GRIFFIN, Georgia – Doug Constance, Chair of the Southern Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SSARE) Administrative Council and a rural sociologist at Sam Houston State University, has been selected to receive the 2020 Agriculture, Food and Human Values Society (AFHVS) Richard P. Haynes Lifetime Achievement Award in Sustainable Agriculture.
According to the AFHVS website, the award honors “persons who in their careers have made outstanding contributions towards realizing the goals of the AFHVS through research, teaching, extension, public service or public policy.”
Constance was nominated by his colleagues for a myriad of contributions and accomplishments, including his dedicated service to food and agriculture organizations; his extensive knowledge of food issues; his long service record of mentoring undergraduate students and young academics; his influential research publications; and his recruitment and collaboration of faculty on sustainability and governance in agriculture and food.
Constance holds a BS in Forest Management, MS in Community Development, and PhD in Rural Sociology. His research focuses on community impacts of the industrialization and globalization of the agrifood system, as well as alternative food systems as they relate to sustainability issues and climate change.
Constance also serves as the Quality of Life representative on Southern SARE’s Administrative Council, the governing board of the program. “Much of the success of the Southern SARE program over the last 15 years has been due to Doug’s leadership, commitment and vision of a sustainable, ethical agriculture,” said Jeff Jordan, Southern SARE Director.
Constance said that receiving the award is a capstone acknowledgement of his lifelong work in sustainable agriculture, which began in the 1980s reviewing SARE grants. “I have served a long and satisfying role as the Quality of Life representative with Southern SARE, where we work to change from a “food to nowhere” system to a “food to somewhere” system,” he said. “My Grandad Robb and Uncle Bob shaped my views of sustainable agriculture. I would like to dedicate this award to their lasting memory and influence on me.”
Constance will accept the award in June during the AFHVS virtual annual meeting.
Published by the Southern Region of the Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) program. Funded by the USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA), Southern SARE operates under cooperative agreements with the University of Georgia, Fort Valley State University, and the Kerr Center for Sustainable Agriculture to offer competitive grants to advance sustainable agriculture in America's Southern region. This material is based upon work that is supported by the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, U.S. Department of Agriculture, through Southern Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education. USDA is an equal opportunity employer and service provider. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the view of the U.S. Department of Agriculture.