Sustainable Agriculture Project receives national innovation award

Grand Valley's Sustainable Agriculture Project received the Innovative Project Award by the American Association of State Colleges and Universities. 

This awards program, now in its fifth year, honors AASCU member institutions for excellence and innovation in several major areas of campus life and leadership.

Yumi Jakobcic, campus sustainability coordinator, and Youssef Darwich, manager of SAP, accepted the award October 28 at AASCU's Annual Meeting in Washington, D.C. 

"‘The farm’ is a space where our students come together from all different majors, from art and design and biomedical sciences to writing and geology," said Anne Hiskes, dean of the Brooks College of Interdisciplinary Studies. "Students often tell us how working at the Sustainable Agriculture Project has changed their lives, enabling them to grow academically, socially and spiritually." 

The Sustainable Agriculture Project, housed in the Office of Sustainability Practices in Brooks College, is celebrating its 10-year anniversary this year. What started as a community garden in 2008 has grown to a learning-living laboratory where students learn academic content and develop practical skills. It includes two hoop houses, a greenhouse and four acres of land, and offers community-shared agriculture and community garden programs. 

Learn more about the SAP, located south of the Allendale Campus on Luce Street, at www.gvsu.edu/sustainableagproject.