NRT-INFEWS: Integrated Urban Solutions for Food, Energy, and Water Management

到2030年，世界上60%的人口将生活在需要从远离城市中心的地方提供大量食物、水和能源(很少)的城市。食物、能源和水之间复杂而密切的联系在社会经济和城市规划决策中正变得越来越重要。不幸的是，在如此复杂的社会问题上，拥有广泛的技术、经济和社会视角的劳动力和领导层存在空白。这项授予加州大学洛杉矶分校(UCLA)的国家科学基金会研究培训(NRT)奖将结合研究、教育和沟通培训，培养未来的领导者，他们能够提供创新的解决方案，在全球气候变化的压力下实现对不断增长的城市中心的可持续食品、能源和水供应。该项目预计将培训110名硕士或博士生，其中包括33名资助的实习生，来自工程、物理和生命科学、社会科学、公共事务和公共卫生。该项目将为研究生提供以城市系统为重点的课堂和实践培训。将利用基于项目和点对点的方法开发三个新的几门研究生课程和一个商业和创业研讨会系列。实际操作培训将包括学术研究和与国内合作伙伴进行制度化的非学术毕业生实习。将进行三个主要的跨学科研究：(1)减少废物和扩大规模，(2)城市可持续性，(3)洛杉矶几个系统管理的综合解决方案。研究工作将产生一个全面的科学和技术组合，以满足高度优先的需求，包括(1)腐烂的食物传感器和行为科学以减少食物浪费，(2)用于增强土壤水合的新型聚合物凝胶，(3)用于城市农业、水处理、生物燃料生产和零净能源建筑的综合技术解决方案，以及(4)系统层面的了解，将加州大学洛杉矶分校和洛杉矶分校作为试验台，向利益攸关方提供实用的想法和可行的建议。此外，学员还将通过(1)开发社交媒体系列节目《远在天边》，(2)组织加州大学洛杉矶分校可持续发展日，(3)通过Urban FEWSing(城市可持续发展)外联活动，与洛杉矶城市农场和食品沙漠的普通公众互动，从而获得传播科技的艺术经验。这一方法将使加州大学洛杉矶分校与当地工业和社区合作伙伴将重点放在提供FEWS创新上，与校园和城市范围的倡议保持一致。由于加州大学洛杉矶分校环境与可持续发展研究所将为新批准的博士项目采用新的研究生课程，加州大学洛杉矶分校分校将在线提供课程，该计划将在其资助期限后对加州大学洛杉矶分校和更广泛的社区产生影响。NSF研究培训(NRT)计划旨在鼓励为STEM研究生教育培训开发和实施大胆的、具有潜在变革性的新模式。Traineesship Track致力于通过创新的、基于证据的、与不断变化的劳动力和研究需求保持一致的综合培训模式，在高度优先的跨学科研究领域对STEM研究生进行有效培训。

By 2030, 60% of the world's population will live in cities requiring the supply of large amounts of food, water, and energy (FEW) from locations currently far from urban centers. The complex and intimate connection between food, energy, and water is becoming increasingly central in socioeconomic and urban planning decisions. Unfortunately, there exists a void in the workforce and leadership with broad technical, economic, and social perspectives on such complex societal problems. This National Science Foundation Research Traineeship (NRT) award to the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) will combine research, education, and communication training to educate future leaders who can deliver innovative solutions to achieve sustainable supply of food, energy, and water to growing urban centers under the pressure of global climate change. The project anticipates training 110 MS or PhD students, including 33 funded trainees, from engineering, physical and life sciences, social sciences, public affairs, and public health. This program will provide graduate students with classroom and hands-on training with a focus on urban systems. Three new FEW graduate courses and a Business and Entrepreneurship Seminar Series will be developed using project-based and peer-to-peer methodology. Hands on training will consist of academic research and institutionalized non-academic graduate internships with domestic partners. Three main interdisciplinary research thrusts will be pursued: (1) FEW wastes reduction and up-scaling, (2) urban sustainability, and (3) integrated solutions for FEW systems management in Los Angeles. The research effort will result in a comprehensive scientific and technological portfolio addressing high priority needs including (1) decaying food sensors and behavioral science to reduce food waste, (2) novel polymeric gels for enhancing soil hydration, (3) integrated technology solutions for urban agriculture, water treatment, biofuel production, and zero-net energy buildings, and (4) system-level understanding of UCLA and LA as testbeds to provide practical ideas and actionable recommendations to stakeholders. Moreover, trainees will gain experience in the art of communicating science and technology by (1) developing the social media series FEW and Far Between, (2) organizing the UCLA Sustainability Day, and (3) through the Urban FEWSing© outreach activity, in which they will interact with the general public at urban farms and food deserts in LA. This approach will align the focus of UCLA and local industrial and community partners on delivering innovation in FEWS, in line with campus and city wide initiatives. This program will impact UCLA and the broader community beyond its funded period, as the UCLA Institute of Environment and Sustainability will adopt the new graduate courses for a newly approved Ph.D. program and UCLA Extension will offer the courses online.The NSF Research Traineeship (NRT) Program is designed to encourage the development and implementation of bold, new potentially transformative models for STEM graduate education training. The Traineeship Track is dedicated to effective training of STEM graduate students in high priority interdisciplinary research areas, through comprehensive traineeship models that are innovative, evidence-based, and aligned with changing workforce and research needs.