Innovative and Strategic Program Initiatives for Research and Education-North Dakota (INSPIRE-ND)

非技术描述北达科他州研究和教育创新和战略计划倡议(INSPIRE-ND)将通过在区域气候和可持续材料科学方面的前沿研究，为北达科他州的农业、能源和先进制造业经济做出贡献。该项目将为这些行业建立和多样化科学、技术、工程和数学(STEM)劳动力，加强科学计算基础设施，并促进创新和研究。这项研究由区域气候研究中心(CRCS)和可持续材料科学中心(CSMS)组织，将研究农业生产力和适应气候变化，并开发以聚合物和复合材料为基础的创新植物材料及相关技术，造福社会。INSPIRE-ND是北达科他州州立大学、北达科他州大学和五所部落学院之间的合作伙伴关系，主要与本科院校、社区学院以及州立农业和制造业合作伙伴合作。合作研究中心将研究区域气候、水文过程、作物生产和农民自主适应之间的联系。预期成果包括更好地了解极端潮湿和干旱事件以及农业生产和适应气候变化。CSMS将通过设计和制备生物基聚合物和热固性材料来创造新型材料，这些材料可以通过光触发进行编程降解。新型生物基材料的工作将从基础聚合物研究到商业化和生命周期评估。该项目利用最先进的研究方法来解决地区、国家和全球的重要性问题。劳动力发展、STEM教育和多样性方面的投资将通过劳动力发展、外展、教育和多样性-ND(Emperated-ND)新兴计划进行协调--该计划将包括为学生、博士后和教师提供指导、为本科生提供研究经验(REU)、研究生资助计划和私人行业实习，以及新的美洲原住民科学与工程成功(NASSE)计划和非常成功的自然计划(现在是自然+)的扩展，该计划通过周日的学院和夏令营吸引美国原住民学生。

Non-technical DescriptionINnovative and Strategic Program Initiatives for Research and Education-North Dakota (INSPIRE-ND) will contribute to the agriculture, energy, and advanced manufacturing economies in North Dakota through forefront research in regional climate and sustainable materials sciences. The project will build and diversify the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) workforce for these industries, enhance scientific computing infrastructure, and promote innovation and research. The research, organized through the Center for Regional Climate Studies (CRCS) and the Center for Sustainable Materials Science (CSMS), will address agricultural productivity and adaptation to climate variations and develop innovative plant materials based polymers and composites and associated technologies for the benefit of society. INSPIRE-ND is a partnership between North Dakota State University, the University of North Dakota, and the five Tribal Colleges in collaboration with Primarily Undergraduate Institutions, Community Colleges, and state agriculture and manufacturing partners.Technical DescriptionThe research goals are ambitious and potentially transformative. CRCS will study linkages between regional climate, hydrologic processes, crop production, and autonomous farmer adaptions. Expected outcomes include improved understanding of extreme wet and dry events and agricultural production and adaption in response to climate changes. CSMS will create novel materials that can be programmed to degrade with photo-triggers by designing and preparing bio-based polymers and thermosets. The work on novel bio-based materials will span from fundamental polymer research to commercialization and life cycle assessment. The project utilizes state of the art research approaches to address problems of regional, national, and global importance.Investments in workforce development, STEM education, and diversity will be coordinated through EMerging PrOgrams for WorkforcE Development, OutReach, Education, and Diversity - ND (EMPOWERED-ND) - which will include mentoring for students, postdocs and faculty, Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU), Graduate Assistantship Programs, and private industry internships, as well as the new Native American Success in Science and Engineering (NASSE) initiative and an expansion of the highly successful NATURE program (now NATURE+), which engages Native American students via Sunday Academies and Summer Camps.