The Center for Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems (CASFS) will get a new name, logo, and look and feel through a rebranding project that affirms the center’s commitment to advancing agroecology and equitable food systems.
CASFS will become the UC Santa Cruz Center for Agroecology, and future communications about the center’s work will soon begin to reflect this change. The rebranding development took place with input from a 2021 survey of stakeholders. The changes are intended to help reach new audiences as part of the center’s vision to create an equitable food system that empowers local communities, builds relationships, and nourishes all people and the environment.
“This will be a thrilling aesthetic change for us, one that was determined by deeply respecting our history, evaluating our current work, and allowing ourselves to dream big about our future,” said Stacy Philpott, director of the Center for Agroecology.
The Center for Agroecology will celebrate its 55th anniversary next year, and it remains focused on experiential education, participatory research, agricultural extension, and public service. The center manages what may be the oldest university-based organic farm in the country and supports an agroecology major, as well as an Apprenticeship in Ecological Horticulture that has trained more than 1,500 emerging leaders.
Rooted in the Social Sciences Division, the Center for Agroecology brings a social justice perspective to envision an equitable future for food systems. Food access remains a core pillar of the center’s work. Campus-grown produce supports the student Basic Needs program, a Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program, and community produce stands.
The center also provides free organic farming guides to support the needs of farmers and has a long history of conducting and collaborating on groundbreaking research in areas like pest and pathogen management, soil health, and no-till farming strategies.
