The College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences is the recipient of a research award from California 100, an ambitious statewide initiative to envision and shape the long-term success of the state that is also working with 18 research centers and institutes across California. Cal Poly is the only Cal State University participating in the initiative. Cal Poly’s research will be led by Anastasia Telesetsky, a professor in Cal Poly’s Natural Resources Management and Environmental Sciences and Catherine Kleier, associate dean in the College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences. They will focus on the role that agriculture and food systems will play in California’s next century.

California, the nation’s largest producer of food, will face tremendous challenges in the years to come ranging from wildfire to drought,” said Telesetsky. “We will explore the past, present, and future of California’s food systems and consider potential future scenarios for California’s food production systems. This award is a wonderful opportunity to be part of the California 100 Initiative and to begin to chart a path forward for California’s next century as a leader in food systems.