ENVS

Food and agriculture sit at the intersection of the some of the most significant ecological, economic, social, and political transformations of our times. In turn, China and Brazil are two of the most crucial nodes of an emerging new world order, marked by dramatic agrarian transformations within and booming agroindustrial trade between them. In this course, we examine the increasingly interconnected development of food and agriculture in these two emerging economies through the lens of political ecology. Topics addressed include the origins and modernization of agriculture, the integration of China and Brazil through European imperialism and US neocolonialism, rural-urban migration and agro-industrialization, deforestation and environmental protection, transgenic seeds and agrochemicals, soil and water contamination, investments and land struggles, food security and food safety, shifting dietary habits and climate change.