Biotechnology and the Challenge of Sustainable Agriculture

This course is offered to second-year Life Sciences students who wish to explore or gain a deeper understanding of how biotechnology can help address current and future challenges related to the sustainable production of agricultural and agri-food resources.

Humans use the properties of photosynthetic organisms and microorganisms to obtain and transform a wide range of resources and services: food for humans and livestock, therapeutic molecules, construction materials, and more. This use depends on natural conditions, and its overall impact is likely to affect the environment in turn—for example, through the extraction or degradation of limited and/or non-renewable resources (water, soil, etc.). Therefore, to ensure that this production of resources is sustainable, its organization (the concept of agronomy) must incorporate an understanding of these impacts and be based on knowledge of the properties of plants and microorganisms to address these challenges. The development and use of new biotechnologies in the fields of applied genetics and plant physiology, the use of microorganisms, and the beneficial or harmful interactions between these microorganisms and plants play a major role in these sustainable agronomy strategies.

- to broaden general knowledge about the major challenges currently facing agricultural and agri-food production

- acquire a basic understanding of the subject matter in the fields of plant biotechnology and microorganisms, their applications in the areas of the efficiency and sustainability of “plant,” “microorganism,” and “plant-microorganism” production systems, and the quality and traceability of products.

- strengthen the ability to analyze and synthesize documents on the topic of challenges in plant and microbial production and biotechnology

- develop reasoning skills that enable students to propose well-reasoned biotechnological solutions to identified challenges

EU-targeted competencies:

- Understand the major challenges currently facing agricultural and agri-food production, particularly with regard to production systems involving “plants,” “microorganisms,” and “plants and microorganisms”

- understand the plant and microbial biotechnology tools and approaches that contribute to addressing these challenges

- apply this knowledge and analytical skills to identify, based on source materials, the specific issues relevant to a case study

- draw on this knowledge and analytical skills to propose, based on source materials, well-reasoned biotechnology strategies that could help address these issues

- carry out this work in an organized manner, either individually or in a group

- present the summary of this work in writing in a clear and well-reasoned manner

Fundamentals of Plant Physiology and Microbiology (high school and first year of a bachelor’s degree in “life sciences”)