The Graduate Program in Sustainable Agriculture celebrated their 10th anniversary as a graduate program at Iowa State by holding their eighth annual symposium Tuesday at the Memorial Union.

The symposium opened with John Pesek, ISU distinguished professor emeritus of agronomy, who gave a summary of the history of the program and how it came to be at Iowa State. Afterward, Doug Landis, professor of entomology at Michigan State University, presented ideas on redesigning sustainable agriculture through ecosystem services.

This up-and-coming graduate program focuses on educating students on ways to design and implement sustainable agriculture systems, and ultimately be able to practice and spread their knowledge of sustainable agriculture.

“The program broadens the perspectives of agriculture beyond the dimension of farming,” said Caroline Oliveira, graduate in sociology, who is now in her first year of Graduate Program in Sustainable Agriculture. Growing up in Brazil, Oliveira’s knowledge regarding the global impact of agriculture grew dramatically as she went throughout her education.

“Because I am Brazilian, I have learned that American farming has a global impact, so it’s important to become aware of that,” she said. Oliveira is also the co-president of the Sustainable Agriculture Student Association and plans to get her doctorate and eventually move back to Brazil to teach.

The Graduate Program in Sustainable Agriculture has a unique curriculum with specific guidelines and classes, which students are required to take. Students are also required to gather weekly in what are called colloquiums. During these meetings, the Graduate Program in Sustainable Agriculture students are encouraged to share their knowledge on subjects, listen to guest speakers and exchange their points of view. Because this is a newer program at Iowa State, students are able to contribute and integrate their goals and visions for this program.

The Graduate Program in Sustainable Agriculture is the only program to offer both masters and Ph.D. degrees in sustainable agriculture and is slowly becoming more recognized for its successful development throughout these past 10 years.