The College of Letters, Arts & Social Sciences will host a symposium in May to highlight the intersection of agriculture, environment and history. “From the Ground Up: Agriculture and the Environment of History” includes a day-long conference on Saturday, May 7, as well as guest speakers on May 5, 12 & 19.
The symposium will open with a presentation by UC Irvine Professor Ken Pomeranz, on agriculture, the environment and world history. Later, a panel of experts will discuss how teachers can incorporate those topics into their classroom curriculum. Professor Doug Sackman, University of Puget Sound, will speak on environmental history in the context of food and agriculture.
“The themes of agriculture and the environment tap into the history of Cal Poly Pomona and the Pomona Valley. They also represent new trends in historical scholarship in both United States and in world history,” says history Professor Eileen V. Wallis. “This series is targeted to teachers because we recognize the close relationship between Cal Poly Pomona and the local teaching community. We also know that many teachers are interested in including more about agriculture and the environment in their teaching, but may not know how to get started.”
The college will host guest speakers on Thursdays at noon throughout May in the University Library, room 1802. On May 5, Professor Robert Gottlieb, Occidental College, will speak about the food justice social movement. On May 12, Professor Jose Alamillo, CSU Channel Islands, will give a presentation on California agriculture and the Bracero Program. A.G. Kawamura, former Secretary of the California Department of Food and Agriculture, will come to campus May 19 to discuss agriculture in the 21st century.
The May 7 conference has a $10 registration fee, which includes lunch. To register for the conference, go to https://www.123signup.com/register?id=vybvr The speaker events are free and open to the public. For more information, contact Wallis at evwallis@cpp.edu or (909) 869-3854.