Academic freedom as it relates to university-based agricultural research
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Date
2018
Authors
McDougall, Darcy Owen
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Abstract
Investigation of academic freedom as praxis within university-based agriculture research is warranted as industry presence increases within academia. Two contrasting agriculture research paradigms viz., biotechnology and organic serve as the lens of the research. The overall goal is to better understand academic freedom and agriculture research through four objectives: 1) describe Canadian university agriculture research and its evolution; 2) explore the degree to which this evolution reflects concomitant changes in funding relationships with government and industry; 3) contrast supports and barriers faced by faculty members; and 4) how these changes might continue to evolve in the future. Convergent parallel mixed methods were utilized. Results indicate a funding bias towards biotechnology research, limited amounts of organic research, and that academic freedom may be under utilized. The implications of increased reliance on external funding for university research are benefits to private interests while concomitantly harming academic freedom and public good research.
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Keywords
Academic freedom, Agriculture, Biotechnology, Organic