Food and Society

How to Participate

This site is a shared, public space for Food and Society. Participation here is media-forward, short, and exploratory—closer to a social media feed than a discussion board.

Each week, students contribute a brief post connected to course topics and class discussion.

Quick Checklist

Before you publish your posts, double check:

  • You are logged into CUNY Academic Commons
  • You have been added to the Food and Society course group
  • There is a title at the top of your post
  • A media embed or image appears directly below the title
  • You have one short paragraph explaining why the media matters
  • Your post ends with one critical question
  • You selected the correct course unit/category
  • You clicked Publish

What to Post Each Week*

*Except where noted on syllabus

Each post has three parts:

  1. Start with media
    A video, image, news article, or other public media connected to the week’s topic. Posts should always begin with a media embed or image
  2. Add a short paragraph
    A few sentences explaining what the media shows and why it matters sociologically. Focus on relevance, not summary.
  3. End with a question
    Ask one critical question designed to invite discussion.

Posts should be readable on a phone and written for a public audience.

How This Site Works

  • Posts appear in a shared stream, organized by course unit
  • You can comment on and respond to other posts
  • Over time, the site becomes a collective archive of course themes, media, and questions

This is social media—not formal academic writing. Think of posts as starting points for discussion, not finished arguments.

How to Post

1. Sign In

If you do not yet have a Commons account, you will be prompted to create one (see video below).

All enrolled students will be added to the Food and Society course group

2. Create a New Post
  • From the site menu, click + New
  • Select Post

This opens the post editor.

3. Add a Title (Required)

Enter a title at the top of the post.

Posts without titles cannot be opened, commented on, or graded.

4. Start with Media (Required)

Posts should always begin with a media embed or image.

To add a video:

  • Click ➕ Add block
  • Select Embed
  • Paste the video or article link
    (YouTube and TikTok work best)
  • Click Embed

To add an image (to accompany an article or other non-embedded media):

  • Click ➕ Add block
  • Select Image
  • Upload an image or provide a link to an image
5. Add Your Text

After the media:

  • Write one short paragraph explaining what the media shows and why it matters sociologically
  • End with one critical question to invite discussion
6. Important!
  • Remember: this is a public site.
  • ❌ Do not paste links as plain text. Long URLs inside paragraphs can break the site layout, especially on mobile
  • Always use Embed, an image, or linked text
7. Publish
  • Check that your title and media are visible
  • Click Publish

Help