Charles Sturt course helps feed the world

Agriculture is an increasingly complex and sophisticated industry that has a vital role in our sustainable future. At Charles Sturt University our students are part of a growing movement in postgraduate study in agroecology to help feed the world and protect the planet.

There are almost eight billion people who call this planet home, and that’s a lot of mouths to feed! Producing enough food for everyone is a complex and challenging process. But the global agricultural industry must continue to evolve if we’re to feed ourselves and safeguard our environments. Put simply, agroecology uses nature’s services to improve farming practices. It’s an alternative system that can bring sustainability to agriculture. According to Charles Sturt PhD candidate Anne Johnson, agroecology practices contribute to climate change mitigation and improve the health of our soils, plants, people and communities.

Agroecology research builds our knowledge of the world and helps create farming systems that will provide food and rebuild our natural environments. At Charles Sturt our applied ecology research group have been involved in a project focused on helping vegetable farmers experiment with flowering plants around cabbage fields to suppress pests naturally and increase production.