TAGS: short term

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LOCATION: Syracuse, New York

DESCRIPTION: The Master of Science in Food Studies is a 36-credit hour graduate program providing students with a foundation in the political economy of food systems, including food policy, human rights, food governance, and food justice. Students gain a deep understanding of multi-scale, global-local constructions of food governance and civil society claims, trade and food aid, and related public policy as they together influence human health and nutrition, economic development, and the environment. The program purposefully introduces students to Food Studies-oriented research methods and program evaluation, and emphasizes analyses that consider social justice, race, ethnicity, and gender and sexuality.

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: Syracuse, New York

DESCRIPTION: The Bachelor of Science in Food Studies is an undergraduate program that takes a multi-level, holistic approach to food - from production through consumption. In addition to its core program, the curriculum offers two concentrations: 1) Food Politics and Governance; and 2) Community Food Systems and Gastronomy. The liberal arts core is left open purposefully to allow students to sample broadly from the university’s Arts & Science offerings. The major concludes with a senior-level experience requirement where students choose to complete a research project or a practicum.

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: Online + Various Farm Locations

DESCRIPTION: The Climate Farm School is a  4-week program both online and getting your hands dirty on a working farm. Learn about the climate impact of and solutions within food systems. For tech and business folks, entrepreneurs, farmers, sustainability professionals, and others passionate about food and climate.

Learn more and apply at https://www.terra.do/climate-farm-school-regenerative-agriculture/.

TAGS: short term, alternative

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LOCATION: Berkeley, California

DESCRIPTION: The Edible Schoolyard Project trains educators to create powerful and sustainable edible education programs in their schools and communities. Learn and experience first-hand the core principles and practical tools for bringing academic subjects to life in the kitchen, garden, and lunchroom.

Learn more about the Edible Schoolyard Academy and the Edible Schoolyard Intensive:  http://edibleschoolyard.org/training

TAGS: short term, alternative

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LOCATION: Athol, Massachusetts

DESCRIPTION: Over the thirteen years since it first began providing practical farm training for adults, The Farm School's Learn to Farm program has graduated over 100 students into lives enriched by agriculture. Outside of one's own family farm, there really is no other place that comes close to The Farm School in providing training in the myriad of skills needed to operate an economically viable small farm. Forestry, animal husbandry, carpentry, mechanics, business planning and marketing join organic vegetable production at the center of the year-long program.

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: New York, New York

DESCRIPTION: The Future Food Co is the first scale-up accelerator for mission-driven companies in food, agriculture, and social entrepreneurship. We help entrepreneurs in these industries that have already established market traction and are generating real revenue “scale up” to the next stage.
https://www.foodfuture.co/

TAGS: alternative

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LOCATION: Vershire, Vermont

DESCRIPTION: The Mountain School cultivates a diverse and interdependent community of scholars who learn to know a place and take care of it. Through collaborative learning and shared work, students emerge from their semester prepared to reach beyond the self and focus on the common good.

Each semester 45 motivated high school juniors from all over the country come together to live and work on the school’s farm in rural Vermont. Students and faculty build together a semester based on trust and an appreciation of difference, creating an academic and work-based community in which every voice matters. While living with teachers in small houses, students help to make important decisions concerning how we live together. Courses provide a demanding, integrated learning experience that takes advantage of the school's small size and mountain campus. Balancing intellectual inquiry and experiential learning, the curriculum challenges students to think flexibly, speak their minds and return to their schools equipped for continued academic success. Engagement with the farm and forest sparks an appreciation for their food, their fuel and their labor. Admission is selective.

TAGS: short term, alternative

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LOCATION: New York, New York

DESCRIPTION: This dynamic program is designed for students looking to enter the job market in the food sector, professionals in the food and hospitality industry, and student chefs at institutions like the International Culinary Center, who want to integrate their existing skills with a deeper knowledge of cultural, social, and environmental issues connected to food.

Unlike programs focused on the development of culinary skills, The New School’s 60-credit AAS Food Studies program is rooted in solving real-world problems from a variety of approaches and methodologies. Our unique interdisciplinary perspective prepares graduates for employment in all segments of the food sector.

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: New York, New York

DESCRIPTION: The Food Studies BA/BS degree is offered through The New School's Bachelor's Program for Adults and Transfer Students. Led by our expert faculty, you'll explore subjects ranging from food-growing practices and food marketing to global food security and public health issues like obesity and malnutrition. Partnerships with advocacy organizations and culinary schools enable you to supplement your classroom learning with hands-on experience.

Drawing on a number of disciplines, including anthropology, economics, gastronomy, systems design, and public policy analysis, the program prepares you to implement positive changes in food systems by engaging with processes of production, distribution, consumption, and regulation. A mobility agreement with the International Culinary Center (ICC) in New York City enables ICC students admitted to the bachelor’s program to receive transfer credits for their ICC studies and allows New School students to take ICC courses.

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: https://piscocertificate.com/

DESCRIPTION: The Pisco Certificate Course is a comprehensive online course for spirit lovers, professionals in the service industry, sommelier's and beyond.

TAGS: short term

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Haley is currently pursuing her Master’s Degree in Food Studies at New York University with a focus on creating sustainable food systems. Haley has a B.A in Sociology and Spanish from Wesleyan University and a graduate certificate in Sustainable Agriculture and Food Systems from Tufts University’s Friedman School of Nutrition. Contact Haley Baron

LOCATION: Chicago, Illinois

DESCRIPTION: Plant Chicago is the 501(c)3 nonprofit organization that runs out of The Plant. Plant Chicago runs educational programming such as classroom visits, workshops (adult + K-12) and tours of the building. We also run the Farmers Market here at The Plant which is every 1st Saturday of the month from 11 am - 3 pm and the volunteer program. Our mission is to develop circular economies of food production, energy conservation and materials reuse; while empowering people of all backgrounds to make their cities healthier and more efficient.

PC operates several tech demonstration projects all of which showcase this model of reusing waste within food production. We run an aquaponic farm (raising fish + growing plants in water), a mushroom fruiting chamber, an algae bioreactor and an outdoor hugelkultur garden.

We offer tours for all audiences and workshops for K-12 students Tuesday - Saturday from 10 am - 4 pm, by reservation. We also offer workshops for adults on topics such as Mushroom Growing and Aquaponic Gardening.

TAGS: short term, alternative

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LOCATION: Wallace, Kansas

DESCRIPTION: The Provenance Company is committed to mitigating the effects of climate change by regenerating grasslands, increasing land resiliency, and educating the next generation of land managers.

We use a land management paradigm we call “Regenerative Rewilding,” which reflects our long-term goal of returning the land to its original ecosystem and guides our path as we make that transition.

In tandem with Regenerative Rewilding, The Provenance Co. utilizes Holistic Management, which uses decision-making and planning procedures that take complexity into account, whether it relates to ecological, social, environmental, or financial systems.

Our Summer Training Program is a 3-week experience on our site in Wallace, KS and at other locations in Kansas. All participants will attend a 1-week hands-on skills training camp, and a 2-week Holistic Management accreditation-level bootcamp. 

We seek to provide hands-on experience along with a globally recognized curriculum, to empower learners on regenerative future pathways including potential roles with our company. We hope you will join us!

Apply Now! www.theprovenanceco.com/application

TAGS: short term

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LOCATION: Emmaus, Pennsylvania

DESCRIPTION: The Seed Farm Agricultural Incubator was created to meet the needs of new farmers that did not grow up on farms and therefore lack access to land, equipment, and capital. On our 42-acre site,we provide access to land, infrastructure, equipment, and mentoring in order to break down the barriers to farm entry. We can help connect you with service providers, new markets, even promotional opportunities while you build a solid foundation for your farm business.

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: Emmaus, Pennsylvania

DESCRIPTION: Seed Farm apprentices take part in a 8-month program designed to train new farmers in all aspects of managing a diversified vegetable farm. Apprentices are given decision-making responsibility for our two-acre market garden at the Seed Farm site in Emmaus, PA, from seed to harvest to market. Participants learn a variety of skills, including: business and production planning, risk management, soil fertility management, safe operation of farm equipment, disease and insect management, harvest and post-harvest handling, and marketing. On-farm experiential learning is complemented by formal classes through Penn State Cooperative Extension.

TAGS: long term, alternative

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LOCATION: Boston, Massachusetts

DESCRIPTION: The Agriculture, Food and Environment (AFE) program within the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy fuses the disciplines of nutrition, agricultural science, environmental studies, and public policy. We offer M.S., Ph.D. and combined degree programs, diverse community service and internship placements, and opportunities to participate in research on sustainable agriculture, local food systems, and consumer behavior related to food and the environment. Students in the AFE degree program learn to evaluate the ecological, political, economic and social aspects of food production and distribution.

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: Davis, California

DESCRIPTION: Our mission is to ensure access to healthy food and to promote the vitality of agriculture today and for future generations. We do this through integrative research, education, communication, and early action on big, emerging issues. The Agricultural Sustainability Institute at UC Davis brings together the expertise of more than 70 UC Davis faculty, staff, postdoctoral fellows, graduate student researchers, and undergraduate student assistants to address big and emerging issues related to food and farming sustainability. We partner with farmers, ranchers, agribusiness, non-profits, policy makers, and local communities to ensure that our research and teaching respond to the needs of the people of California and the world.

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: West Edmeston, New York

DESCRIPTION: Participants gain hands-on experience in no-till farming, regenerative agroforestry, permaculture design, natural building, and food preservation. We also run a weekly veggie box delivery program, from June to October, providing fresh, seasonal, organically-grown fruits and veggies on a sliding scale to Edmeston families in a USDA low-income, low-access rural food desert. At the completion of the program, participants will have familiarity with tasks such as: no-till bed preparation, seeding, transplanting, weeding, irrigation, pruning, trellising, integrated pest management, plant propagation, composting, seed saving, mulching, food preservation, use of hand and power tools, timber framing, stone masonry, raising layer hens, and harvesting methods for many types of crops.  

TAGS: short term, alternative

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LOCATION: various locations globally

DESCRIPTION: We help young adults to take the reins of their own personal and professional development. Most gap years are about travel, outdoor adventure, and personal growth. Our program expands that model, incorporating skill building, mentorship, one-on-one coaching, entrepreneurship, and most importantly: practice. Real-world practice is exactly what research confirms as having the greatest impact on your preparation as an effective human being. That’s why applying new skills in a variety of settings is the core of our programs. The Harvard Business Review reported recently that this is the kind of education that more and more employers are seeking in their new hires. Because skills – not degrees – are what matter most.

TAGS: independent, alternative

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LOCATION: Fayetteville, Arkansas

DESCRIPTION: For over thirty years, the University of Arkansas School of Law has been a worldwide leader in agricultural and food law. We were first to offer an advanced legal degree program in agricultural and food law, first to publish a specialized food law & policy journal, and first to offer a fully integrated opportunity for face-to-face and distance education.

Our unique curriculum offers a full range of specialized classes offered on a regular semester basis or condensed to allow for more concentrated study. These courses are available to degree candidates who enroll either in our face-to-face program or our distance program, and to a limited extent may be available to non-degree candidates. 

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: Vancouver, BC, Canada

DESCRIPTION: The UBC Farm Practicum can be taken as either a six-month (April – October), or as a four-month (April – August), experiential-learning program.  The program is part-time (approximately 20 hours per week), and is designed for aspiring farmers, urban gardeners, environmental educators, and students with an interest in applying their learning about sustainable agriculture and food systems. The program is often taken as a non-credit Certificate program; however, 6-9 academic credits are available for interested students.

Participants gain a deeper understanding of agricultural management and small-scale farming, and a network of incredible people to support them along the way.  The main approach to learning within the program is hands-on practice (70%), with the remainder (30%) consisting of classroom sessions, presentations, field trips, and discussions.  Participants carry out seasonal farming activities with leadership provided by UBC Farm staff in the greenhouses, gardens, fields, orchards, and at our farmers’ markets. In addition, the program includes numerous guest speakers, field trips to various farming operations within the province, and access to a plot at the UBC Farm for individual and shared production.  Please see: http://ubcfarm.ubc.ca/community/practicum-in-sustainable-agriculture for more details and online application. 

TAGS: short term

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LOCATION: Boulder, Colorado

DESCRIPTION: The MENV Sustainable Food Systems specialization track will train students to approach key food system challenges critically and innovatively. The specialization will define food systems holistically, to include all stages of the food supply chain: from agriculture and production, through processing, transportation, retail, consumption, and waste; and including the diversity of private sector, NGO, research, and government agencies that aim to influence the sustainability of these systems. Students will learn how to think about food and the environment from a systems perspective; to understand the interactions between science, policy, and ethics; and to understand the trade-offs and synergies between different objectives, solutions, and outcomes. Students graduating from this track will be equipped with the knowledge and skills to become leaders in improving the sustainability of food systems, and might pursue careers in the private sector, government, or a non-profit organization, in the US or internationally. Colorado’s Front Range is rapidly cementing its reputation as a global leader in sustainable food system innovation, and students will benefit from frequent, direct access to leading locally-based food system entrepreneurs and thinkers.
 

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: Piedmont, Italy

DESCRIPTION: What is gastronomy? Despite its short history, gastronomy is a concept that has often been debated, discussed, and disregarded. At UNISG, gastronomy is an approach to studying food through diversity. It is about understanding that knowledge exists in the mind and in the body, and that our identity, emotions, and senses are also tools for learning about food. Gastronomy acknowledges that food is simultaneously symbolic and physical, political and poetic, environmental and political.

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: Piedmont, Italy

DESCRIPTION: The three-year undergraduate program in Gastronomic Sciences is designed for students seeking broad-based professional training in multidisciplinary food studies. Through an approach that merges both sciences and humanities, the program provides the necessary knowledge and skills for work in food and beverage production, processing, distribution, promotion and marketing, and within food and wine tourism.

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: Piedmont, Italy

DESCRIPTION: Each Master program in Food Culture and Communications is a separate and complete Master program with a specific thematic stream. The different streams of the Master share a common core of coursework, complemented by specialized material unique to that stream. Each, however, is designed for international students seeking an innovative approach to the study of food and foodways and the ways in which they are discussed and represented today.

The program offers a wide mix of in-class lessons, exercises, guided tastings, projects, and study trips in Italy and abroad to provide a multi-experiential understanding of both high-quality artisanal and industrial food products, their ecology, agronomy, technology, history, anthropology, sociology, as well as the necessary knowledge and expertise for communicating them.

TAGS: long term

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Chloe is a graduate of the University of Gastronomic Sciences Masters in Food Culture and Communications, High Quality Products. Previously, she completed a Holistic Nutrition and Culinary Arts program at Bauman College in Berkeley, as well as a Bachelor of Science program in Nutrition and Culinary Arts from Bastyr University. She works as a private chef and consultant, and describes herself as an ever-aspiring food education professional. Contact Chloe Friedland

LOCATION: Urbana, Illinois

DESCRIPTION: From plant biotechnology to sustainable food and fuel production systems, our internationally recognized faculty are educating the future leaders of our industry to use the latest advancements in science and technology to improve food and fuel production. The Department of Crop Sciences offers undergraduate, graduate and online degrees. Our department offers students many opportunities to succeed. When our students graduate, they often have more than two lucrative job opportunities waiting. The demand for our students is high and the future looks even more promising for well-trained scientists.
 

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: Urbana, Illinois

DESCRIPTION: The Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition (FSHN) at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is dedicated to implementing research, education, and outreach programs designed to promote a safe, nutritious, accessible, and affordable food supply that enhances human health. To this end, students and faculty work collectively toward learning, discovering, and disseminating new knowledge and in applying novel technologies to achieve the departmental mission. The basic human need for high quality food for optimal health and wellness drives the core of student training within the FSHN Department, as we strive to be a global leader at transforming lives through distinguished scholarship.

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: Champaign, Illinois

DESCRIPTION: The School of Earth, Society & Environment hosts three academic departments, each of which runs and undergraduate major, graduate program and research centers and groups. In addition, SESE anchors a fourth undergraduate major in Earth, Society & Environmental Sustainability, an interdisciplinary degree in environmental studies. We at SESE strive to equip our students with the skills and knowledge necessary to realize their full potential as citizens, professionals and stewards of our planet. Join SESE and make a difference.

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: Orono, Maine

DESCRIPTION: The Sustainable Agriculture Program is an interdisciplinary program offered cooperatively by the faculties of the Departments of Plant, Soil and Environmental Sciences, Biology, and Resource Economics and Policy. In addition, to the core courses, students obtain knowledge and skills in the liberal arts, mathematics, sciences, and communications.

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: College Park, Maryland

DESCRIPTION: The Institute of Applied Agriculture (IAA) is a 60-credit, two-year academic certificate program in the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources at the University of Maryland, College Park. The IAA provides students with the entrepreneurial and technical skills needed to manage profitable agricultural enterprises, including golf courses, sports fields, horticulture businesses, landscaping companies, and sustainable farming operations.

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: Online

DESCRIPTION: Our 15-credit Certificate in Sustainable Food and Farming is designed for: adults looking to make a career change, returning Veterans, high school grads not yet ready to go to college fulltime, and those of you pursuing a lifelong interest related to food, farming, homesteading or gardening. Our online program has been particularly attractive to the fastest growing farm demographic in New England, farms managed by women.  We know how busy your lives can be, so our online classes may be taken on your own schedule.  You don't have to compromise your personal health to learn how to make the world around you a healthier place.

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: Amherst, Masschusetts

DESCRIPTION: The university that began as “Mass Aggie” is the home of the Sustainable Food and Farming program which is the fastest growing major in the Stockbridge School of Agriculture. This growth is a result of the rapidly changing economic and social conditions of the nation in which local, organic and sustainable food systems are providing opportunities for good work and exciting new careers. The growth of local food and farming is particularly important today as the world experiences the “perfect storm” of climate disruption, energy shortages, and economic stress.  Students who recognize crisis as an opportunity are gravitating to the study of sustainable farming, working toward careers in local food and green businesses, urban agriculture, permaculture, herbal medicine, and related jobs in farm-based education, public policy, community development and advocacy.

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: St. Paul, Minnesota

DESCRIPTION: The University of Minnesota's College of Food, Agricultural and Natural Resource Sciences (CFANS) recently created the Food Systems major due to popular demand! Students in this major study the systems that feed the human population, learn to solve real-world problems sustainably, and study possible improvements to the system. Life as we know it depends on food systems functioning successfully. With our academic depth and esteemed faculty, CFANS has the resources to provide an exceptional education to students interested in studying the systems that feed us all.

TAGS: long term

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Miah was a member of the first graduating class of the University of Minnesota’s undergraduate degree in Food Systems, in 2015. Contact Miah Ulysse

LOCATION: Durham, New Hampshire

DESCRIPTION: Are you interested in growing food, cooking food, and eating healthfully? Do you want to learn about the complex and holistic nature of our food community? EcoGastronomy integrates UNH strengths in sustainable agriculture, hospitality management, and nutrition. EcoGastronomy offers a unique academic program emphasizing the interdisciplinary, international, and experiential knowledge that connects all three fields. 

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: Online

DESCRIPTION: The Gillings School of Global Public Health at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill offers its online Master of Public Health (MPH) program, MPH@UNC, with a Nutrition concentration. This program prepares students to assess the scientific evidence for dietary guidelines and effectively communicate nutritional information to the public. Students will also gain skills to demonstrate proficiency in writing evidence-based, nutrition-related professional and consumer communications using a variety of media platforms. The curriculum is in compliance with current federal regulations and state statutes related to public health nutrition programs.

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: Burlington, Vermont

DESCRIPTION: UVM’s Farmer Training Program is a six-month, hands-on program for aspiring farmers and food-systems advocates that provides experiential, skills-based education in sustainable farming. Students will get a unique and comprehensive education by running all aspects of the 10-acre Catamount Educational Farm, learning from expert farmers and educators in the classroom and alongside successful, inspiring farmers in the Burlington area.

TAGS: short term

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Molly is the communications manager at FRESHFARM, an organization of producers-only farmers markets in the DC area. In 2015, after four years working for an environmental nonprofit in DC, she decided to pursue her passion for healthy food and sustainable agriculture by enrolling in the Farmer Training Program at the University of Vermont. She fell in love with farming and is thrilled to now be working for an organization that supports both farmers and consumers in advancing healthy local food systems. Molly is a graduate of Georgetown University. Contact Molly Scalise

LOCATION: Burlington, Vermont

DESCRIPTION: The design of the Food Systems minor offers students an historical perspective and structural framework for studying our contemporary food system across disciplines. Students will identify and examine complex issues involving food, from soil to table, and develop knowledge and skills to become a more sustainable and responsible food citizen.

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: Burlington, Vermont

DESCRIPTION: Current UVM students may be eligible to pursue an Accelerated Masters in Food Systems. This program is ideal for students who wish to obtain an MS degree directly after completing their Bachelor of Arts or Science. 

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: Berkeley, California

DESCRIPTION: The Urban Adamah Fellowship is a three-month residential leadership program for adults ages 21-31 that combines urban organic farming, mindfulness practice, social action training and progressive Jewish learning and living. Fellows learn and work at our farm in Berkeley, California, and live together in a shared house nearby. We accept up to 14 individuals per Fellowship season. 

Now in its seventh year, the Urban Adamah Fellowship has graduated over 150 young adults who have gone on to work in the fields of environmental education and policy, sustainable agriculture, community organizing, Jewish education and social entrepreneurship.Through the operation of Urban Adamah's one acre organic farm and internship placements with other Bay Area community based organizations, fellows gain significant skills, training, and experience in sustainable urban agriculture, community building, and leadership development.

TAGS: short term, alternative

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Rebecca Kagan is the current Assistant Farm Manager at Urban Adamah, where she gets to grow food and have amazing conversations every day. She came to Urban Adamah as a fellow in the summer of 2016, with an interest in doing transformative education and food justice work outside. She stayed on after her fellowship and feels so lucky to have the opportunity to continue to work in such a wonderful place. Contact Rebecca Kagan

LOCATION: Vermont

DESCRIPTION: 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.” Each 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.

TAGS: short term

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LOCATION: South Royalton, Vermont

DESCRIPTION: The Center for Agriculture and Food Systems (CAFS) has a dual mission: to train the next generation of food and agriculture advocates and entrepreneurs, and to create innovative legal tools supporting the new food movement.​​ CAFS trains students through a comprehensive array of residential and distance learning courses and a Food and Agriculture Clinic. VLS offers a JD Certificate in Food and Agriculture, and both Master's and LLM degrees in Food and Agriculture Law and Policy. CAFS' diverse course offerings, law clinic and degree options make it the most comprehensive sustainable food, agriculture, and environmental law graduate program in the country.

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: Randolph Center, Vermont

DESCRIPTION: The Institute for Applied Agriculture and Food Systems at Vermont Tech supports students, farmers and agricultural specialists with educational opportunities related to animals, plants, soils, food systems, sustainability, mechanical systems and agriculture business management.
 
These trainings provide practical, hands-on techniques in diversified agriculture ranging from vegetable, fruit and berry production, to dairy-herd management and to technical skills such as meat cutting and welding. Vermont Tech is continually expanding the trainings being offered to meet workforce needs in agriculture around the state.

TAGS: short term, alternative

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LOCATION: Milwaukee, Wisconsin

DESCRIPTION: The Food Leader Certificate Program teaches emerging food leaders to grow their own food, learn about the food system, and lead food projects in their communities. Food Leaders who complete the full program will graduate with a formal certificate.

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: Asheville, NC

DESCRIPTION: The Sustainable Agriculture program at Warren Wilson College is in-depth and interdisciplinary. Not only will it uniquely prepare you for a career in farm management, non-profit leadership, research, cooperative extension, veterinary medicine, and advocacy — it will enable you to literally sow the seeds of a better world. Experiential education and applied learning are at the core of the program and students have the opportunity to work on the College Farm, ranked the best college farm by Best College Reviews, and the College Garden, raising grassfed beef and lamb, pastured pork and poultry, field crops, vegetables, fruits, cover crops, and bees.

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: Yorktown Heights, New York

DESCRIPTION: Westchester Community College and Hilltop Hanover Farm & Environmental Center: If you are interested in becoming a vegetable farmer, have a passion for sustainable agriculture, or simply want to improve your own produce-growing skills, this exciting program is for you!

All classes take place at beautiful Hilltop Hanover Farm in Yorktown Heights, New York.  This 187-acre farm is owned by the County of Westchester, and includes a five acre commercial crop farm, two greenhouses, and a composting facility that highlight best practices in sustainable agriculture.  Livestock operations at the farm include pastured laying hens and honeybees.  Faculty is comprised of seasoned teachers and farming professionals.

TAGS: long term

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LOCATION: http://wendellberrybooks.com/

DESCRIPTION: During the otherwise quiet course of his life as a poet, Wendell Berry has become “mad” at what contemporary society has made of its land, its communities, and its past. This anger reaches its peak in the poems of the Mad Farmer, an open-ended sequence hes found himself impelled to continue against his better instincts. These poems can take the shape of manifestos, meditations, insults, Whitmanic fits and ravings—and are often funny in spite of themselves. The Mad Farmer is a character as necessary, perhaps, as he is regrettable. Here are gathered the individual poems from Berrys various collections to offer the teachings and bitcheries of this amazing American voice. 

TAGS: required reading

LOCATION: Chicago, Illinois

DESCRIPTION: The Chicago Botanic Garden’s urban agriculture education and jobs-training initiative to help build a local food system, healthier communities, and a greener economy. Educational opportunities range from certificate coures for individuals already working in the field of urban agriculture, horticulture or food justice to introductory Saturday classes on a variety of topics pertaining to sustainable food production.

TAGS: long term, short term, alternative

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Kris De la Torre started with Windy City Harvest in 2016 as an apprentice in their 9 month Urban Agriculture Certificate program and went on to develop and submit her business plan through the Entrepreneurship for Food Business course. One year later she joined the Windy City Harvest staff as the Urban Garden Lab and Sustainable Urban Agriculture Short Courses Coordinator. In the past Kris has worked as a food and ag freelancer. She loves to ride her bike and make kimchi. Contact Kris De la Torre

LOCATION: Finland, Minnesota

DESCRIPTION: Founded in 1971, Wolf Ridge Environmental Learning Center was the first environmental learning center in the nation to be accredited as a K-12 school and is recognized nationally and internationally as a leader in environmental education. During the school year, more than 15,000 children, teachers and parent chaperones head to our campus to have their own adventure in learning. Our students come from all over, from more than 165 schools in communities across Minnesota, North Dakota and Wisconsin because of our unique location – located south of the Boundary Waters and overlooking the North Shore of Minnesota’s Lake Superior. Our broad spectrum of year-round environmental and outdoor learning programs for children, families, seniors and college students serve an additional 3,000 people each year, including our Summer Camps, Family Programs, Wilderness Trips, Road Scholar Programs, and Ecology Credit Camps.

TAGS: short term, alternative

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LOCATION: various locations globally

DESCRIPTION: Workaway.info is a site set up to promote fair exchange between budget travellers, language learners or culture seekers who can stay with families, individuals or organizations that are looking for help with a range of varied and interesting activities. Our philosophy is simple: A few hours honest help per day in exchange for food and accommodation and an opportunity to learn about the local lifestyle and community, with friendly hosts in varying situations and surroundings.

TAGS: independent, alternative

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LOCATION: various locations globally

DESCRIPTION: WWOOF is an exchange - In return for volunteer help, WWOOF hosts offer food, accommodation and opportunities to learn about organic lifestyles. WWOOF organisations link people who want to volunteer on organic farms or smallholdings with people who are looking for volunteer help.

TAGS: independent, alternative

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LOCATION: New Haven, Connecticut

DESCRIPTION: On the farm, in the classroom, and around the world, the Yale Sustainable Food Program grows food literate leaders. Food offers us the opportunity to engage with the world around us. By gathering people around a common table, the Yale Sustainable Food Program encourages interdisciplinary learning and creative as well as critical thinking. It inspires big questions and crucial research that address our pressing need for more sustainable food systems.

The Sustainable Food Program is the steward of two small farms used for learning and research, one on Yale’s main campus and the other at Yale’s West Campus. We support both curricular and extra-curricular learning, and serve as a hub to connect Yale’s students to opportunities for study and practice in food, health, and the environment.

TAGS: long term, short term

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LOCATION: Waitsfield, VT

DESCRIPTION:

This 80+ hour Permaculture Design Certification course imparts a positive and empowering vision for social and ecological transformation. We will train you to be a permaculture consultant who can apply the permaculture principles to a diversity of landscapes, scales and issues from rural to urban, and temperate to tropical environments.

Lectures and hands-on work will also explore: bioregional designs, natural history of Eastern woodlands and designs that cooperate with their regeneration, the evolution of agriculture, energy and nutrient cycling, watershed health, natural building, biodynamics, forest gardening, gravity run water systems, developing springs for drinking water, tree paste for fruit trees, sustainable forest management, encouraging maples, apples, shitake and ginseng, and the integration of animals into cultivated ecosystems.

This course is ideal for motivated individuals -- including community leaders and professionals in the fields of architecture, planning, ecology and education -- who wish to use the tools of permaculture in rural and urban environments as well as for designing sustainable businesses and new models for local economic and ecological regeneration. Come be inspired by the possibilities of today and learn how to redesign your world.

TAGS: short term

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LOCATION: Minneapolis, Minnesota

DESCRIPTION: We farm to create justice. Youth Farm’s food distribution promotes food justice by growing new relationships between youth and food, meeting the wellness needs of our communities, and recognizing historical narratives and current exploitation in the food system. We provide year-round programs for youth ages 9 to 24. We farm to educate and train through gardens and greenhouses. We cultivate leadership through planting, growing, preparing and selling the food we grow.

TAGS: short term, alternative

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LOCATION: Ann Arbor, Michigan

DESCRIPTION: ZingTrain shares the “Zingerman’s experience” with forward-thinking organizations from around the world. ZingTrain’s managing partners, Maggie Bayless and Stas’ Kazmierski, use their experience in training and organizational change to help clients understand and apply the real-life systems, tools and techniques used at Zingerman’s, helping clients make meaningful, bottom-line-enhancing changes in their own organizations. ZingTrain, shares Zingerman’s expertise in training, service, merchandising, specialty foods, open book finance and staff management with the public through seminars and customized workshops.

TAGS: independent, short term, alternative

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