Due to the Novel Coronavirus, the University of Virginia has decided to cancel all in-person summer programs through June 30, 2020, and this includes the Morven Summer Institute. The professors teaching our courses have decided to make their classes available virtually, during summer session I (May 18 – June 13). Courses offered are:
PLAP 3160/GSVS 3160 – Politics of Food, Paul Freedman ARCH
Paul Freedman, Department of Politics
– 3 credits
How and what we eat is basic to who we are as individuals, as a culture, and as a polity. This course looks at the production and consumption of food in a political context. Food politics and policies have critical implications for the environment, for public health, for political equality, and for budget priorities. This course looks at food politics through a series of “food fights.” We will examine controversies over agricultural subsidies, labeling requirements, taxation, farming practices, food safety, advertising and education. In doing so, we will explore some of the most important features of American democracy, including legislative politics, regulation, interest group activity, federalism, public opinion, political communication, and representation. Ultimately we will examine the ways in which the politics of food represents both a reflection and a distortion of fundamental democratic principles.
3500/5500/GSVS 3110 – Sustainable Communities, Phoebe Crisman
Phoebe Crisman, Departments of Global Studies and Architecture
-3 credits
This course investigates the principles of sustainable community development—environmental quality, economic health, and social equity—as reflected in buildings, rural landscapes, towns, and cities. Through case studies, class activities and site visits, we will examine how communities impact and improve basic environmental-quality variables such as air and water quality, food supply, mobility, energy, and sense of place.
The Morven Summer Institute 