Portland Community College | Portland, Oregon

Upon completion of the course students should be able to:

1. Use a systems perspective to analyze factors within the food system that impact personal, public, global, and environmental health.
2. Analyze the inter-relationship between social factors and how they connect within the food system.
3. Evaluate diet and food choices for their impact on personal, societal, and environmental health.
4. Use information from credible research and primary data sources to explore the food system as it relates to health.
5. Discuss how historical, economic, or political factors have helped shape the current food system.

The SAC expects a variety of both formative and summative assessment strategies to be used throughout the course to assess student learning of the course outcomes. Some examples of strategies are:

• Written Journals, portfolios, self-assessments, and self-reflection papers
• Multiple choice, true/false, short answer and essay quizzes and exams that require integration, application, and critical examination of material covered in the class
• Participation in individual and group exercises, activities, case studies and presentations in or outside the classroom
• Active participation in class discussions
• Written and/or verbal assignments designed to promote integration of class material with personal reflection and experience
• Oral or video presentations
• Participation in online learning platforms.
• Term or research papers, using a variety of research strategies.
• Community-based learning projects involving self-reflection and application of food justice principles

Examples of subject matter, themes, concepts and Issues:

1. Global and local food systems
2. Historical events that have shaped the food system
3. Social, political and economic factors in relation to food systems  
4. Health inequities
5. Food insecurity and hunger
6. Healthy food environments
7. Media and marketing influence on consumer food choices
8. Industrial agriculture and animal production
9. Climate change
10. Sustainable agriculture concepts and practices
11. Impact of food systems on human and environmental health
12. Potential solutions in creating a more healthy and just food system

Competencies and skills:

1. Identify opportunities and challenges to encourage dietary behavior change, support sustainable agriculture, improve food security and lessen the environmental and public health impact of food production and consumption
2. Increase knowledge in the area of environmental health and food systems.
3. Explore current research in environmental health and food production.
4. Know how key historical and political factors played a role in shaping the food system both locally and globally.
5. Analyze marketing messages for their influence on consumer food choices.
6. Compare and contrast food systems for their impact on individual, community and environmental health.
7. Explain the concepts of agricultural sustainability.
8. Relate sustainable agricultural concepts to human health.
9. Identify examples of sustainable systems.
10. Explore personal food choices for their impact on personal health and the environment.
11. Using a historical perspective identify changes in the global food system.
12. Critique economic implications of local versus global food purchasing
13. Discuss how food and diet relate to one’s culture, gender identity, place of living, etc.