Sustainable Agriculture Program Information
Change from the ground up
Through a unique combination of classroom and farm-based learning, students explore practical opportunities for land and food to strengthen community and ecosystem health. The program offers a comprehensive perspective on:
- The science of agro-ecosystem design and stewardship;
- Innovative and ecologically sound crop production methods;
- Sustainable farm business management; and
- Solutions to economic, social, and environmental challenges facing our food system.
Program graduates find employment in fields as diverse as planning, resource management, government, non-governmental organizations, agricultural support enterprises, and production agriculture. Some students use their degree as a foundation for graduate studies.
Program Overview
The Bachelor of Applied Science in Sustainable Agriculture consists of 120 credits of course work, including 24 credits of electives. A minimum of 15 credits of electives must be chosen from subject areas other than AGRI, including at least 3 credits at the 3000-level or above.
Students who began the program before the fall of 2024 follow the legacy program progression.
| Year 1 | Course | Title | Credits | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students begin with experiential learning at the KPU Farm while receiving relevant foundational training in sustainable agriculture, Indigenous perspectives, policy, statistics, and sciences. | All of: | |||
| AGRI 1100 | Applied Organic Agriculture I (Spring semester) | 3 | ||
| AGRI/INDG 1130 | Indigenous Perspectives on Food Systems | 3 | ||
| AGRI 1150 | Foundations of Sustainable Agriculture | 3 | ||
| AGRI 1200 | Applied Organic Agriculture II (Summer semester) | 6 | ||
| BIOL 1110 | Introductory Biology I | 4 | ||
| ENGL 1100 | Introduction to University Writing | 3 | ||
| ENVI 1106 | Environmental Chemistry I | 4 | ||
| MATH 1115 | Statistics I | 3 | ||
| Elective | Note: Students who need to upgrade in order to meet the prerequisites for ENVI 1106 or MATH 1115 may use MATH 1112 or MATH 1117 as their elective. | 3 | ||
| One of: | 3 | |||
| PHIL 1111/ POST 1100 | Sustainability: Analysis and Ethics | |||
| POST 1200 | Inclusive Communities, Sustainable Futures | |||
| POLI 2100 | Sustainability and Government | |||
| Year 1 Total | 35 | |||
| Year 2 | Course | Title | Credits | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students explore agricultural systems in-depth and learn about ecological, technological, and social elements of agroecosystems. | All of: | |||
| AGRI 2100 | Applied Organic Agriculture III (Fall semester) | 3 | ||
| AGRI 2150 | Agricultural Technologies | 3 | ||
| AGRI 2190 | Plant Science | 3 | ||
| AGRI 2250 | Agriculture and Food Systems in British Columbia | 3 | ||
| AGRI 2220 | Soil Stewardship and Management | 4 | ||
| AGRI 2230 | Sustainable Human Economy | 3 | ||
| AGRI 2299 | Agri-Food in the Field (Summer intersession) | 2 | ||
| AGRI 2320 | Advanced Soil Management | 3 | ||
| AGRI 2350 | Agroecology | 3 | ||
| BIOL 2322 | Ecology | 4 | ||
| Elective | Note: Students must have three credits of courses identified as writing intensive to graduate. | 3 | ||
| Year 2 Total | 34 | |||
| Year 3 | Course | Title | Credits | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Applied farm management is the focus of the third year. | All of: | |||
| AGRI 3225 | Experimental Design and Analysis | 3 | ||
| AGRI 3120 | Agricultural Enterprise Design | 3 | ||
| AGRI 3130 | Business Plans for Agriculture | 3 | ||
| AGRI 3220 | Agricultural Pests and Beneficials | 3 | ||
| AGRI 3230 | Agricultural Pest Management | 3 | ||
| AGRI 3270 | Vegetable Crop Production | 3 | ||
| AGRI 3280 | Fruit and Nut Crop Production | 3 | ||
| AGRI 4100 | Crop Management Field Lab (Summer) | 3 | ||
| Electives | Note: Students who complete AGRI 3225 may apply to the honours program. Honours students conduct an original experimental research project while completing AGRI 3399 and AGRI 4299. | 6 | ||
| Year 3 Total | 30 | |||
| Year 4 | Course | Title | Credits | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students conclude their degree with courses designed to help them translate their new knowledge into effective action for positive change. | All of: | |||
| AGRI 3398 | Crop Physiology and Ecology | 3 | ||
| AGRI 4250 | Agroecology in Action | 3 | ||
| AGRI 4298 | Agroecology as a Global Movement | 3 | ||
| Electives | 12 | |||
| Year 4 Total | 21 | |||
| Program Total | 120 | |||
Credential Awarded: Bachelor of Applied Science in Sustainable Agriculture
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Learning Outcomes
The curriculum offers both practical experience and academic training in sustainable agriculture. Course work fosters experiential learning and exploration of personal interests. The four-year Bachelor's degree program is designed to help students achieve eleven learning outcomes:
- Examine interrelationships between agriculture, food systems, environment, and human well-being.
- Recognize and engage with diverse perspectives and ways of knowing, including Indigenous perspectives.
- Characterize implications of historical and contemporary relationships between agricultural food systems and Indigenous peoples.
- Apply foundational knowledge of soil, plant, and animal sciences to agriculture and food systems.
- Identify how social, economic, and political structures influence food systems at different scales.
- Craft and share visions for a sustainable future for agriculture and food systems and analyze existing examples that advance the vision.
- Evaluate changes to agriculture and food systems that mitigate climate change and overreach of planetary boundaries and adapt agriculture and food systems to a changing planet.
- Analyze and critique emerging research and apply its results to advance sustainable food systems.
- Apply agroecological principles to current issues in food systems.
- Apply principles of sustainability to agriculture business management.
- Contribute to food systems change through community action.