As the world grapples with how to reduce its carbon footprint, it’s clear there’s no silver bullet solution for climate change. It will take a multifaceted approach to scale back fossil fuel usage and find more sustainable alternatives. Several UGA researchers are working on promising pathways like bioenergy and bioproducts, forms of renewable energy and materials that could curb carbon emissions.

Led by University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences faculty Julie Campbell and Jessica Holt, the Flowers and Photography study abroad program empowers students to see career opportunities beyond the classroom. “Our hope for this program is that students gain cultural experiences, practical skills and valuable knowledge that will help them better understand the value of horticulture to culture and society,” said Campbell.

A dozen 4-H’ers from around Georgia were the first explorers to experience Georgia 4-H’s newest summer program — Natural Resources Exploration Camp — and learn about wildlife, forestry, fisheries and other natural resources from University of Georgia faculty.

Established in 2017, the University of Georgia Food Product Innovation and Commercialization Center helps companies develop new food products and market those products through a robust network of experts both at the university and within the industry in food technology, engineering, food product development, sensory analysis, storage and shelf-life evaluation, consumer testing and marketing.

Madagascar is particularly vulnerable to climate change. To help Madagascan farmers adapt, the U.S. Agency for International Development has awarded the Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Peanut at University of Georgia an additional $2.5 million to work in partnership with the Global Collaboration on Sorghum and Millet at Kansas State University on a resilient rotation of peanut, sorghum and millet that will improve soil conditions, make farms more productive, feed people and protect the natural environment.  

Plant geneticist Edward Buckler will give insight into how quantitative genetics and genomics hold the potential for greater agricultural sustainability when he presents the keynote for this year’s D.W. Brooks Lecture. The annual event, which will recognize six University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences and UGA Cooperative Extension faculty, will be held in Mahler Hall at the UGA Center for Continuing Education and Hotel at 3:30 p.m. Nov. 16.

A team of researchers from the University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences is partnering with colleagues from Texas A&M University to find more effective production practices for organic onion growers in the Southern United States. Bhabesh Dutta, associate professor in the UGA Department of Plant Pathology is leading the team over the next four years through a recently funded $3.2 million grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture National Institute of Food and Agriculture.

Distinguished Research Professor Katrien Devos specializes in plant genetics, studying ways to optimize species like Panicum virgatum — commonly known as switchgrass — for use as feedstocks for biofuels. She is one of many UGA researchers affiliated with the Center for Bioenergy Innovation, based on Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee.

A new home for the University of Georgia’s next generation of poultry scientists and industry leaders officially opened its doors on Oct. 6 as the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences dedicated its new Poultry Science Building. “The University of Georgia is a land-grant institution that serves our entire state through teaching, research and service, and UGA’s strong relationship with the poultry industry exemplifies this land-grant mission,” President Jere W. Morehead said.