An exciting Local Food Project has been taking place across Vancouver Island that involves students from all 5 post secondary schools in the region. These students have been developing digital stories, discussion papers and other materials in areas of concern to local food production. For instance, the Vancouver Island University team has been compiling information on the impact of Climate Change on local food production, while Camosun College students have been identifying research related to Urban Agriculture. At the same time, students from the University of Victoria have been gathering information on Institutional Purchasing and at North Island College, Indigenous Food Systems has been the topic to explore. Royal Roads University is engaged in getting the resulting materials out to the public, which is anticipated to happen over the summer. To keep an eye on the project, access the digital stories, and read the materials as they emerge, visit http://mapping.uvic.ca/vicra/welcome.
The purpose of the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council-funded project is to take the results of research and make them available to the general public in a way that is understandable. The Public Outreach Grant was awarded to the newly-formed Vancouver Island Community Research Alliance (VICRA), which is an alliance of all the post-secondary institutions on the Island, and is coordinated by the Office of Community-Based Research at the University of Victoria. The Local Food Project is the first collaborative initiative that VICRA has engaged in, and a digital story is being produced to tell the tale of its evolution. To learn more about Community-based research, check out http://web.uvic.ca/ocbr/.
Submitted by Jenny Horn, PhD
Island Farmers' Alliance 