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The Capstone

The Capstone

By Prescott College

Celebrating a more just and sustainable food system.
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Sweet as Honey: Reviving Appalachian Communities Through Food-based Enterprise

The CapstoneAug 04, 2022

00:00
30:36
Family Cookbook for Fun, Wellbeing, and Better Nutrition

Family Cookbook for Fun, Wellbeing, and Better Nutrition

The “Cooking Together Cookbook” is a response to child nutrition challenges that supports an environment where children and parents can learn and enjoy cooking activities together with the goal of improving child/parent relationships, child mental health, and nutrition. Casey McManus created the cookbook as her Capstone project by first examining existing literature for the obstacles that children face in accessing nutritional food. Inspired by the scholarship, she created 16 seasonally inspired recipes and activities that emphasize sensory learning and food literacy components to engage children and their families in fun ways to celebrate nutritious and inspired collaborative cooking.

Nov 02, 202328:07
Supporting Food Sovereignty with Social Media

Supporting Food Sovereignty with Social Media

Indigenous people around the world are initiating food sovereignty movements to regain control of their food systems. The globalized industrial food system has increased the disconnection from traditional foodways and knowledge and has increased the risks of diet-related diseases. Kit Laux examines the food sovereignty movement as one that can build resiliency and reconnect people to nutritious and culturally appropriate food. As a member of the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community on the L’Anse Indian Reservation in Michigan, she describes for her Capstone how Native American tribes throughout the nation are implementing food sovereignty initiatives to increase control of their food systems linking to culture, health, and economic development. Her project’s goal is to increase visibility and awareness of food sovereignty topics specific to her bioregion by developing a website that will share information and provide links to resources that support regaining control of a more traditional food system. Her research points to social media as a proven and effective tool to distribute information widely and quickly throughout her target community. The website she created is drawing on a wide variety of marketing metrics and data analytics to create impact indicators as a strategy for success.

Oct 03, 202320:11
Food Bank Relationships Help During COVID-19

Food Bank Relationships Help During COVID-19

One of the impacts of COVID-19 was a dramatic rise in unemployment, and with that, increases in food insecurity experienced by those in Bianca Garcia’s hometown of Las Vegas, Nevada. Noting how Three Square, Southern Nevada’s only food bank, managed to pivot effectively to cope with the increased need, Bianca became interested in what enabled the organization to respond quickly and efficiently. For her Capstone, she provides a case study of Three Square and its response to rapid changes in the need to provide food to the region. She compares the Three Square model to three other organizations doing similar work on various scales and examines the social network of Three Square to provide analysis and recommendations on best practices.

Jul 13, 202323:23
Creating City-wide Composting

Creating City-wide Composting

For consumers interested in making ethical choices regarding meat consumption, Karlee Shields wrote a handbook with the goal to re-connect people to the food they eat as a tool to shift animal production toward more environmentally restorative and cruelty-free practices.

Jun 16, 202339:60
Insubordinate Bodies and Food System Alienation

Insubordinate Bodies and Food System Alienation

Trigger Warning: Content may trigger those with sensitivities to issues related to disordered eating and body image.

Zephyr Schott brings forward a book proposal as their Capstone project. The book is an examination of the ways the State acts on bodies and eating modalities through control of food systems and concomitant systems of oppression. Through auto-ethnography and examination of history, Zephyr explores issues related to body and food autonomy, taking a critical view of food systems as they contribute to white supremacy, colonization, fatphobia, ableism, speciesism, and (cis)sexism. The book addresses systems of confinement and oppression associated with “treatment” of disordered eating, challenging the pathologization of the perceptions and dynamics of food and embodiment.

Sep 30, 202234:32
Farmer-friendly Food Safety Policies

Farmer-friendly Food Safety Policies

Prescott College MS in Sustainable Food Systems student Rachel Wilson examines the Massachusetts Commonwealth Quality Program (CQP) as a case study for a successful state-led certification program that is accepted by all produce buyers in the state with reduced compliance obstacles for farmers. She created an original survey and provides an analysis of interview results from produce growers, buyers, and key stakeholders in Missouri and Illinois with the recommendation that the CQP model be adopted in the St. Louis region and other U.S. states to support the market inclusion for more local produce growers.

Sep 02, 202230:02
Sweet as Honey: Reviving Appalachian Communities Through Food-based Enterprise

Sweet as Honey: Reviving Appalachian Communities Through Food-based Enterprise

For the coal miners of Appalachia, climate change has brought about economic hardship as jobs are being lost to the necessary growth in the renewable energy sector. August Stubler examines through a literature review and case study analysis, the movement toward food-based economic revitalization. Specifically focused on the introduction of apiary work in hard-hit communities as an economic development strategy, August analyzes one promising model and analyzes the impact of agricultural-based vocational training to transition former coal miners and their families toward more sustainable and resilient livelihoods.

Aug 04, 202230:36
Preserving Florida's Agricultural Land

Preserving Florida's Agricultural Land

Julia Soondar took on the challenge of examining the tension between the critical contributions Florida’s agricultural land offers to the state’s food system, the environment, the economy, and various stakeholders, and concerns over the social, environmental, and economic consequences of the trend to convert agricultural land for private development. Her Capstone explores the feasibility of a new state-level policy that would preserve Florida’s agricultural lands through a combination of tax relief, agricultural districting, leasing programs and the creation of a farmer network. The objective with this food policy project is to strengthen resilience in the Florida agricultural sector through institutional architecture at the state level.

Jul 12, 202222:46
Microgreens for All!

Microgreens for All!

Our first guest of Season 4 is Carly Dureiko who was born, raised, and continues to work in Cleveland, Ohio. She attended Kent State University for her bachelor’s degree in Nutrition and Dietetics and through a dietetic internship program post-graduation, became a registered dietitian. She currently works in nephrology as a clinical dietitian.

Carly shares that her two passions in life have always been for community nutrition and sustainability, which is why she was attracted to the Master of Science degree program in Sustainable Food Systems at Prescott College.

In this episode, Carly discusses an innovative approach to improving nutrition at community food access sights—growing microgreens. Carly’s Capstone advisor, Sharon Palmer, MSFS faculty –otherwise known to the world as the Plant-Based Dietician, joins us for the conversation.

Jun 03, 202224:31
Opportunities for Sustainability and Justice in Agricultural Science Education: A Literature Review

Opportunities for Sustainability and Justice in Agricultural Science Education: A Literature Review

This episode features Carly Chaapel.

Apr 05, 202224:15
Supporting Farm to School Initiatives in Vermont through the Design of a K-5 Classroom Cooking Resource

Supporting Farm to School Initiatives in Vermont through the Design of a K-5 Classroom Cooking Resource

<strong>This Episode features Christine Gall, MS in Sustainable Food Systems program at Prescott College.</strong>
Feb 25, 202248:29
Cultivating Community Roots: A Toolkit for Improved Community Food System Governance for Greater Resilience and Food Security in Rural Alaska

Cultivating Community Roots: A Toolkit for Improved Community Food System Governance for Greater Resilience and Food Security in Rural Alaska

Robbi Mixon has spent the last decade working with producers in Homer, running the local farmers market, and launching the Alaska Food Hub. She joined the Alaska Food Policy Governing Board three years ago, hoping to represent the interests of farmers and fishers on the Kenai Peninsula. In January 2020, she accepted the role of first-ever AFPC Executive Director.

Jan 21, 202223:42
Centering Food Systems to Support Aging Out Foster Youth

Centering Food Systems to Support Aging Out Foster Youth

Jespen Nyblom brings the knowledge of Horticulture, Sustainability, and Sustainable Food Systems to his work serving foster youth programs in the Willamette Valley of Oregon. Working with Extension programs in his region, he developed a Capstone project that advocates centering food systems in diverse approaches created to support youth aging out of the system.

Dec 08, 202148:11
Food Systems-Centered International Development Strategies

Food Systems-Centered International Development Strategies

With many years of experience working in international development, Kelley Bishop’s Capstone offers new perspectives on this work and details why he believes food system development as a leverage point strategy can work holistically to reduce poverty, address health, nutrition, human rights, animal welfare, the environment, food safety, and cultural preservation.

Nov 23, 202140:02
The Capstone - Season 3, Episode 2

The Capstone - Season 3, Episode 2

Combining her experience with nutrition and oncology with her food systems volunteer work in India, for her Capstone, Andrea Rossi partnered with a small international development organization addressing the nutritional needs of school-age children in Bangladesh’s river island communities. She discusses her project and hopes for organizational-led research to become a needed bridge between the applied and the academic.

Oct 19, 202146:58
Seed Saving and Regional Resilience

Seed Saving and Regional Resilience

Guest Bio: Laurel Balog
Laurel Balog became interested in agrobiodiversity and seed sovereignty through her undergraduate studies in ecology and natural resource management. Through her graduate studies at Prescott College and in her work managing St. Lawrence University’s 100-acre Living Laboratory, understanding the significance of saved seeds in creating resilient agricultural systems became an area of research and focus. In this episode, Laurel shares her project which assesses seed saving practices in her home region of St. Lawrence County, New York.

Sep 24, 202141:01
Helping Farmers Market Sustainability

Helping Farmers Market Sustainability

For his Capstone, Dave Kuder created a guide for farmers who are interested in direct marketing. In addition, he developed a plan for a specific business that would work with farmers to create the promotional and educational materials they need. The business is called True Abundance Marketing. In this, Dave envisions a direct-to-consumer marketing service that will help farmers become more economically sustainable by creating materials that will influence consumer behaviors, appealing to the desire folks have to preserve local ownership, take care of the environment and improve their own health through the purchase of fresh and nutritious locally produced food.

Jan 02, 202135:29
Waste Not, Want Not

Waste Not, Want Not

Motivated by knowing that 40% of all food produced in the US is consequently thrown away, and most of that waste happens at the household level, Mariah Hachmeister created a comprehensive and interactive food waste reduction workshop for consumers.

Dec 18, 202039:25
Burger With a Side of Sustainability

Burger With a Side of Sustainability

For consumers interested in making ethical choices regarding meat consumption, Karlee Shields wrote a handbook with the goal to re-connect people to the food they eat as a tool to shift animal production toward more environmentally restorative and cruelty-free practices.

Dec 10, 202023:59
Gardening for Health

Gardening for Health

For her Capstone, Claire Tuohey-Mote designed learning modules focused on changing health outcomes for vulnerable adult populations through gardening. Through on-farm experiential learning, the workshop offers opportunities to access emotional, physical, mental and social well-being.

Dec 09, 202033:30
Helping Farmers Market Sustainability

Helping Farmers Market Sustainability

For his Capstone, Dave Kuder created a guide for farmers who are interested in direct marketing. In addition, he developed a plan for a specific business that would work with farmers to create the promotional and educational materials they need. The business is called True Abundance Marketing. In this, Dave envisions a direct-to-consumer marketing service that will help farmers become more economically sustainable by creating materials that will influence consumer behaviors, appealing to the desire folks have to preserve local ownership, take care of the environment and improve their own health through the purchase of fresh and nutritious locally produced food.

Nov 13, 202035:29
 Truckin’ Toward a Local Food Vision

Truckin’ Toward a Local Food Vision

Interested in mobile food vending, Chad Snader evaluated different value propositions and developed a business plan for a food truck that would be a bridge between eaters and local food producers, addressing the challenges of local sourcing, menu development, pricing, and transparency.

Nov 05, 202049:01
Food Literacy For Families

Food Literacy For Families

Courtney Bonzo researched the pedagogy of food literacy to create a hands-on primer focused on families. Through activities that can be done together, she empowers families with a foundation for understanding food systems sustainability.

Oct 29, 202035:18
Learn By Doing

Learn By Doing

Alex Sawatsky, Farm Manager at Rutgers University, created a course on small-scale organic farming for Rutgers with an emphasis on student-focused, experiential learning. His course is founded on the dynamic interaction of the elements of sustainability—economic, political, and social.
Oct 20, 202035:07
Episode 6: Growing Nutrition in Hospitals

Episode 6: Growing Nutrition in Hospitals

Sherri Pinero discusses her innovative Capstone project, a guide to creating a hospital-based edible educational garden, framed around nutrition and culinary programs. A model now being embraced by Kaiser Permanente, Sherri’s guide provides a socially responsible health education model that supports environmental nutrition dietary recommendations.

May 07, 202040:27
Episode 5 - Food Entrepreneurship

Episode 5 - Food Entrepreneurship

Cassie Greenberg brings her own business experience forward in her Capstone, a working template for business consultants interested in helping small local farms and food businesses become successful. She talks about how plugging into her step-by-step guide sets business consultants on a path to become involved in the food movement while also helping food entrepreneurs navigate the challenges of growing a values-based business.

Apr 30, 202045:49
Episode 4 - Mapping Denver’s Food Security Network

Episode 4 - Mapping Denver’s Food Security Network

Working for Slow Food Denver, Hannah Keitel noticed there was an opportunity to improve the impact of food security work in the city by engaging a variety of stakeholders with an asset-based collaborative network map. She discusses the model and network mapping tool she developed in her Capstone to facilitate diversity, improved communication, more opportunities, and strategic partnerships

Apr 23, 202034:43
Episode 3: Dig Into School Gardens

Episode 3: Dig Into School Gardens

Brooke Franklin’s experience of managing a school hydroponic tower garden in her bioregion led to her choice of capstone topic, in which she tackles a comprehensive review of research that on the barriers to having a school garden program and what facilitates success.

Apr 14, 202018:00
Episode 2: Let's Talk Dairy

Episode 2: Let's Talk Dairy

Molly Fenske shares her experiences in creating a guidebook to opening dialogue opportunities between consultants and dairy farmers that addresses operational challenges and strategies that will enable them to implement sustainable solutions that are visible to consumers.

Apr 07, 202027:19
Episode 1: Serving Those Who Served

Episode 1: Serving Those Who Served

After 25 years in the culinary industry, Mike Dewes, Culinary Director of the Vermont College of Fine Arts in Montpelier, VT, has created a Veteran-focused Culinary Sustainability Program and discusses the impact of veteran-focused food systems education focused on sustainability.

Mar 30, 202031:03