Each week, the Agroecology Scholars Program in Research and Extension (ASPIRE) interns are visiting farms, research centers, and facilities in North Carolina to learn more about food and agriculture in our state.
On June 11th, the group visited the northeastern part of the state to see how local agriculture and economic development can work together.
The interns met Jeff and Lisa Bender, one of the suppliers to Working Landscapes. Working Landscapes is a nonprofit based in Warren County that aims to promote economic development in their community centered on local food. The ASPIRE interns toured Working Landscapes’ new facility that is under construction where Executive Director Carla Norwood described how local food can be an engine for economic growth, healthier eating, resiliency, and education.
The last stop of the day was Meadow Lane Farm, a woman-owned Century Farm raising beef cattle since 1911. Owner Martha Mobley is a passionate farmer, and she brings together women farmers across the state to shape a promising future for North Carolina agriculture.
On June 25th, the ASPIRE interns visited the NC State Agroecology Education Farm to learn about tech in agriculture through a series of demonstrations by the Precision Sustainable Agriculture team led by Dr. Chris Reberg-Horton, Assistant Director of Collaborative Research at CEFS.
Researcher Paula Ramos presented the students with ways to embed new technology systems to collect large data sets using automation, machine learning, and robotics. Esleyther Henriquez described how water sensors are being used by a team of researchers as part of a cover crop study taking place on research stations and farms across the Southeast. Researcher Artem Minim introduced the StressCam, a small computer that runs a machine learning algorithm to analyze photos of crops in real time and assess the stress level of the plants. The students then had the opportunity to install a StressCam in the pollinator garden at the Agroecology Education Farm.
The ASPIRE interns and the Supply Chain Interns with the Farm to Senior Services Initiative toured CEFS’ Field Research, Education, and Outreach Facility located at Cherry Research Farm in Goldsboro, NC on July 9th. At the farm, they learned about the long history of field research conducted at CEFS and the most current research projects ongoing at the farm.
These field trips are part of many educational activities designed for the interns. The students are integrating their research-focused internships with these unique learning opportunities that will provide them with a holistic understanding of what agricultural research means in the lab, on the field, and through the local food supply chain that brings fresh produce and healthy meats to millions of consumers in North Carolina and abroad.
