So You Wanna Raise Pigs?

There is a growing interest in pastured pork as a method of sustainable agriculture. Raising pigs on pasture is not only more humane and natural for the animals, it is also environmentally sound and produces meat that is more nutritious and, as many people discover, flavorful as well. Family farms raise pigs to pass the benefits of pastured pork onto to their friends, family, and other eaters while engaging in a local and just food system. Organizations such as Fort Whyte Farms even use pastured pork and other sustainable agriculture methods as learning tools in youth outreach programs.

If you’re interested in raising your own pigs, or are simply eager to learn more about pastured (more…)

Possibilities for Democratizing Science Through New Media

Social media or “new media” is revolutionizing the way by which knowledge – both ‘scientific’ and ‘lay’ – is communicated. Indeed, social media represents a powerful set of constantly evolving tools for engaging society in scientific discourse. These tools have two main strengths that are relevant to scientific communication. This blog post is based on a poster presented at the 2010 PrioNet conference in Ottawa Ontario. Click here to download it or read on. (more…)

Experiential Learning at its Finest (article by Dave Vasey)

Clearwater 2008 Summary

By Dave Vasey

August 29, 2008

This year marked the forth return of the University of Manitoba’s Rural Communities and Living Environments course led by Dr. Stephane McLachlan to the Clearwater area. Along with Colin Anderson and Alexis Knispel (with Troy Stozek as the ‘busdriver’), twenty-three students engaged in learning, sharing and community to better understand the anatomy of a small prairie town through a whirlwind ten-day visit.

Through precedence by previous years, students ate an almost exclusive diet of food produced by the community and thus the first priority was to visit the Koslowsky’s garden and harvest meals for themselves. The bounty consisted of tomatoes, zucchini, beans, beats, potatoes, peppers, onions and way too many carrots to eat in a week. Fortunately for the group, the Anglican Church group provided a delicious meal after the garden harvest and further chores were left for another day. (more…)