Juan Santiago

Major: Political Science
Minor: Spanish
Faculty Advisor: Professor Mark Robson

Policy Presentation Theme: Sustainability, Health, Well-Being

Agriculture plays a vital role in its economy and quality of life of New Jersey. However, factors such as climate change and unsustainable farming policies and practices pose a substantial risk to its sustainability. If left unchecked, climate change will lead to changes in temperature and weather that could seriously affect New Jersey agricultural systems. Building on various sources, this paper creates an initial evaluation of sustainability in New Jersey agriculture and argues for its importance in dealing with climate change and its effects. In this context, sustainable agriculture is a system that can produce enough food and keep the land fertile and productive for generations to come. The results, however, indicate that there is insufficient data collected in order to determine just how sustainable New Jersey Agriculture is. Further research should evaluate how many farmers are aware of the resources available to them from the state, and a more extensive research project could assess a certain number of farms in a county for sustainable farming practices.