Fundamentals of Sustainable Agriculture
Overview
Designed by Dr. Aitazaz Farooque, (Interim) Associate Dean of the UPEI School of Climate Change and Adaptation, and administered by the Office of Continuing Education and Professional Development at UPEI, the Fundamentals of Sustainable Agriculture is an online asynchronous course (approximately 10 hours to complete), accessed and completed through Moodle at UPEI, that provides training in precision agriculture technology related to collecting and interpreting GHG emissions and lowering carbon contributions from agricultural activities.
Fundamentals of Sustainable Agriculture also includes the opportunity to visit the UPEI Canadian Centre for Climate Change and Adaptation in St. Peter’s Bay for a site visit guided by Dr. Farooque to learn about the latest technology and practices in reducing carbon emissions in agriculture (the two dates for this will be in February 2024, exact dates TBD. Refreshments will be provided on the site visit).
Course Details
Fundamentals of Sustainable Agriculture covers the following areas:
- Precision agriculture, and its components and applications
- How to manage soil and crop variability for sustainable agriculture
- Overview of GHG emissions and the sources of GHG emissions from agriculture
- The methods to quantify GHG emissions from agriculture
- Overview of LiCor and how it captures GHG emissions
- Dynamics of gas exchange between soil and crop, and the factors that cause variations in GHG emissions from agricultural practices
- Best management practices to lower GHG emissions from agricultural production
- Overview of carbon offsets and credits from an agricultural perspective
- Related case studies
Timeframe for Completion
The online Fundamentals of Sustainable Agriculture course will be eligible for completion between January 8 and February 29, 2024.
Once a participant is registered for the course, a link to the course will be emailed to them on January 5, 2024. Once the participant has completed the course, a Certificate of Completion will be emailed.
Cost
The cost of Fundamentals of Sustainable Agriculture is $425 + HST.
The PEI Federation of Agriculture (PEIFA) will provide a bursary to PEI Agronomists to participate in this course, available upon completion and the presentation of the Certificate of Completion to the PEIFA.
This bursary will allow agronomists to gain training and skills that will support producers in adopting beneficial management practices that reduce GHG emissions and sequester carbon (this course and bursary are funded as a part of the On-Farm Climate Action Fund Program. The PEIFA would like to acknowledge the support of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, who have provided this funding through the Agriculture Climate Solutions program).
Contacts
- For questions related to the bursary or the PEIFA, contact Rimsha Khan (rkhan@peifa.ca; 902-368-7289) or Meagan Moynagh (mmoynagh@peifa.ca; 902-368-7289).
- For questions related to registration or Moodle, contact Lisa Coady (pdp@upei.ca; 902-620-5216)
- For questions related to the course content, contact Dr. Aitazaz Farooque (afarooque@upei.ca; 902-566-6084)
