A group of Kansas State University faculty members is working to improve food access across urban areas in Kansas. The 1-point-2-million-dollar project, “Development of Resilient Urban Food Systems That Ensure Food Security in the Face of Climate Change,” is funded through the university’s Game-Changing Research Initiation Program. K-State assistant professor of landscape architecture and regional and community planning, Shakil Kashem, says their key research objective is how to make plans and policies that can create more equitable and resilient cities and communities in Kansas. He says what really pulled him into food system research is the idea that access to healthy and affordable food plays a big role in how healthy and strong a community is. Shakil and Maria Binte Edrish, a member of his research team and a master's student in landscape architecture and regional and community planning, discuss their research into ways local government can address gaps in healthy food access through better zoning, public transportation and support for local food networks.

https://olathe.k-state.edu/research/urban-food/research/grip-award/

Sound Living is a weekly public affairs program addressing issues related to families and consumers. It is hosted by Jeff Wichman. Each episode shares the expertise of K-State specialists in fields such as child nutrition, food safety, adult development and aging, youth development, family resource management, physical fitness and more.

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K‑State Research and Extension is a short name for the Kansas State University Agricultural Experiment Station and Cooperative Extension Service, a program designed to generate and distribute useful knowledge for the well‑being of Kansans. Supported by county, state, federal and private funds, the program has county Extension offices, experiment fields, area Extension offices and regional research centers statewide. Its headquarters is on the K‑State campus in Manhattan.