The University of South Dakota is part of a project, funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation, to develop and assess modern controlled environment agricultural (CEA) practices to increase food security in tribal communities.
The U.S. National Science Foundation announced on Tuesday (July 23, 2024) a $77.8 million investment in 14 projects through the Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR). Spanning 50 institutions across 21 jurisdictions, this investment aims to build research and development capacity and strengthen STEM education opportunities in states that have traditionally lower levels of funding.
Meghann Jarchow, Ph.D., chair of the Department of Sustainability & Environment, is USD’s principal investigator (PI) and will be part of the “Harnessing Controlled Environment Agriculture to Secure Sustainability and Economic Growth” project.
The project aims to develop and assess modern CEA practices that will help tribal communities secure food production, develop a climate-smart workforce and stimulate economic growth.
Jarchow explained that a controlled environment provides an avenue for food production to continue, despite harsh climates, in a sustainable way.
USD is partnering with the University of New Mexico, University of Wyoming, New Mexico State University, Santa Fe Community College and a number of tribal nations.
“I am excited about the broad spatial scale of this research – from New Mexico to Wyoming to South Dakota,” said Jarchow. “This region spans hyper-arid to humid climates, which will provide an exceptional range through which to study CEA. This project brings together researchers, practitioners and educators from a wide geographic region to explore the plant biology, desirability and life cycle impacts of CEA across this region. The Lakota, Navajo, Northern Arapaho and Eastern Shoshone tribes who are part of this project all have food sovereignty efforts, and we are excited to be able to work with them to study CEA across the region.”
The NSF EPSCoR Research Infrastructure Improvement-Focused EPSCoR Collaborations Program awards will support interdisciplinary research teams working across jurisdictions to advance climate change research and build resilience in disproportionately affected communities nationwide. These teams, which include a diverse array of academic institutions and partners from government, industry and nonprofits, will leverage their collaborative efforts to develop climate adaptation and mitigation strategies, expand STEM opportunities and drive economic growth.
“Every part of our nation has been impacted by the changing climate. We build a sustainable future for all by investing in climate resilience research and solutions across our country,” said NSF Director Sethuraman Panchanathan. “By empowering researchers from different EPSCoR jurisdictions and enabling collaborations across diverse institutions from the Mountain West to the Gulf Coast, from the Southwest to the mid-Atlantic and New England and beyond, we are driving innovation that fosters STEM opportunities, economic growth and climate resilient communities.”
