Education

Ph.D (York University)
MA (York University)
Graduate Diploma in Development Studies (University of Geneva)
B.Sc. (University of Chile)

Research Interest

• Food System Sustainability, Food Security & Food Sovereignity,
• Sustainability Educatio, The ecology of knowledge & community of learners (participatory learning and research)
• Institutional Adaptations to Climate Change
• International comparative study of environmental conflicts and their impacts on organizational change towards social and ecological sustainability.
• Food security and sustainability of food systems
• Local environmental sustainability: interpretation of ecologically productive and sustainable local experiences in Latin America
• Environmental Sociology; Ecological Anthropology 

Previous research/study interest areas:

• Intercultural communications & the dynamics of cultural difference
• Sociology-Anthropology of knowledge
• Environmental politics and environmental movements
• Democratic theory and theory of the state
• Trans-cultural Psychiatry: Mental health and social adaptation of refugees, victims of torture and immigrants

Research Projects (1999-2010)

2010--2015: Principal Investigator. Think & Eat Green @ School SSHRCC CURA Project. A community-university collaborative project on food security and institutional adaptations to climate change in Vancouver Schools.

2004--2009: Co-Investigator. "Institutional Adaptations to Climate Change-Comparative Study of Dryland River Basin in Canada and Chile". SSHRCC Mayor Collaborative Research initiative. The project Principal Investigator is Dr. Harry Diaz from the University of Regina.  Dr. Alejandro Rojas is the Project Leader of the “Role of Institutions in the Resolution of Water Conflicts". The study includes 6 projects and 15 other co-investigators from Canada and Chile. 

2002--2009: Principal Investigator: "The UBC Food System Project”. The sustainability of the University of British Columbia ’s Food System. A community based research project involving the teaching team and students in AGSC 450, Land, Food & Community III in collaboration with the Office of Campus Sustainability at UBC and SEEDS.
Overview of Project (pdf)
AGSC 450, “Land, Food & Community III”. 2009 Course Syllabus

2000--2009: Principal Investigator. Security in the Communities of Vancouver: Food System Project in Vancouver Schools. This is a project involving our students in AGSC 250 "Land, Food and Community". It is ’ collaborative research projects in 23 communities of the City of Vancouver . This is an ongoing project begun in December 2000 in collaboration with food policy advocacy organizations in Vancouver and staff at City of Vancouver ’s Department of Social Planning . See details of the project
Overview of Project (pdf)
AGSC 250, “Land, Food and Community I”. 2008 Course Syllabus.

1999-2003: Principal Investigator: Faculty Research Grants, Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRCC): Title: "Environmental conflicts and organizational change towards ecological and social sustainability: a study of environmental conflicts in the Province of British Columbia, Canada and in Chile (see publications)

Participatory Action Research on Rural Community Water Conservation in Chile (ongoing) Within this 2004-2010 CIDA/AUCC Tier 2 Project between Canada and Chile entitled “Rural Community Water Conservation”, Training Designer and Trainer.

Sustainably Managing Environmental Health Risk in Ecuador (ongoing) This is a CIDA Tier 1 Program delivered in Ecuador, involving an international teaching team of the University of British Columbia, Universidad Estatal de Bolívar, Universidad de Técnica de Machala, and Universidad de Cuenca as well as scholars from Mexico and Cuba. Associate Faculty of the International Master's Degree in Public Health with an Ecosystems Approach and PhD Program in Public Health, Universidad Andina.http://www.cih.ubc.ca/EN/cihbased_projects/ubc_associates_and_teaching_faculty/

Teaching

Teaching in Graduate studies:

Graduate Advisor, Integrated Studies in Land and food Systems

Graduate Students: Currently supervising 5 PhD students and 2 MSc. Committee member: 4 PhDs and 2 Msc

Graduate courses

• LFS 500, Graduate Seminar, Integrated Studies Program in Land and Food Systems.
• LFS 501, Approaches to the Integration of Knowledge, Integrated Studies Program in Land and Food Systems
• LFS 502 (formerly AGSC 501), Participatory Research Methods Undergraduate courses

Undergraduate courses

• LFS 250 (formerly AGSC 250). Land , Food and community I. course outline
• LFS 450 (formerly AGSC 450). Land, food and Community III. AGSC 450, “Land, Food & Community III”. 2009 Course Syllabus

Refereed Publications (last 5 years)

[publications available for download are listed below]

a) Journals

1.     Rojas, A.  2010.  (In Spanish). Polycultures of the mind. Lessons from peasants and agroecology for education in sustainability. (Policultivos de la mente.  Ensenanzas del campesinado y de la agroecologia para le educacion en la sustentabilidad. Agroecologia, Vol. 4. University of Murcia, Spain

2.     Rojas, A & Sepulveda, C. 2010 .  (In Spanish) Adaptive management of environmental conflicts: reflections in the context of environmental reform in Chile. (Manejo adaptativo de conflictos ambientales y aprendizaje institucional: reflexiones a partir de la reforma ambiental en Chile). Ambiente &Desarrollo (Environment & Development), 25^th Aniversary Working Documemnts. No 61. Invited paper.15 pages.

3.     Sepulveda, C. & Rojas, A.  21010  (In Spanish) Environmental conflicts and environmental reform in Chile: A wasted opportunity for institutional learning on citizen participation. (Conflictos ambientales y reforma ambiental en Chile: una oportunidad desaprovechada de aprendizaje institucional sobre participación ciudadana).  Ambiente &Desarrollo (Environment & Development), 25^th Aniversary Working Documents No 62.  Invited paper. 15 pages.

4.     Rojas, A., Magzul, L., Marchildon, G., & Reyes, B. The Oldman River Dam Case Study: Conflict, Adaptation and Institutional Learning”. Prairie Forum. Vol. 34(1) pages 235-260. April 18, 2009.

5.     Yassi A, Dharamsi S, Spiegel J, Rojas A, Dean E, Woollard R. (2009). (Accepted for publication on August 2009). The good, the bad and the ugly of partnered research:  Revisiting the sequestration thesis and the role of universities in promoting social justice. 34 pages.  International Journal of Health Services.

6.     Rojas, A., Richer, L. & Wagner, J. 2007. An experiment in education for sustainability of food systems:  The Sustainability of the University of British Columbia’s Food System Project in Canada. EcoHealth, Volume 4, Number 1 / Pages 86-94, March, 2007

7.     Rojas, A., Richer, L. & Wagner, J. 2005. Education for Food Sustainability: A Project of the University of British Columbia. Ambiente y Desarrollo (Environment and Development). 21(3): 11-17 Santiago de Chile.

8.     Rojas, A. 2005. Utopia was to be ours. Anales de la Universidad de Chile (University of Chile Annals). 2005 Annual Issue, 17, December 2005, Vol. 6 :185-197

  b)  Refereed Book Chapters

1. Rojas, A., Magzul, L., Marchildon, G., & Reyes, B. 2009. The Oldman River Dam Case Study: Conflict, Adaptation and Institutional Learning”. In Marchildon, G. (Ed.). A Dry Oasis Institutional Adaptations to Climate on Canadain Plains. CPR Press, Regina. (This paper is the same listed No3 in Refereed Journals above)
2. *Rojas, A., Valley, W., Bomke, A. & Skura, B. (a) (in press). Environmental Ethics: Flower of Values – a tool to identify and map ethical values and their influence on sustainability research. In Harmon A.H., Odermann J., Wharton C., Sarjahani, A., French G., Roach, R., Rouder C., Webber, C.B., Tagtow, A.  eds (eds.), Teaching Food Systems and Sustainability in Nutrition and Dietetic Training: Lessons for Educators. Hunger and Environmental Nutrition (HEN) in collaboration with the American Dietetic Association Hunger and Environmental Dietetic Practice Group.  5 pages. Accepted on April 15, 2009.
3. Rojas, A., Valley, W., Bomke, A. & Skura, B. (b) (in press). Are we all seeing the same thing? Exploring variation in individual perceptions of the same event. In Harmon A.H., Odermann J., Wharton C., Sarjahani, A., French G., Roach, R., Rouder C., Webber, C.B., Tagtow, A.  eds (eds.), Teaching Food Systems and Sustainability in Nutrition and Dietetic Training: Lessons for Educators. Hunger and Environmental Nutrition (HEN) in collaboration with the American Dietetic Association Hunger and Environmental Dietetic Practice Group, as a service to dietetic educators. 5 pages. Accepted on March 31, 2009
4. Rojas, A., Valley, W., Bomke, A. & Skura, B. (c) (in press). Flashlights in a Forest – exploring paradigmatic boundaries. In Harmon A.H., Odermann J., Wharton C., Sarjahani, A., French G., Roach, R., Rouder C., Webber, C.B., Tagtow, A.  eds (eds.), Teaching Food Systems and Sustainability in Nutrition and Dietetic Training: Lessons for Educators. Hunger and Environmental Nutrition (HEN) in collaboration with the American Dietetic Association Hunger and Environmental Dietetic Practice Group. 6 pages. Accepted on March 31, 2009.
5. Rojas, A., Valley, W., Bomke, A. & Skura, B. (d) (in press). Barnga Game – developing intercultural awareness. In Harmon A.H., Odermann J., Wharton C., Sarjahani, A., French G., Roach, R., Rouder C., Webber, C.B., Tagtow, A.  eds (eds.), Teaching Food Systems and Sustainability in Nutrition and Dietetic Training: Lessons for Educators. Hunger and Environmental Nutrition (HEN) in collaboration with the American Dietetic Association Hunger and Environmental Dietetic Practice Group, as a service to dietetic educators. 6 pages. Accepted on March 31, 2009.
6. Rojas, A., Valley, W., Bomke, A. & Skura, B. (e) (in press). Community Food Security Assessment Project. In Harmon A.H., Odermann J., Wharton C., Sarjahani, A., French G., Roach, R., Rouder C., Webber, C.B., Tagtow, A.  eds (eds.), Teaching Food Systems and Sustainability in Nutrition and Dietetic Training: Lessons for Educators. Hunger and Environmental Nutrition (HEN) in collaboration with the American Dietetic Association Hunger and Environmental Dietetic Practice Group, as a service to dietetic educators. 8 pages. Accepted on March 31, 2009.
7. Rojas, A., Valley, W Association Hunger and Environmental Dietetic Practice Group, as a service to dietetic educators. 4 pages. Accepted on March 31, 2009.
8. Skura, B., Rojas, A., Valley, W., & Bomke, A. (in press). Sensory Evaluation of Fluid Milk Products and Milk Alternatives - exploring market values, consumer preferences and personal tastes. In Harmon A.H., Odermann J., Wharton C., Sarjahani, A., French G., Roach, R., Rouder C., Webber, C.B., Tagtow, A.  eds (eds.), Teaching Food Systems and Sustainability in Nutrition and Dietetic Training: Lessons for Educators. Hunger and Environmental Nutrition (HEN) in collaboration with the American Dietetic Association Hunger and Environmental Dietetic Practice Group, as a service to dietetic educators. 5 pages. Accepted on March 31, 2009

OTHER PUBLICATIONS
Books
Authored 

      Kubic, W. Rojas, A., Corkal, D,  Diaz, & Sauchyn, D.( eds), 2010. Small Rural Communities Adapting to Climate-induced Water Stress (provisional title).  This is a tri-lingual book (English, French and Spanish) currently under editorial review (but accepted for publication by CPRC) within the  CIDA/AUCC Tier 2 project.   It will be published in the Fall of 2010 by CPRC press.