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Students Get International Experience in Sustainable Agriculture and IPM - February 2005

February 17, 2005

UNIVERSITY PARK, PA -- Penn State's College of Agricultural Sciences is one of several partners in an international crop protection and student exchange program to promote scientific cooperation and collaborative education between academic and professional communities in the European Community and the United States.

Led by Penn State's Department of Entomology and the College's Office of International Programs, the Sustainable Crop Protection in Agriculture Program (SUSPROT) allows graduate and undergraduate students to spend time in one of four institutes in Western Europe to gain a global perspective on sustainable agriculture, including integrated pest management.

Integrated pest management, or IPM, aims to manage pests -- such as insects, diseases, weeds and animals -- by combining physical, biological and chemical tactics that are safe, profitable and environmentally compatible.

According to Marilyn McPheron, study abroad coordinator in the College's Office of International Programs, students in this SUSPROT program can travel to Belgium, France, Germany, or the Netherlands for study, research, or internships. "Our office feels strongly that agricultural students must understand how agriculture works in other countries. These students are going to be making the agriculture policies of the future and they can only make good ones if they understand the entire picture and that includes how agriculture intersects globally. The quickest way to make this clear to students is through an international experience," she says.

The program concerns the very broad topic of sustainable agriculture. Initial graduate student exchanges have focused on research concerning chemical ecology and soil ecology. In recent years, movement for sustainable agriculture has been garnering increasing support and acceptance within mainstream agriculture. Not only does sustainable agriculture address many environmental and social concerns, but it also offers innovative and economically viable opportunities for growers, laborers, consumers, policymakers and many others in the entire food system. Sustainable agriculture integrates three main goals--environmental health, economic profitability, and social and economic equity.

Currently, a summer 2005 tour of Eastern Europe is being planned to study the European food system from production to policy and trade. Nine undergraduate students from Penn State, plus several students from two other institutions, University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana and University of California, Davis. The 21-day tour will include four countries with European University faculty guides. Planned activities include tours of sustainable agriculture farms, vineyards, greenhouse crops and flower markets. The students will also explore such issues as water pollution and the changing role of farmers in modern agriculture.

According to Gary Felton, department head of entomology, all the applicants were very articulate in their desire to understand how European sustainable ag and the conservation policies affecting it differ from in the U.S. "It is a part of the College's strategic plan to increase opportunities for students, faculty and staff to engage in appropriate international activities such as field trips, case studies, internships, study tours and study abroad programs to prepare global ready graduates," Felton explains.

According to McPheron, the program is a one-time offering through the U.S. Department of Education's Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education (FIPSE). "We may try to replicate it again with other funds, depending on the program's success. We are hopeful that alumni and potential donors might provide scholarships to give students more of these types of opportunities."

McPheron says that an important aspect of any international experience is that it literally changes a student's life -- both academically and personally. "It is our goal to have 15 percent of our students a year going abroad by 2010 and to have a short term option available for every major at least every other year thus giving all ag students at least one chance for an affordable international experience during their undergrad career. We are encouraging short term programs, attached to a course, as we feel this is a very affordable way for students to get a taste of global agriculture plus a different culture via international travel." Students or faculty interested in study abroad options should contact McPheron at 814-863-0249 or mbm8@psu.edu. For more information on the SUSPROT program at Penn State, see Web site http://www.cas.psu.edu/docs/international/ FIPSEMain.htm.

The College of Agricultural Sciences and its Office of International Programs are committed to preparing the workforce of the future by providing students with the best education and skills necessary to function in and contribute to the current global environment and business demands. The College has well-established programs for graduate and undergraduate students to visit other countries as part of their curriculum or graduate research. For more information on the Office of International Programs, see Web site http://www.cas.psu.edu/docs/international/.

Established in 1963, Penn State's Department of Entomology has grown into a well-balanced department providing undergraduate education, graduate student training and extension outreach education. Twenty faculty and more than 30 graduate students work on a variety of research topics supporting the department's integrated pest management thrust. The department is part of Penn State's College of Agricultural Sciences. For more information, contact the department at (814) 865-1895 or visit the department's Web site at http://www.ento.psu.edu/.