Friedland named Distinguished Rural Sociologist

William H. Friedland, professor emeritus of community studies and sociology at UC Santa Cruz, had been named Distinguished Rural Sociologist by the Rural Sociological Society.

The honor was bestowed at the society's 2012 awards ceremony in Chicago, its 75th.

Friedland was lauded for his role as mentor and inspiration to many rural sociologists who study the social impacts of changing structures of agriculture. Friedland joined UCSC in 1969 as founding chair of the community studies program. He retired from teaching in 1991 but has continued his work as a research professor. 

Separately, the "Symposium on Agrifood Alternative Movements," a plenary session at the 13th World Congress of Rural Sociology in Lisbon, Portugal, was designated "Homage to Bill Friedland." The dedication is rarely given and was awarded Friedland in honor of  his many years of research on alternative agrifood movements.

The World Congress included a mini-conference Friedland organized titled "Convergence: Are Alternative Agrifood Movements and Other Developments Shaping
as the Movement of Our Time?"