A $5,000 award is up for grabs by University of Florida students willing to bridge the gap between their chosen discipline and one outside their wheelhouse.
Through Jan. 15, organizers of the inaugural Dr. E. T. and Vam C. York Art and Agriculture Competition are accepting proposals for innovative projects that showcase the collaborative power of science and art. The award will be applied to create a finished product. A faculty member will receive an additional $500 for serving as project mentor.
“Dissemination can be as challenging as discovery. Art can be a compelling way to share science with non-scientific audiences,” said Scott Angle, UF/IFAS senior vice president for agriculture and natural resources. “This contest was conceived to foster cross-campus collaborations seeking new ways to tell the story of science and how our work improves the world.”
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The competition organizers were inspired by a project completed by this year’s York Distinguished Lecturer Series speakers, conceptual visual artist Mel Chin and environmental remediation scientist Rufus Chaney. During the Sept. 19 event, the two men described “Revival Field,” a garden they built at Pig’s Eye Landfill, a superfund site in St. Paul, Minnesota. The garden’s geometric design features plants referred to as “hyperaccumulators” for their ability to extract heavy metals from the soil through a process called phytomining.
Both undergraduate and graduate students may participate in the UF competition. Teams may consist of up to three people and must include a student representative of either the College of Agricultural and Life Sciences or the College of the Arts. Judges will extend preference to teams featuring a representative from each college. They will select the winning proposal based on five criteria: innovation, achievability, scientific merit, artistic merit and overall inspiration for broader public engagement. The architects of the winning proposal must be able to complete their project by August.
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To connect with potential teammates and generate proposal ideas, students are encouraged to attend the Horticultural Sciences Teaching Farm Fall Festival Nov. 21 from 4 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. Representatives from various plant science-related programs will offer snacks and activities like digging for sweet potatoes and orange juice making at the farm, 1703 IFAS Research Drive.
“We created the festival as a joyful way for students to explore opportunities and careers in the agricultural and plant science spaces,” said Dina Liebowitz, plant science program director of the UF horticultural sciences department.
To learn more about the competition and to submit a proposal, students may visit the internal UF Microsoft Teams Channel, York Art & Agriculture Collaboration.
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