Building Resilient Food Systems During COVID-19 and Beyond
Webinar: A Food System in Crisis: Climate Change, COVID-19, and Opportunities for Change
Join Dr. Sean Smukler, Interim Academic Director of the Centre for Sustainable Food Systems, Associate Professor, Faculty of Land and Food Systems, Department of Applied Biology and Soil Science; Dr. Kent Mullinix, Director of the Institute for Sustainable Food Systems, Kwantlen Polytechnic University; Dr. Kirsten Hannam, Systems Agro-Ecologist, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada’s Summerland Research and Development Centre as they discuss their research and perspectives on preparing and strengthening BC agriculture for food system resilience and climate change adaptation.
About the Presenters
Dr. Sean Smukler
Dr. Sean Smukler’s research program is focused on working with farmers, and other managers of agricultural landscapes to find ways to better monitor, protect and enhance biodiversity and the availability of ecosystem services including food, fiber, fuel and timber production, greenhouse gas mitigation, and water quality and quantity regulation. He and his Sustainable Agriculture Landscape lab are also currently working with CSFS at UBC Farm to better understand the nutrient dynamics of various local amendment options for organic production system.
Dr. Kirsten Hannam
Kirsten Hannam is an Agro-Ecologist with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada in Summerland, BC. Kirsten and her team aim to enhance the resilience of the BC tree fruit sector through effective and efficient soil, nutrient and water management practices. In previous lives, she has worked as a soil scientist with the BC Ministry of Forests, and as a policy analyst with Natural Resources Canada.
Dr. Kent Mullinix
Kent Mullinix is the Director of the Institute for Sustainable Food Systems at Kwantlen Polytechnic University (KPU). He oversees all of the Institute’s research projects, and extension projects including. His research and extension work focuses on ecologically sound crop production, agriculture education programming, sustainable bioregional food systems, as a foundational and integral element of sustainable society. Mullinix conceived and led the development of KPUs B.A.Sc. Sustainable Agriculture degree, the Tsawwassen First Nation and Richmond Farm Schools, and is now leading the development and implementation of KPUs Graduate Certificate- Sustainable Food Systems and Security. Mullinix is an Adjunct Professor in The Faculty of Land and Food Systems at the University of British Columbia and serves on the Leadership Team and editorial board of the Journal of Agriculture, Food Systems and Community Development.
Serena Black, Moderator
Serena Black (AAg, MSc, BJ) has been working in applied agriculture research and extension in the central and northern interior of BC for the past eight years. Serena’s work is driven by her passion to work on producer-driven applied projects that will enable producers adapt to a changing climatic and strengthen their capacity to develop environmentally and economically sustainable operations. Based in Prince George, BC, works with the University of Northern BC as the Agriculture Extension Specialist, and is the chair of the BC Agricultural Climate Adaptation Research Network.
The Building Resilient Food Systems During COVID-19 and Beyond series is brought to you by the Centre for Sustainable Food Systems (CSFS), the BC Food Web, the Faculty of Land and Food Systems (LFS), and the Royal Bank of Canada. This webinar series focuses on answering fundamental questions about the resiliency of our food system during and beyond COVID-19.
