Craig Watson

Whats for Dinner?: Purchasing and Preparing an Organic, locally grown Meal part of ACM Pedagogic Resources:ACM/FaCE:Projects:Integrating Sustainability into the Undergraduate Curriculum:Activities
Having read Michael Pollan's The Omnivores Dilemma, students in "Land, Food, and Sustainable Agriculture" are divided into groups of five and instructed to a) design a dinner menu featuring organically or naturally grown food (points for locally grown); b) "track to source" all items they purchase, and present detailed menu notes about origins and conditions of production; c) prepare the meal together; and d) serve each other (and the instructor); write a short review of the meal, and a longer, collaborative essay based upon group discussion about what they learned in doing the project. The project/activity connects students to naturally grown food sources, alternatives to industrial agricultural production, slow food preparation, and social engagement through food ceremonies.