NSF Engines Development Award: Advancing water and energy technologies for the manufacturing and utilities sectors (WI, IL)

该区域创新引擎发展奖的重点是促进制造商和公用事业公司通过水和能源创新来缓解和适应气候变化影响所需的解决方案，并迅速扩大这些解决方案的规模，供美国和世界各地的工业、政府和其他利益相关者更广泛地使用。主要地理区域包括威斯康星州东部和伊利诺伊州北部，从密尔沃基向西到麦迪逊，从芝加哥向北到福克斯谷和绿湾。威斯康星州东部在制造业、创新和卓越的学术研究方面享有盛誉。该地区的公司、公用事业公司和研究人员长期以来一直致力于寻找更好地管理、测量或储存水和能源的解决方案。为了保持威斯康星州作为全国顶尖制造业劳动力的价值，该州的工业必须配备水和能源解决方案，以应对气候变化带来的重大风险。该项目的主要合作伙伴是水资源委员会、MKE技术中心联盟、威斯康星州技术委员会、马奎特大学、麦迪逊地区经济伙伴关系和威斯康星州制造与生产力中心。该项目将以合作伙伴和利益相关者的现有生态系统为基础，特别是在水技术和能源效率方面，创建一个更大、更有效的生态系统，持续专注于开发更好的解决方案并将其推向市场。该引擎将在大学层面绘制现有的以使用为灵感的研究成果，包括NSF产学研合作研究中心和大学许可小组，以及在私营部门内部协调和加强努力。它还将与制造商和公用事业公司合作，确定目前尚未在研究管道中的能源和水相关需求。该团队将利用威斯康星州现有的投资者/天使网络，努力寻找其他有兴趣支持气候弹性解决方案的投资者。最后，它将包括一项包容性计划，特别是针对种族多样性，以发展世界一流的人才管道，以促进气候适应技术，包括加强STEM教育和现有劳动力的非传统再培训/提升技能。发展奖将允许引擎建立一个统一的、综合的、全面的水和能源弹性引擎计划，准备立即实施，包括确定关键的使用激励研究、劳动力和DEIA计划、私营部门天使和风险投资者、启动成熟度资源、私营部门使用激励研究承诺、支持该项目的重要财政公共部门承诺。以及高级领导所需的必要经验和技能。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

This Regional Innovation Engines Development Award is focused on facilitating the solutions manufacturers and utilities need to mitigate and adapt to the effects of climate change through water and energy innovation and quickly scaling those solutions for wider use by industry, government, and other stakeholders in the United States and across the world. The primary geographic area includes eastern Wisconsin and northern Illinois from Milwaukee west to Madison and from Chicagoland north to the Fox Valley and Green Bay. Eastern Wisconsin has a strong reputation for manufacturing, innovation, and academic research excellence. The region's companies, utilities, and researchers have long focused on solutions to manage better, measure or store water and energy. To retain Wisconsin's value as the top manufacturing workforce in the nation, its industries must be equipped with the water and energy solutions they will need to address the material risks posed by climate change. The main partners in this project are The Water Council, MKE Tech Hub Coalition, Wisconsin Technology Council, Marquette University, Madison Region Economic Partnership and Wisconsin Center for Manufacturing & Productivity.The project will build on existing ecosystems of partners and stakeholders, particularly concerning water technology and energy efficiency, to create a larger, more effective ecosystem continuously focused on developing better solutions and getting them to market. The Engine will map existing use-inspired research efforts at the university level, including NSF Industry-University Cooperative Research Centers and university licensing groups, and within the private sector to coordinate and strengthen efforts. It will also work with manufacturers and utilities to determine energy- and water-related needs not currently in the research pipeline. The team will leverage the existing investor/angel network in Wisconsin and work to identify other investors with an appetite for supporting climate resiliency solutions. Finally, it will include an inclusive plan, especially targeting racial diversity, for growing a world-class talent pipeline to foster climate resiliency technologies, including enhanced STEM education and nontraditional re/upskilling of the incumbent workforce. The Development Award will allow the Engine to build a unified, integrated, and comprehensive water and energy resiliency engine plan ready for immediate implementation encompassing the identification of critical use-inspired research, workforce, and DEIA initiatives, private-sector angel and venture investors, start-up maturity resources, private sector use-inspired research commitments, significant financial public sector commitments supporting the project, and the necessary experience and skills required by senior leadership.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.