Food for Thought:
A summer program in ecology and sustainable agriculture
Residential life:
The courses in the program examine the connections between knowledge (e.g., scientific data on ecological sustainability) and the ways in which we lead our lives. To more fully explore these connections, the students will live in a house on campus (the Wheat house) and prepare their own meals using food they have grown and food purchased through organic coops. Thus, students will conduct an experiment with truth by living out one conception of an ethically sound relationship to the land. Participants will also refine their skills in food preparation using basic food supplies (e.g., wheat berries, whole vegetables) and learn how to work effectively as a member of a residential community.
Wise growers of plants know that food grows best when one has the discipline to work within the boundaries set by nature and when one avoids the use of toxins. The rules that participants in the program will be asked to live by are based on the assumption that the same principles apply to the nurturing of human wisdom. Thus, the house will be substance-free (no alcohol or smoking) and all program participants will be asked to pledge not to watch television or use any illegal drugs for the duration of the program. The ethical and spiritual basis of this pledge will be discussed at the start of the program and all participants will sign the pledge during a brief ceremony.
Housekeeping and cooking duties will be shared among program participants.