Knowledge Transfer

Sharing CROPPS Research and
Knowledge with Others

CROPPS prioritizes communication with stakeholders and the public at large. Our pursuit of transformational technologies and discoveries for communication with plants is closely tied to the needs of a wide range of communities and groups. Through knowledge transfer, we seek to educate and enrich these sectors.

Our goals for this include the following:

  • Enrichment of our research and education programs with the inclusion of diverse scientific, practical, and societal perspectives.
  • The timely distribution of concepts emerging from CROPPS to external colleagues, industrial partners, potential end-users, and other members of the public, with a strong emphasis on understanding and facilitating dialogues between scientists and the public at large.
  • The creation of ample opportunities for research and professional development for CROPPS trainees.

In pursuing these goals, we prioritize a wide range of opportunities for interaction with diverse groups, including:

  • Student internships, research, and co-location collaborations with industry.
  • Panel discussions, presentations, and on-farm dialogue with farmers and other agricultural stakeholders.
  • Engagement and communication with thought-leaders, policymakers, and the public at large, including the production of public media products by CROPPS, citizen science projects, and policy briefs for state and federal legislators.

We aim to make all of these interactions beneficial to the education and research missions of CROPPS and to the priorities of our outside partners. These initiatives will be overseen by Associate Directors Weatherspoon and Lewenstein.

Outreach to Industry, Government Officials, and Agricultural Stakeholders

A measure of CROPPS’ success lies in the partnerships and collaborations we build. We will work to sponsor discussions, hold meetings, and establish agreements on intellectual property, when necessary, with our home institutions and the following partners:

  • Leading companies in agrotechnology, biotechnology, information technology, and robotics.
  • Policymakers in state and federal government agencies, such as the USDA, the NSF, the EPA and the FDA.
  • Thought-leaders in public and private research institutes, including those at domestic institutions (such as the USDA-ARS, the Danforth Center, and the Carnegie Institution) and at international centers (such as the International Center for Maize and Wheat Improvement (CIMMYT) in Texcoco, Mexico, or Cornell’s USAID Innovation Lab for Crop Improvement (ILCI) project).
  • Agricultural stakeholders, including extension associates, professional service providers (such as soil fertility, land and resource management, and crop protection consultants), and practicing farmers.