Blog Archives

2/23/2018

UMass Dining Sustainability is Hiring!

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We are excited to announce that the UMass Amherst Permaculture Initiative is seeking a highly passionate, thoughtful and skilled individual who embodies holistic sustainability and shows a demonstrated commitment to social justice to fill the Sustainability Coordinator of Campus Gardens position. If you are experienced in regenerative agriculture, enjoy working with diverse groups, and are passionate about facilitating transformational learning, apply today!

This full-time, benefited position serves as a key role in the UMass Amherst Auxiliary Sustainability Department, whose mission is to work collaboratively with diverse stakeholders to increase the sustainability of our campus food services' facilities and operations. We leverage resources, visibility, and leadership to propel the campus sustainability movement at UMass and beyond.

UMass Dining Sustainability Staff educating students about food preservation.

The Position: The Sustainability Coordinator of Campus Gardens will oversee the educational programming, community outreach, care and operation of current gardens, and development of new gardens when space is available for the UMass Amherst Permaculture Initiative. In doing so, the Sustainability Coordinator of Campus Gardens provides students, faculty, staff and community members with unique opportunities to make meaningful connections to their food, the earth, and each other. The ideal candidate for this exciting and challenging position would possess extensive knowledge and experience in both production and regenerative agriculture, excellent problem solving skills, and the ability to develop successful programming in an academic setting.

Xochi Salazar, former Sustainability Coordinator of Campus Gardens, gives a garden tour.

Duties and Responsibilities include:

Oversees and coordinates care and operation of campus permaculture gardens. Develops and implements new permaculture gardens.
Teaches a two-session, one credit, hands on course (STOCKSCH 198P) in which students learn about permaculture basics while maintaining on-campus gardens in both the Fall & Spring Semesters.
Supervises Departmental Assistants, student employees, and interns.
Performs planning, community outreach, and program development for the UMass Permaculture Initiative.
Performs marketing, communications, and public relations of the UMass Permaculture Initiative including web design, social media, posters/flyers, press releases, newsletters, brochures, etc.
Supervises the weekly, seasonal UMass Student Farmers Market.
Coordinates with faculty on interdepartmental research efforts in campus permaculture gardens.
Conducts presentations and tours.
Devises and organizes educational workshops and events.
Holds open forums where students, faculty and staff may present ideas, comments or questions about environmental sustainability at the University of Massachusetts Amherst.
Acts as a consultant to other universities and institutions by responding to inquiries regarding permaculture, garden design and sustainability.
Collects and analyzes garden data.
Coordinates and distributes garden produce to residential and retail dining operations.
Collaborates with university chefs (Chef de Cuisine) on sustainable menu development and best uses for garden produce.
Performs other Auxiliary Services sustainability duties as assigned

UMass permaculture students planting garlic in Franklin garden.

An abundant harvest from all five permaculture gardens.

Requirements:

Knowledge of sustainability issues, regenerative agriculture, and best practices.
Ability to develop and execute new programs within an academic setting.
Problem solving skills.
Excellent oral and written communication skills
Skill in application of the principles and practices of effective supervision
Excellent team-building, relationship-building, and networking skills
Ability to build and sustain excellent working relationships.
Ability to lift 25 lbs.
Permaculture Design Certificate preferred

Ideal start date is April 2018. Position is open until filled.

Apply online here! For more information, please contact info@umasspermaculture.com.

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2/21/2018

Farmer of the Week: Swaz Potato Farms

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Swaz Potoates rolling down the conveyer belt after being washed and sorted.

Swaz Potato Farms was founded in 1910 by John Rupert Szawlowski and grows 3,000 acres of White, Red, Yukon Gold, and Russet potatoes in the Connecticut River Valley. The Szawlowski family business is based in Hatfield, MA and has been in operation for over 100 years. They are now one of the largest potato farms in New England. The provide potatoes to UMass Dining and many other businesses, including grocery stores and restaurants across the region.

Totes of potatoes in their coolers waiting to be packaged.

Potatoes being bagged for market in Hatfield.

At Swaz Potato Farms, they harvest their crops until late November but operate throughout the winter by storing, packing, and distributing potatoes grown on 2,000 acres by farmers across the country. This enables them to run a full-time farm in New England and to provide a variety of products for their customers 365 days a year. During their peak season in August, they harvest 500,000 pounds of potatoes every day and package 80 bags a minute at their facility.

Swaz Potato Farms is currently owned by brothers Frank, Chet, and Stanley Szawlowski. Frank Szawlowski, pictured to the right, shared that potato farming is all he has ever known since he was a little boy. He grew up "eating dirt" and using the farm as his playground. He has worked on the farm his whole life and believes that the independence and freedom that comes with the job makes all of the hard work well worth it.

As active members in the community, Swaz Potato Farms donates over 100,000 pounds of potatoes to the Food Bank of Western Massachusetts every year. They also offer seconds, or imperfect produce, to the Food Bank and other organizations at a discounted price. This allow their business to make money off of products that they would otherwise be throwing away and helps them decrease the amount of food waste they are producing.

Frank Szawlowski of Swaz Potato Farms.

Additionally, the Food Bank of Western MA works hard to increase food security in the Pioneer Valley by supplying local community meal programs with fresh, nutritious food.

Frank and Diane Szawlowski (pictured on the right) sharing their farming and business experiences from over the years.

Thank you so much to Frank and Diane Szawlowski for working with UMass Dining and for supporting our local campus food system. All of your hard work is very impressive.

To learn more about Swaz Potato Farms, visit their website.

Photo Credit: Keith Toffling

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2/6/2018

Welcome to the Team

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Chris Young is currently the Sustainable Food Systems Purchasing Coordinator for UMass Dining. In this role, he is responsible for handling the data and metrics reports for all of the local food purchases that are made. UMass currently sources products and ingredients from over 100 small farms and businesses, many of which are located under 20 miles from campus.

Before working with UMass Dining, Chris was an outreach coordinator for the Center for Multicultural Advancement and Student Success. He also served as the student advisor for the “Men of Color United” student group on campus as a part of the Vice Chancellor’s Diversity Board.

Chris notes that the most rewarding aspect of his current job with UMass Dining Sustainability is “seeing how much students, as well as myself, learn about eating healthy, local, and sustainable food.” While the University is constantly working toward expanding its local food purchasing and has pledged to participate in the Real Food Challenge, Chris hopes to see UMass Dining not only meet but exceed its current goal of purchasing 20% local “real” food by the year 2020.

Due to its immense purchasing power and the size of its student body, the University of Massachusetts has an incredible opportunity to continue to set the bar higher in terms of environmental sustainability. When asked why he is passionate about food in particular, Chris explains, “I believe a crucial step towards a sustainable economy is through our food system, the impact alone speaks for itself.”

Phoebe Gelbard is a sophomore International Development major with minors in Natural Resources Conservation and Education. She is from Williamsburg, Massachusetts and has grown up in the Pioneer Valley for all twenty years of her life.

She is passionate about the plants and animals with which we share our home, and she spends her summers teaching elementary and middle school students about the geology and bio-cultural history of the forests, fields, and rivers of Western MA.

Phoebe is particularly interested in social justice, alternative economic systems, and environmental sustainability – and how we can bridge the gaps that exist between these three concepts. After all, as writer, farmer, and activist Wendell Berry reminds us, “The Earth is what we all have in common.” In the future, Phoebe hopes to work internationally as an environmental policy advocate and community-based food sustainability educator.

In Phoebe’s spare time, she loves to cook, spend time outdoors, and play the guitar, ukulele, and piano. On campus, she is a leader for both the UMass Outing Club and Food Recovery Network, and as part of her involvement in the International Scholars Program, Phoebe will be studying abroad in Chiang Mai, Thailand, next fall.

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SUSTAINABILITY BLOG

UMass Dining Sustainability is Hiring!

Farmer of the Week: Swaz Potato Farms

Welcome to the Team

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