2023–present
A team of researchers, staff, and students and NAU have collaborated as part of a project called the Transformation Network (TN), funded by the National Science Foundation #2115169. This work has been led by Dr. Richard Rushforth (Principal Investigator) from the FEWSION laboratory and SICCS, and Sean Ryan (Project Coordinator) from the Center for STEM Teaching and Learning.
This team has applied the key principles of leveraging data science and visualizations focused on food, energy, and water systems (FEWS) to drive discourse, research, and learning. It has provided an opportunity to cross pollinate and collaborate across several FEWS related teams, including FEWSION™, the Native FEWS Alliance, and the Transformation Network. The Transformation Network aims to build resilient communities and ecosystems throughout the Intermountain Western United States. The TN represents a partnership between eight Western U.S. universities with over 100 partner organizations representing Indigenous partners, governmental and non-governmental organizations, public utilities, conservation districts, irrigation districts, and municipalities. Go here to learn more about the TN.
While the NAU team has provided expertise in several areas, one specific connection to the FEWSION™ lab has been through initial training and support for undergraduate students who join the project team. Each year, the TN project has supported internship positions for two undergraduate students. F4R training introduced these students to overarching concepts of FEWS supply chains and introductory community engagement strategies. These students were then able to support the creation of preliminary data reports, conducted background research on other topics based on network requests, and shared the results of their data explorations as part of the Undergraduate Research Symposium each Spring.
Here is the poster shared by this year’s interns, Derek Hicks and Alison Johnston:
This year, the TN team is focusing on research publications from graduate student research projects, professional learning for K-12 teachers focused on school gardens and local food systems, and supporting outreach and education efforts focused on local and off-grid FEWS needed in rural communities in the Four Corners region. To learn more or discuss collaboration opportunities, contact Sean.Ryan@nau.edu.