the political economy of food
administrative info

Introduction
Course Description: This interdisciplinary course examines the international political economy of production, distribution, and consumption of food. We will look at the relationships between history, science, power, and food systems and how these relationships cut across issues of race, class, gender, nation, and the environment.

Course Objectives: Distinguishing different methods of production and what is at stake in production decisions for the environment, labor, food security, and food safety. Investigating the global food distribution system and its actors, motivations, power, and alternatives. Exploring aspects of consumption including culture, advertising, and body issues.

Expected Learning Outcomes: Students are expected to:

      1. explain the problems with industrial agriculture
      2. explain how international economic structures function and how they affect hunger and food security
      3. be able to describe how people are responding to these problems
      4. argue for the viability of alternative production and distribution systems
      5. know how to seek out alternative methods of production and distribution in your home town while traveling

Administrative Information

 

The class blog is at: www.trabal.org/food. You are responsible for checking it regularly for announcements. All assignments will be posted there.

Readings: This class will be run as a seminar. What that means is that we are here to study together. I have gathered a large set of readings. I have recommended some "required" readings for each class session, including three books available at the bookstore and online readings. Graduate students are responsible for the optional readings as well. Undergraduates are expected to explore the optional readings so that you can contribute as a fellow scholar to our discussions. The readings will be constantly updated during the course and in response to our discussions. Whatever you read, please come to class prepared to discuss it. Please notify me immediately by email of any broken links.

Class structure: Much of our class time will be spent in open discussion among the students. All students are expected to participate in this discussion. I break in and lecture at various points. Sometimes this lecture will be a formal presentation of some important ideas that are not covered in the readings. Sometimes it will be a more fluid response to issues you have raised in your discussion. During class we will also watch some films relevant to the course.

Crises: You do not need to inform me if you will be missing one class session. If you have any kind of crisis which prevents you from turning in exams on time and/or causes you to miss more than 2 classes, you must inform me (in person, by phone, or by email) within one week. I am not sympathetic to explanations of personal crisis which are not brought to my attention immediately. Likewise, if you have some kind of issue with course content or structure, I expect you to talk to me about it early on in the semester. Again, I will not be sympathetic to complaints about the course structure during the last week of class.

Your grade: You will have three exams, one for each topic. Each exam is worth 20 points for a total of 60 points. However, no matter how good your written work is, you are required to participate in class discussion as an additional part of your grade.

  • students who expect to earn As are those who contribute to class discussion* nearly every day
  • students who expect to earn Bs are those who contribute to the class discussion more than half the time
  • students who expect to earn Cs rather than Ds are those who have at least tried to contribute to class discussion

* The definition of “contributing to class discussion” is saying something that {1} shows you have done the reading, {2} makes a connection between the discussion at hand and the reading or between ideas, and {3} demonstrates that you are thinking.

In this course you will be expected to be serious about reading, thinking, writing, and conveying your thoughts verbally to other students. All of these are difficult tasks. I am happy to help you develop these skills; please come talk to me about it.

The exams: These are 2-page single-spaced take-home tests. Exams are posted, turned in, and graded through WebCT. Exam questions are based on class discussion, interests, and concerns I have about your grasp of the materials. Once the exams are graded, you can see comments and your grade by logging back in to WebCT.

Education for Democracy

One of the fundamental values of American sociology is its contribution to a democratic society. What does this mean in the context of a University? First, democracy is not about police and authority, it is about free and responsible collaboration. I am not a policeman, I am an elder working with you to expand your world by showing you things you haven't seen before and to challenge you, in order to increase your skills.

Second, much of our time in the classroom will be run democratically. It is up to all of us to maintain the quality of our space. Finding our voices and interacting with a balance of passion and respect need to become permanent aspects of our lives as citizens. We will collectively develop an ethic of "step up/step back", which means: If you're someone who talks a lot, please look for opportunities to step back and let other people talk. If you don't talk a lot, push yourself to step up and share your thoughts. All of us have a responsibility to encourage each other to step up and back as appropriate.