THE CAMPAIGN FOR THE UNIVERSITY OF SASKATCHEWAN
WITH YOUR SUPPORT,
AGRICULTURE AND BIORESOURCES WILL CHANGE OUR WORLD
The College of Agriculture and Bioresources is committed to responsibly caring for the environment while finding solutions to meet the demands of a hungry and growing world.
Your support will help the College of Agriculture and Bioresources (AgBio) realize our full potential, and help us advance the responsible use of land, water and bioresources to provide products and services that enhance the quality of life for the people of Saskatchewan and around the world.
AGRICULTURE AND BIORESOURCES
THE WORLD NEEDS
With alumni, donors and community partners like you, we will impact our students and researchers, and Be What the World Needs.
LEAD CRITICAL RESEARCH
AgBio is the most research-intensive college at the University of Saskatchewan aiming to find solutions to humanity’s greatest challenges, like food security and climate change.
Our research is powered by partnership and rooted in the land itself. By investing in research, you are investing in a more sustainable future.
Featured Projects:
$3 MILLION GOAL
Digital agriculture has emerged as a critical frontier because of its potential to transform the efficiency, precision, and sustainability of our food production systems.
Modern field equipment, satellites, and drones can gather enormous amounts of information pertinent to crop production. The innovation comes from assimilating this data and converting it into practical guidance to optimize crop production.
Digital agriculture seeks ways to be much more targeted and efficient with land use decisions and crop inputs (fuel, fertilizer, and pesticides), which reduces costs to producers while abating incidental impacts on the environment.
Support our digital agriculture initiatives through:
- Investment in course development
- New scholarships
- Equipment funding
- Direct research support
If you are interested in donating to this project, please contact:
Hamish Tulloch
Director of Development, College of Agriculture and Bioresources
Tel: 306-966-8893
hamish.tulloch@usask.ca
$15 MILLION GOAL
As the pressures rise on the agriculture sector to do more with minimal detrimental impacts, so does the need to incorporate cutting edge agricultural technologies (AgriTech) into our academic programs. We envision three new hires in Soil, Plant and Business AgriTech.
This team hire approach will build-in collaboration across fields of academic expertise and encourage challenges to be tackled from multiple perspectives. The cluster will also augment our capacity to leverage campus-wide technological expertise in engineering and computer science, and beyond.
Chair in Soil AgriTech – specializing in soil applications of AgriTech, such as proximal and/or remote sensing, predictive soil mapping, and big data applications for quantifying carbon stock changes.
Chair in Plant AgriTech – specializing in digital agriculture as it relates to big data and genomics, integrating current pockets of expertise in genomics and phenomics using technology to advance crop breeding and agronomy.
Chair in AgriTech Business – agribusiness increasingly requires an advanced understanding of AgriTech to discern which technologies will make a real difference and which aren’t worth the investment. This position will be essential to fully assess new technologies and would also ensure our grads have the skills they need for future success in a world where advanced technologies and agriculture converge.
If you are interested in donating to this project, please contact:
Hamish Tulloch
Director of Development, College of Agriculture and Bioresources
Tel: 306-966-8893
hamish.tulloch@usask.ca
$15 MILLION GOAL
Crop research and variety development have been central research areas since the college’s early days. Furthermore, since the Crop Development Centre was established in 1972, more than 500 commercial crop varieties have been released. With changing climate, shifting disease and insect risks, and demands to produce higher yields with fewer inputs—the need for varietal improvement is growing exponentially.
At the same time, we are embarking on emerging areas of research such as our move into a new digital agriculture frontier, supporting the expansion of the provincial irrigated acreage, and the in-depth and long-term studies of soil health and sustainable production.
To support all of these areas of research, the college seeks to expand its research-land base.
Donors may support our land intensive research programs through the AgBio Land Development Fund.
If you are interested in donating to this project, please contact:
Hamish Tulloch
Director of Development, College of Agriculture and Bioresources
Tel: 306-966-8893
hamish.tulloch@usask.ca
SUPPORT INDIGENOUS ACHIEVEMENT
AgBio is committed to working with communities to provide training and support from the Kanawayihetaytan Askiy program, which includes certificate and diploma offerings, and through collaborative activities of the Kihci-Okâwîmâw Askiy Knowledge Centre, which serves as a portal for community engagement on all manner of issues related to land management.
Featured Projects:
$6 MILLION GOAL
The kihci-okâwîmâw askiy (Great Mother Earth) Knowledge Centre is founded on the principle that the land is our first teacher and of central importance to Indigenous peoples. The centre will serve as a resource for Indigenous communities and organizations seeking information, training, and research partnerships.
We endeavor to build an endowment to fund the centre’s core staffing requirements to enable the long-term planning, relationship development and programming that is essential for success.
If you are interested in donating to this project, please contact:
Hamish Tulloch
Director of Development, College of Agriculture and Bioresources
Tel: 306-966-8893
hamish.tulloch@usask.ca
$1 MILLION GOAL
Funds to help support students pursuing in the kanawayihetaytan askiy certificates and diplomas, as well as those interested in laddering into degree programs who may have additional costs associated with living away from home.
If you are interested in donating to this project, please contact:
Hamish Tulloch
Director of Development, College of Agriculture and Bioresources
Tel: 306-966-8893
hamish.tulloch@usask.ca
$1 MILLION GOAL
Engagement with our Indigenous stakeholders is critical to building understanding and trust as we embark on expanding our program offerings and critical new research partnerships.
This fund will support the numerous incidental expenses associated with this ground-breaking work. Smaller gifts will help cover costs of travel to engage with communities and to support the Elder-in-Residence program.
If you are interested in donating to this project, please contact:
Hamish Tulloch
Director of Development, College of Agriculture and Bioresources
Tel: 306-966-8893
hamish.tulloch@usask.ca
$1 MILLION GOAL
Through specialized scholarships and bursaries, we wish to encourage and support Indigenous students on their journey for an AgBio Education.
These may include scholarships for Indigenous students entering AgBio programs, targeted funds for students taking first year courses while still in high school, funds for program enhancement to assist students moving from high school to our Kanawayihetaytan Askiy certificate program as well as those carrying on to other AgBio degree programs.
We also endeavour to support Indigenous students in remote communities with online and course offerings at the Prince Albert USask campus.
If you are interested in donating to this project, please contact:
Hamish Tulloch
Director of Development, College of Agriculture and Bioresources
Tel: 306-966-8893
hamish.tulloch@usask.ca
DESIGN
VISIONARY SPACES
Crop research and variety development have been central research areas since the college’s inception. We are also embarking on emerging areas of research such as our move into a new digital agriculture frontier, supporting the expansion of the provincial irrigated acreage, and the in-depth and long-term studies of soil health and sustainable production.
To support these areas of research, the college is challenged to expand its research facilities.
Featured Projects:
$7 MILLION GOAL
Indoor plant growth environments allow breeding programs to accelerate the development of new crop varieties. However, the Crop Development Centre’s (CDC) breeding program needs have exceeded the college’s controlled-environment growth chamber capacity. This lack of capacity is a significant bottleneck to early-generation breeding selection thereby delaying further field-testing on promising lines – ultimately slowing the release of new varieties.
The CDC Enhanced Breeding Facility and field laboratory upgrade will provide a new foundation for expanded plant breeding research. Leveraging commitments from producer associations and industry partners, we are seeking to develop the new CDC Enhanced Breeding Facility and upgrade our existing crop research facilities with the support of additional donors.
Contributions to the CDC Enhanced Breeding Facility development plan will support the realization of this essential facility and ensure that western Canada’s largest plant-breeding centre continues its leadership in crop development research.
$2 MILLION GOAL
How we manage our land is critically important to the future of agriculture. With growing demands for production efficiency as well as pressures to manage greenhouse gas outputs and expand Saskatchewan’s irrigated acreage, the need for strong soils and crop production focused research programs has never been more pressing.
The Department of Soil Science field operations are currently supported by several disconnected and aging buildings used for soil and plant sample processing and handling, as well as for shop space and equipment storage. To meet the growing needs of our field research programs, the Department of Soil Science will upgrade the existing equipment storage and combine the disconnected sites in a single modern facility.
The new facility provides capacity for our emergent research needs in critical areas such as plant nutrition, soil health, ag-resilience to climate change, the adoption of expanded irrigated acreage, and sustainable crop production.
INSPIRE
STUDENTS
TO SUCCEED
To prepare our students to Be What the World Needs, scholarships and bursaries are more critical now than ever before. We need to increase student support so our brightest minds, regardless of financial means, can thrive as AgBio students and become the leaders, thinkers, entrepreneurs, and problem solvers of tomorrow.
Featured Projects:
$1 MILLION GOAL
Our current students, alumni and other industry participants are seeking opportunities to further enhance their credentials and expand their knowledge related to sustainable agriculture.
Our solution is to provide bite-size learning opportunities packed with the cutting-edge knowledge necessary to remain competitive in today’s career environment. This new format programming will enable students to earn micro-credentials while zeroing in on specific skills and subjects that are critically linked to sustainable production (such as digital agriculture and plant breeding).
An investment in our micro-credential initiatives could be directed to support the development of the micro-credential courses as well as the program delivery platform to establish a new School of Continuing Education.
If you are interested in donating to this project, please contact:
Hamish Tulloch
Director of Development, College of Agriculture and Bioresources
Tel: 306-966-8893
hamish.tulloch@usask.ca
$1 MILLION GOAL
Student awards have many benefits. Whether an award is to provide financial assistance or to recognize academic achievement, community volunteerism or some other extracurricular activity, the downstream effects are often unexpected and inspirational. One AgBio student with a permanent disability and chronic pain referred to her student bursary as a “lifeline.”
Graduate scholarships and bursaries
The contributions of our graduate students are extremely important for the work we do in the college. Building upon the research of our faculty members and their discoveries, our graduate students are conducting innovative research making them an invaluable asset to our research portfolio. Increased student support will attract top talent to the college and graduate student awards will enhance and support the academic goals of students pursuing a MSc, or PhD level programs.
Undergraduate scholarships and bursaries
Undergraduate bursaries and scholarships provide direct support to students by alleviating some of the financial barriers to funding an education. Undergraduate scholarships and bursaries help create a path to academic excellence, by providing students the opportunity to focus on their studies.
International student awards
Due to selective eligibility criteria, international students tend to be under supported from awards compared to their domestic counterparts. These students also pay higher tuition costs and often face additional financial burdens associated with maintaining connections to their home countries. Bringing international perspectives and alternative worldviews, they enhance the student experience for all and contribute to the fabric of the college in countless ways. Donors are encouraged to consider and support these essential members of our student family.
If you are interested in donating to any of these projects, please contact:
Hamish Tulloch
Director of Development, College of Agriculture and Bioresources
Tel: 306-966-8893
hamish.tulloch@usask.ca
$1 MILLION GOAL
Recognizing a growing need, the College of AgBio now offers a new paid parental leave program to support graduate students who become parents. Starting a family often coincides with registration in a graduate program and this new funding aims to ensure students’ academic pursuits are not derailed right from the start.
The parental leave program aims to ease the balancing act of caring for a new child while enrolled in a graduate program. Until now, while graduate students could be granted a parental leave from their program at USask, in most cases, stipends, scholarships or bursaries were not available to help cover fees and rising living expenses.
AgBio’s initiative supports those students whose funding has been discontinued while on an approved parental leave and, thus, allows families to experience all the benefits of parental leave.
If you are interested in donating to this project, please contact:
Hamish Tulloch
Director of Development, College of Agriculture and Bioresources
Tel: 306-966-8893
hamish.tulloch@usask.ca
$1 MILLION GOAL
The COVID-19 pandemic made us rethink our class delivery methods. While many students still prefer in-class learning, the pandemic has proven the need to invest in a more robust virtual campus.
As we emerge from the pandemic, student preferences strongly indicate online, and hybrid learning options are here to stay. To meet this need, we must invest in virtual infrastructure to increase the quality and selection of online courses. Building our virtual college allows us to expand our course offerings outside of our physical campus, making education more accessible to students in our province and beyond.
Serving the central and northern regions of the province, AgBio offers limited first-year classes at the Prince Albert USask campus, where students have access to the same high level of instruction and programing that we’re known for throughout Saskatchewan and beyond.
We understand that access to higher education can be challenging for many students due to family responsibilities, financial limitations, and other factors. To minimize these challenges, AgBio will invest in expanding course offerings beyond first-year classes. Increasing course capacity, the Prince Albert USask Campus will create opportunities for students experiencing accessibility challenges and will increase enrolment by non-traditional students.
If you are interested in donating to this project, please contact:
Hamish Tulloch
Director of Development, College of Agriculture and Bioresources
Tel: 306-966-8893
hamish.tulloch@usask.ca
“As a plant breeder, I love to see the results of my work out in farmers’ fields or in the grocery store. It is gratifying to know that the work we conduct at USask is feeding the world. Mentoring the next generation of scientists and food producers who will continue to advance this valuable work is undeniably what the world needs.”
Dr. Kirstin Bett (PhD'01)
Professor, Plant Sciences, College of Agriculture and Bioresources
Support the College of Agriculture and Bioresources
In our next chapter, we will transform Saskatchewan and the world by addressing those things you care most about: your world now and the world that generations will inherit.