NSF Engines: North Dakota Advanced Agriculture Technology Engine

北达科他州先进农业技术引擎将通过推动研究和商业化努力来提高现有作物的生长，引进新作物，并监测和优化北达科他州的作物生长，从而提高我国在先进农业方面的创新能力。NSF引擎的重点是结合先进的作物数据、遗传数据、气候建模和传感器技术，将超越目前的实践状态和我们目前的能力。这个国家科学基金会引擎和地区的独特能力将把尖端技术应用于公共作物，这些作物对该地区和国家经济至关重要，但历史上一直投资不足。NSF引擎团队建议使用实时决策和先进技术来显著加快农业领域作物相关决策的创新步伐，并将其称为“以信任的速度进行创新”。鉴于粮食安全和可持续农业的重要性，这将对国家在全球舞台上的竞争能力产生深远影响。除了这些重大的国家影响之外，NSF引擎还具有通过与土著组织、行业和经济发展领导者密切合作来推动区域经济影响的潜力。NSF引擎团队旨在创建一个强大的、多方面的、基于地点的创新生态系统，专注于粮食安全，同时为历史上落后于其他新兴技术的地区人口和社区释放经济机会。如果成功，由NSF引擎驱动的创新生态系统将通过推动新技术、行业合作和新兴创业公司，为农业技术（AgTech）带来前所未有的进步；在各种新兴技术领域创造良好的就业机会；为北达科他州所有居民创造更多的经济机会和共同繁荣。NSF引擎最初将专注于以下与推进农业和向实时监测和分析方法过渡相关的主题领域：(1)新型基因组学研究；(2)先进的气候预测模式；(3)可扩展的农场数据采集管理和利用，包括可重构的敏捷数据传感器网络；(4)通信网络、边缘和云计算、通过人工智能和机器学习对获取的数据进行实时分析，重点是最后一英亩的连接；(5)以人为本的农业技术创新扩散。NSF引擎正在组建一个跨部门团队，在NSF引擎开发和实施先进的农业技术的同时，共同解决农业社区和工业的需求。这种方法将有助于留住北达科他州的下一代农民和技术人员，并吸引地区和全国的人才。北达科他州先进农业技术引擎由北达科他州立大学领导，包括一个由大型农业公司、科技公司、农民、大学（包括部落学院和大学、两年制和四年制大学）、区域和全州范围内的经济和劳动力发展组织（包括引擎的核心合作伙伴大法戈穆尔黑德经济发展公司和法戈穆尔黑德西法戈商会基金会）、部落组织和创新试验台。这种多样化的合作伙伴联盟将是研发、翻译和劳动力发展工作的核心。NSF引擎的研究和翻译目标是：(1)开发和利用区域专业知识来解决与最重要的主题领域一致的农业相关挑战；(2)启动并维持一个创新走廊，有意义地吸引和优先考虑该州的所有人，包括土著和小农场社区，以发展和开发早期技术项目；(3)产生更多实质性的投资、技术开发、知识产权活动、创业公司和商业活动，以加速农业科技的发展。来自Engine核心合作伙伴Grand Farm的试验台和项目将把创新型公司与该地区的创新生态系统连接起来。总的来说，这些目标将使该州成为先进农业技术创新和加速区域经济增长的全球领导者。NSF引擎有潜力更好地连接现有的努力，并极大地扩展进入农业科技新兴职业的途径。合作伙伴将包括州和地方政府官员、经济和劳动力发展组织、行业、职业和技术教育项目、部落学院和其他大学，以在全州范围内建立培训和指导机会。具体活动包括旨在培养新一代STEM教育工作者的培训师计划；支持K-12教育工作者将数字农业主题与基础STEM课程联系起来；以及为学员提供公平的农业部门培训机会的项目。劳动力发展活动将优先考虑整个服务区域（包括农村和部落社区）的公平农业机会，并解决行业当前和新出现的需求。建立一个知识网络来分享和快速传播学习也是劳动力发展战略的首要目标。国家粮食安全基金引擎汇集了一个强大的合作伙伴联盟，并确定了与区域资产和优先事项密切配合，以解决粮食安全问题，这是一个具有国家重要性的问题。在跨界别持份者的大力支持下，包容性、社区驱动的方法为建立先进农业科技发展的新模式提供了独特的机会。NSF引擎已经确定了必须推进的关键研发主题领域，以推动整个州和跨技术主题领域（即公共作物）的农业创新。它将支持研发和转化活动，以培育一个由科技公司组成的创新生态系统，这将支持美国向更具气候适应性的先进农业部门过渡，并将推动区域经济增长和机遇。NSF引擎的变革潜力在于有意地将部落、农村和农业社区有意义地纳入共同创造，为先进农业和包容性经济发展的未来绘制蓝图。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。

The North Dakota Advanced Agriculture Technology Engine will advance our nation’s capacity for innovation in advanced agriculture by driving research and commercialization efforts to increase the growth of existing crops, introducing new crops, and monitoring and optimizing crop growth in North Dakota. The NSF Engine’s focus on combining advanced crop data, genetic data, climate modeling and sensor technologies will surpass the current state of practice and our current capabilities. The unique capacity of this NSF Engine and region will apply cutting-edge technologies to public crops that are critically important to the region and nation’s economy yet have had historical underinvestment. The NSF Engine team proposes using real-time decision making and advanced technologies to significantly increase the pace of innovation around crop-related decision making in the agriculture space, referring to this as “innovating at the speed of trust.” This will have profound impacts on the nation’s ability to compete on a global stage given the critical importance of food security and sustainable agriculture. In addition to these significant national impacts, the NSF Engine also has the potential to drive regional economic impacts through working closely with Indigenous organizations, industry, and economic development leaders. The NSF Engine team aims to create a robust, multi-faceted, place-based innovation ecosystem focused on food security while unlocking economic opportunity for regional populations and communities that have been historically left behind by other emerging technologies. If successful, the innovation ecosystem driven by the NSF Engine will result in unprecedented advances in Agricultural Technology (AgTech) by driving new technologies, industry collaborations, and emerging startup companies; creating good jobs across a variety of emerging technologies; and generating greater economic opportunity and shared prosperity to all residents of North Dakota.The NSF Engine will initially focus on the following topic areas related to advancing agriculture and the transition to a real-time monitoring and analysis approach: (1) novel genomics studies; (2) advanced predictive climate modeling; (3) scalable on-farm data collection management and utilization including reconfigurable agile data sensor networks; (4) communication networks, edge and cloud computing, real-time analysis of acquired data via artificial intelligence and machine learning, with a focus on last acre connectivity; and (5) diffusion of AgTech innovation through human-centered approaches. The NSF Engine is assembling a cross-sector team to collaboratively address the needs of the agricultural community and industry as the NSF Engine develops and implements advanced AgTech technologies. This approach will help retain North Dakota’s next-generation farmers and technologists as well as attracting talent regionally and nationally.The North Dakota Advanced Agriculture Technology Engine led by North Dakota State University, includes an ecosystem of partners with representation from the large agricultural companies, technology companies, farmers, universities (including Tribal Colleges and Universities, and two- and four-year institutions), regional and statewide economic and workforce development organizations (including Engine core partners Greater Fargo Moorhead Economic Development Corporation and the Fargo Moorhead West Fargo Chamber Foundation), Tribal organizations, and innovation testbeds. This diverse coalition of partners will be central to R&D, translation, and workforce development efforts.The research and translation goals of the NSF Engine are to: (1) develop and leverage regional expertise to solve agricultural-related challenges aligned with the top identified topic areas; (2) launch and sustain an innovation corridor that meaningfully engages and prioritizes all in the state, including Indigenous and small-farm communities, to grow and develop early-stage technology projects; and (3) generate more substantial investments, technology development, intellectual property activity, startups, and commercial activities to accelerate AgTech. Test beds and programs from Engine core partner Grand Farm will connect innovative companies to the region’s innovation ecosystem. Collectively, these goals will enable this state to become a global leader in advanced agricultural technology innovations and in accelerating regional economic growth.The NSF Engine has the potential to better connect existing efforts and dramatically expand the pathways into emerging careers within AgTech. Partners will include state and local government officials, economic and workforce development organizations, industries, career and technical education programs, Tribal Colleges, and other universities to build training and mentorship opportunities across the state. Specific activities include train-the-trainer programs aimed at creating a new generation of STEM educators; supporting K-12 educators to link digital agricultural topics to foundational STEM classes; and programs that meet trainees where they are with equitable agriculture sector training opportunities. Workforce development activities will prioritize equitable agricultural opportunities across the region of service, including rural and tribal communities, and address industry’s current and emerging needs. Establishing a knowledge network to share and quickly disseminate learning is also a primary goal of the workforce development strategy.The NSF Engine has brought together a strong coalition of partners and has identified close alignment with regional assets and priorities to address food security, an issue of national importance. The inclusive, community driven approach with strong backing from cross-sector stakeholders represents a unique opportunity to build a new model for advanced AgTech development. The NSF Engine has identified critical R&D topic areas that must be advanced to drive agricultural innovations that are accessible throughout the state and across technology topic areas, namely public crops. It will support R&D and translational activities to cultivate an innovation ecosystem of tech companies that will support the nation’s transition to a more climate-resilient advanced agriculture sector, and will drive regional economic growth and opportunity. The NSF Engine’s transformative potential lies in the intentional focus on bringing tribal, rural and farming communities meaningfully into the co-creation to yield a blueprint for the future of advanced agriculture and inclusive economic development.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.