With a $406,874 United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) grant, University of Hawaiʻi–West Oʻahu’s Albie Miles will measure the rate of food insecurity in the student population across the UH System and expand the outreach and education capacity of UH West Oʻahu’s sustainable community food systems program.
The research project was highlighted by UH President David Lassner in a September 20 presentation to the UH Board of Regents. “When we talk about food security for students, we’re not talking about whether or not we have food for a month in the islands in the case of a hurricane, but rather our hungry students,” said Lassner.
Lassner said the work will help the UH System get a better grasp on the scope of the problem and then look at solutions, whether it be food pantries, working with community organizations, or integrating other kinds of aid that may be available to students.
The grant will allow Miles, an assistant professor of sustainable community food systems, to hire additional program staff, develop curriculum, teach new courses and provide outreach to Native Hawaiian and other students interested in traditional ecological knowledge and the influence of the food system on diet, public health, economics, sustainability and resilience.
For more about the grant, go to E Kamakani Hou.
—By Greg Wiles
