The Center for Agriculture and Food Systems (CAFS) at Vermont Law School recently joined a diverse group of sustainable food and agriculture organizations as a founding member of the Cuba-U.S. Agroecology Network (CUSAN), CAFS Director Laurie Ristino announced today. The goal of CUSAN is to connect U.S. and Cuban advocates of agroecology so they can share information and practices to sustainably meet local food needs.
CUSAN was launched earlier this month by the Schumacher Center for a New Economics, the mission of which is to "educate the public about an economics that supports both people and the planet."
"We are looking forward to collaborating with Schumacher and other network members to support agroecology and the exchange of information and ideas with Cuba," Ristino said. "One of the benefits of being involved on the ground floor so to speak is that we get to explore the potential of the network. For our part, CAFS brings a rich portfolio of knowledge related to the U.S. food system and international aspects of food and agriculture, from both a food safety and an environmental impacts perspective."
In 1991 with the collapse of the Soviet Union, Cuba lost its source of petroleum and was forced to find ways to feed its people with very little or no chemical fertilizers or pesticides. Cubans embraced an organic approach to farming out of necessity and demonstrated how it can work. Today, Cuba harbors a wealth of sustainable farming experience.
CUSAN is coordinated by the Schumacher Center for a New Economics, based in Great Barrington, Mass., with support from the Christopher Reynolds and Ford Foundations. For more information about the Cuba-U.S. Agroecology Network, visit www.agroecologynetwork.org.
The Center for Agriculture and Food Systems at Vermont Law School is the most comprehensive agriculture, food and environmental law program in the nation, emphasizing systems-based problem-solving and entrepreneurial innovation. CAFS supports scholars and practitioners by producing practical, robust scholarship for use by the food and agriculture community. For more information about the Center for Agriculture and Food Systems, visit www.vermontlaw.edu/cafs.
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Vermont Law School, a private, independent institution, is home to the nation’s largest and deepest environmental law program. VLS offers a Juris Doctor curriculum that emphasizes public service; three Master’s Degrees—Master of Environmental Law and Policy, Master of Energy Regulation and Law, and Master of Food and Agriculture Law and Policy; and four post-JD degrees —LLM in American Legal Studies (for foreign-trained lawyers), LLM in Energy Law, LLM in Environmental Law, and LLM in Food and Agriculture Law. The school features innovative experiential programs and is home to the Environmental Law Center, South Royalton Legal Clinic, Environmental and Natural Resources Law Clinic, Energy Clinic, and Food and Agriculture Clinic. For more information, visit www.vermontlaw.edu, find us on Facebook, and follow us on Twitter.