Growing Biodiverse Culture Impact Outcomes

Growing Biodiverse Cultures

Students in the Growing BioDiverse Cultures Lab partnered with faculty Juliann Vitullo , an Associate Professor in the School of International Letters and Cultures, and Maria Cruz-Torres , a Professor in the School of Transborder Studies. The instruction team additionally included librarian Mimmo Bonanni and Mathew Toro from the geospatial hub. Together, the student-faculty-librarian team explored how agrobiodiversity, cultural foodways, and land-based histories shape community well-being across Arizona and globally. Through collaborative research and hands-on engagement with Indigenous food leaders and local communities, students examined historical forces such as environmental racism, zoning, and food access, while also gathering personal food narratives from peers. Thanks to a partnership with the Cultivating Civic Virtues Through Action initiative and ASU Farms, students in this lab practiced and reflected on civic and environmental virtues such as openness to new perspectives and cooperation as they developed collaborative inquiry-based projects that encourage the cultivation of biodiverse cultures. This work culminated in impactful outcomes, including a community recipe book, instructional cooking guides, and GIS-based analyses that highlighted the connections between culture, land, and food security. These projects sparked meaningful conversations about how biodiverse and culturally rooted food systems can support more equitable and sustainable futures.

Student Outcomes

ASU Community Recipe Book

Students created an ASU Community Recipe Book in collaboration with Professor Cruz-Torres, Professor Vitullo, and Maya Dailey to highlight the cultural significance of food across the university community. Through a campus-wide survey and storytelling process, students gathered recipes and personal narratives from peers, staff, faculty, and alumni that reflected diverse cultural histories and agricultural traditions. The book paired each dish with reflections on identity, migration, and family memory, and included resources addressing student food insecurity such as local food banks and guidance on accessing SNAP benefits. This outcome not only celebrated culinary diversity but also raised awareness of food access challenges, fostering a deeper understanding of how food connects culture, community, and well-being at ASU. View the outcome at this link.

Revitalizing Indigenous Foodways Through a Hands-On Cooking Experience

Students collaborated with Indigenous food leaders to design a hands-on cooking guide highlighting O’odham and Piipaash culinary traditions. Working with Chef Shannon Reina and Chef Amber Sampson, the student team documented recipes rooted in ancestral ingredients such as White Sonora Wheat, tepary beans, and chile. Through preparing these dishes and learning about their cultural significance, students explored how Indigenous food systems support community health, biodiversity, and sustainable agriculture. The final guide included step-by-step recipes, ingredient histories, and reflections on the ties between food, culture, and land stewardship. This outcome provided a tangible way for readers to engage with Indigenous knowledge and recognize the importance of cultural food practices in sustaining resilient food systems. View the outcome at this link.

Indigenous Chef Event

As part of the Revitalizing Indigenous Foodways project, students worked alongside Indigenous chefs and food leaders to learn directly from O’odham and Piipaash culinary traditions. The hands-on cooking event moved the project beyond research and documentation, creating a shared space for cooking, conversation, and reflection on Indigenous food systems, cultural knowledge, and community well-being. Learn more about this collaboration here.

Youth-Led Initiatives to Urban Food Sovereignty

In partnership with EMPWR Arizona, this student team examined how youth-led cooking workshops rooted in Indigenous food traditions shape families’ understanding of healthy eating and cultural foodways. Students created surveys, collected testimonials from parents, youth volunteers, and instructors, and analyzed shared experiences to help EMPWR measure the impact of their programs. They also designed a family-friendly resource booklet featuring Indigenous recipes, food stories, nutrition tips, and interactive activities to support learning beyond the workshops. Grounded in reciprocity and Indigenous knowledge, this outcome strengthens EMPWR’s ability to document program success, apply for future funding, and continue empowering Native youth and families across urban Arizona. View the Outcomes at this link.

Story Maps

These Story Maps bring together research, mapping, and storytelling to explore how food, land, and community are deeply connected. Through interactive narratives, students examine real places and lived experiences, from sustainable and Indigenous farming practices to urban agriculture and post-disaster recovery. By combining maps with images, text, and local histories, the projects invite viewers to see how environmental systems shape everyday life and how communities respond with resilience, care, and resistance.

Urban Agriculture: Resilience and Recovery in South Phoenix by Mariana Abasta and Olivia Elmore in partnership with TigerMountain Foundation and Community Labs

Changing Current Systems by Gabby Giustizia, Riya Dudhat, and Viviane Carroll

Mapping Resistance by Van Carmichael, Barbara Valenzuela Herrera, Tyler Hammerskmark, Isabella Horton, and Thomas Lobato

Student Pop Up Showcase Event

Students shared their lab outcomes during a pop-up showcase with faculty, peers, and community partners. The event created an open space for conversation, reflection, and exchange, where students presented their research, creative work, and community collaborations in an interactive format. Through informal discussions and storytelling, visitors engaged with projects exploring food, culture, identity, and community well-being. Students reflected on their research processes, design choices, and the real-world impact of their work while receiving thoughtful feedback from a diverse audience.

Puerto Rico GIE

As part of the Global Intensive Experience (GIE): Growing Biodiverse Cultures, a group of Humanities Lab students traveled to Puerto Rico to explore urban and rural food cultures through hands-on, place-based learning. Integrated with the Humanities Lab course Growing Biodiverse Cultures, the experience included fieldwork, site visits, and collaborations with farmers, fishers, and community organizations, allowing students to examine biodiversity, sustainability, and biocultural heritage in real-world contexts.

My participation in the lab has shaped my professional path by showing me the importance of genuine relationships in any kind of work. Whether I continue into law school or graduate programs, I now have experience building trust and ethical procedures with collaborators and community members.
Sophia Wood, Growing BioDiverse Cultures, Humanities Lab student

This Lab has inspired me to think deeply about not just what we teach and learn, but how we teach and learn. Knowledge comes in many forms and in this Lab, I learned that in order to make a meaningful impact in sustainability, I must show humility, find creative ways to educate people, and foster and build trusting relationships within my community.
Lenny Pearce, Growing BioDiverse Cultures, Humanities Lab

In class, we got to learn about the agroecological farming movement in Puerto Rico, which really grew in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria. I had never learned much about the island before this class, so this experience was very eye-opening
Audrey Bunnell, Growing BioDiverse Cultures, Humanities Lab