Note from Dean Buhr — Impact: Fall 2022
October 6, 2022
Fall semester has started strong, and it has been joyful and energizing to welcome new and returning students to CFANS for another great academic year. Our CFANS mission is to inspire minds, nourish people, and enhance the natural environment — and our students form its very core.
As I look out my office window across the green of our lovely St. Paul campus in autumn, I see many of our 1,790 undergraduates (which includes 370+ first-year and 190+ transfer students) who are our future, eagerly and earnestly making their way to educational experiences that will ultimately change the world. In addition, 131 of our 584 graduate students joined CFANS this fall. What a privilege and honor it is to instruct and inspire this next generation of leaders, which your generous support makes possible.
In this issue of Impact, you’ll learn about undergraduate students from diverse backgrounds who held research positions with CFANS this summer through a program that aims to close the agricultural career gap for youth from underrepresented groups. You’ll also meet alumni Esakakondo “Al” Lohese, who is using his PhD in land and atmospheric science to restore the soil in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, his home country.
We also share the results of a CFANS Insights consumer pulse survey in which Americans express their thoughts about protein consumption today and into the future. This is part of a regular series of consumer surveys we’re conducting on a variety of topics that explore key perceptions and opinions about important topics in food, agriculture, and natural resources.
I hope you’ll enjoy reading these stories that represent just a fraction of the dynamic science, research, and learning going on at CFANS. You can always find more great content at cfans.umn.edu.
Thank you, as always, for being such a meaningful part of our CFANS community, and have a great fall season.
Sincerely,
Brian Buhr
Dean, College of Food, Agricultural and Natural Resource Sciences
