Do our food choices impact climate change? A new project launched by the Faculty of Land and Food Systems aims to answer this question by demonstrating how sustainable agricultural techniques and dietary choices can reduce the production of greenhouse gases.

With all of the sustainability issues facing society today – poverty, depletion of natural resources and global warming, to name a few – it’s reassuring to know that UBC scientists are actively working on finding solutions to create a healthier world.

Shawn Johnston wants to generate more buzz at UBC Farm – from bees. In a recent study, Johnston looked at just how bee-friendly UBC Farm is for native pollinators such as Bumblebees and Blue Orchard Mason Bees.

Anyone who has ever feasted a little too heartily at Thanksgiving knows some of the uncomfortable implications of the food choices we make.

But UBC researchers say the digestive perils of one too many drumsticks pale in comparison to the consequences of the food choices consumers make in the grocery aisle.

Imagine sailing across the South Pacific aboard a cruise ship while gaining academic credit towards a Bachelor of Science degree at the same time.

That’s exactly what fourth-year Global Resource Systems student Jordan Marr did, and he didn’t have to pull any strings to convince anyone.

The global food system that currently serves UBC and its region has delivered large volumes of low-cost food, but is also implicated in the health issues that flow from over and under-consumption and faces many challenges to its sustainability.

Native cultures and their plant seeds could be keys to addressing crises of food, medicine and energy, coping with climate change, and easing unprecedented rates of species extinction, according to Tirso Gonzales, an assistant professor of Indigenous Studies at UBC Okanagan.