SCIENCE HEAD GETS 6-WEEK IMMERSION IN JAPANESE SYSTEM
MONEAGUE, St Ann; Dec. 17, 2024
Desmond Campbell’s work earned him a place as the only Jamaican (in the latest cohort) among 20 people from Africa, Asia, Europe and the Caribbean, invited to Japan for a six-week hands-on course on the food value chain.
Mr Campbell says this experience has opened his mind to many pathways of increasing sustainable food security and expanding community outreach from a vantage point of knowledge.
Desmond Campbell is Dean of the Faculty of Science & Technology and Director of Projects at The Moneague College, St Ann.
(Desmond Campbell in office)
Mr. Campbell joined the staff at The Moneague in 2006, after completing studies in the USA and a 14-year stint at York Castle High. He has been pushing natural science, in everything from physical and infrastructural development on campus to programmes including the Associate of Applied Science in Climate Smart Agro Processing. These initiatives have been made possible with local, international and administrative assistance and support.
(Among the graduates from the latest cohort, 4th left front row)
Principal of The Moneague Howard Isaacs said the institution encourages participation of its faculty in international programmes that help to strengthen its global outlook and deliverables. Mr Isaacs said the Japan experience of Mr Campbell continues the college’s collaboration with international agencies and institutions critical to the advancement of scholarship at The Moneague.
The six-week experiential programme in Japan was called ‘Promotion of Food Value Chain in Community Based Agri-businesses.’ Even with 38 years in education, and degrees up to the Masters level from Hamline University (and consortium) in Minnesota, Mr Campbell says he cherished the experience in Japan.
He praises Japan’s overseas cooperation programmes. He mentions how programmes by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) have helped Jamaica. These include the placement of a Japanese volunteer in 2015 at the St Ann Parish Council (now Municipal Corporation) and through which Moneague College gained some exposure and assistance for a milking project. That programme merged with other complimentary concepts funded by other agencies as well, will deliver a cheese-making project that expects to see production of the commodity next semester in 2025.
EFJ, FAO, Jamaica 4H, Hi-Pro and SAGE via Global Affairs Canada are some of the players. In 2022 SAGE via Colleges and Institutes Canada helped Moneague establish a food processing lab. That lab is key to the Agro Processing and short courses offered by the College.
COMMUNITY ORGANIZATION
Mr Campbell said the Japanese programmes, among other things, have demonstrated mastery of community organization and capacity building. Mr. Campbell was also impressed by the deliberate inclusion of their universities in the community and in the empowerment of Japanese society.
He said that confirmed his belief in “institutional outreach”. Mr Campbell said that that belief will be a part of his “action plan” developed for the Moneague College’s demonstration of inclusion in the food value chain.
At the same time, Mr Campbell will “seek to assist the Administration in rolling out more cohorts for short courses for more Jamaicans to have access to the programmes at hand.” These courses include Introduction to Agro-food processing, Food Safety & Management Practices and Greening of the Environment.”
(On campus at Moneague)
Mr Campbell said the six-week programme in Japan resulted in his increased confidence and a broadened outlook that should benefit the Moneague College and community. “My modus operandi and general perspective and outlook in education for sustainable development and food security initiatives have been ratified and strengthened,” he said.
He said members of the team of 20, of which he was a part, were exposed to lectures from all levels of the country’s governance and institutional domains.
Here is the link to see and hear Mr Campbell making the connection between Moneague and the Japan experience:
(Frankly Speaking YouTube Channel)
Mr Campbell said, “Some of these lecturers were brilliant and compelling.” He said personnel from Kochi University, including the President Dr. Hiroyuki Ukeda gave them new insights. Mr Campbell says he can now see greater possibilities of collaboration between The Moneague College and Japanese institutions and organizations, among others. The Moneague College, the community and Jamaica, he says, will be the beneficiaries.
Teacher becomes student practitioner getting his hands dirty. Watch:
