Interdisciplinary Systems Leadership: A Case Study of the Global Food Systems Leadership Secondary Major Program

Area of Science:

• Education
• Systems Science
• Agricultural Science

Background:

• Contemporary challenges necessitate adaptive leadership education.
• Existing leadership programs often focus narrowly on individual skills or single disciplines.
• A gap exists in leadership education for complex adaptive systems, particularly within global food systems.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore the Global Food Systems Leadership (GFSL) secondary major at Kansas State University.
• To examine the program's interdisciplinary framework for developing systems-focused leadership capacities.
• To assess the program's impact on preparing students for global food systems challenges.

Main Methods:

• Descriptive case study methodology.
• Examination of the program's philosophical and pedagogical foundations.
• Analysis of its interdisciplinary collaboration and impact on student development.

Main Results:

• The GFSL program fosters collective, systems-thinking oriented leadership education.
• It integrates diverse student backgrounds to promote collaboration, empathy, and systems change.
• The program cultivates individual leadership capacities and addresses global food systems issues.

Conclusions:

• GFSL offers a replicable model for collective and systems-based leadership education.
• The program expands the scholarship on leadership pedagogy.
• It provides actionable insights for educators seeking to drive institutional and community change.