Covers production, distribution and consumption of food in the context of social, cultural, technological and biological processes under conditions of globalization. Employing approaches from the humanities and the social sciences, this course prepares students to initiate the process of analyzing the current American food system, its global connections, and proposed local alternatives that is developed further in other courses. Through lectures, readings and research the students master established facts and concepts about contemporary urban food cultures and produce new knowledge of the same.