Integrating Food and Energy Production on Farmland
Discover how farms can produce food and clean energy together
Course information
- DURATION
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2 weeks; 4 hours
- LOCATION
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100% online
- ACCREDITED BY
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EIT Food
What will you achieve? : By the end of the course you will be able to...
- Apply knowledge of renewable energy technologies to agricultural and farm systems..
- Appraise the relevance of agrivoltaic and biogas technologies in an arable farming system.
- Identify key benefits and unintended consequences of the technologies associated with the integration of food and energy production on farmland.
- Analyse information and data to support the integration of food and energy production and reflect on own situation / own farm
- Recognise the importance of achieving sustainability goals (environmental, social and economic) when integrating food and energy production.
Who is the course for? :
The course is designed for anyone  interested in learning more about integrating energy production on farms. It will be particularly useful for anyone in the primary production sector (e.g. farmers, farm advisors, farm associations and consultants), researchers, public administrators, policymakers and non-governmental organisations (NGOs).
It will also be of interest to those wishing to gain an overview of various ways of combining food and energy production and the opportunity to explore and evaluate which would be most effective in a variety of locations and farming situations. It will enable them to develop their critical thinking and communication skills around integrating food and energy production and the implications for the environment and society.
Structure & Modules : Short course developed by University of Reading
When would you like to start?
Start straight away and join a global classroom of learners. If the course hasn’t started yet you’ll see the future date listed below.
How does it work?
The course is available through FutureLearn, the teaching and learning methods are varied, you are self-directed and have flexibility about when to complete activities.
The course units are broken down into bite-sized learning chunks (‘steps’) with associated activities designed to maintain interest through a range of activities e.g. videos, articles, visual/graphical images, polls and quizzes.
You have the flexibility to complete the two hour per week requirement in a way that suits their preferred work/learning pattern.
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Week 1
Welcome to Integrating Food and Energy Production on Farmland
- Discover what you'll be learning over the next two weeks.
Why integration of food and energy production matters - Explore:
- technologies around agrivoltaics and biogas productionÂ
how these technologies can support sustainable agriculture and circular farming systems through the integration of food and renewable energy production
Review and reflect- Reflect on what you've learnt this week with a short quiz and summary article.
Week 2
Dive Deeper
- look in more depth at the environmental, financial and social implications of the technology
Consider the impact
- Discover how these technologies could impact on the farms and wider society
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Review and Reflect
- Check your understanding with our course assessment and find out how to continue your learning.
What's Included? :
University of Reading are offering everyone who joins this course a free digital upgrade, so that you can experience the full benefits of studying online for free. This means that you get:
- Unlimited access to this course
- Includes any articles, videos, peer reviews and quizzes
- Tests to validate your learning
- A PDF Certificate of Achievement to prove your success when you’re eligible
Course developed by :
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