Areas of Research and Teams
The Faculty of Agricultural, Life & Environmental Sciences provides solutions to global challenges, conducting its academic and research programs along the following four themes:
Providing enough safe and nutritious food to the world's growing population is arguably the greatest challenge humanity will face in the coming decades. ALES is constantly looking at better ways of growing food - including producing higher yielding and more disease resistant crops as well as healthier and more productive animals - creating new food products, enhancing food safety, and improving public policy.
We help solve environmental problems. ALES examines a broad range of environmental issues focused primarily on land use such as sustainable forestry, restoration ecology (i.e. restoring a disturbed landscape due to natural resource development, for example) the encroachment of urbanization on agricultural land, and water use. We examine these issues from a broad perspective that encompasses science, economics, sociology, politics and cultural issues.
Our quality of life depends on the social context of well-being. We examine the links between nutrition and health as well as inter-personal, family and community relationships set within the context of social, economic and political environments. We do this with a view to enhancing community sustainability and resilience as well as family relationships and material culture.
We support programs that convert biomass, such as animal fat, crop seed oil and forest residues, for example, into high-value products like fuels, plastics and other products to make car parts, glue, building materials, ingredients for nutraceuticals and cosmetics, and more.
Research TEAMS
The specific areas of research reside within the faculty's four departments, as listed below.
Agricultural, Food & Nutritional Science
The department of AFNS research and teachings are related to the fields of Animal Science, Food Science and Bioresource, Human Nutrition and Plant Biosystems.
Human Ecology
The department of Human Ecology supports rigorous multidisciplinary research work related to the fields of Aging; Children, Youth & Families, Material Culture, and Textile and Apparel Science.
Research collection: Anne Lambert Clothing and Textiles Collection
Renewable Resources
The department of Renewable Resources research and teachings are related to the fields of Agriculture and the Environment, Conservation Biology, Environmental Soil Science, Forest Ecology and Management, and Reclamation and Restoration of Land and Water.
Research collections:
Resource Economics and Environmental Sociology
The department of REES research and teaching are related to the fields of Environmental and Resource Economics, Economics of Agriculture Food & Agribusiness, Environmental and Resource Sociology, and International Development.
Research Teams