Podcast
by Robert J. Bowman
SupplyChainBrain – June 7, 2019
For the first time ever, there’s a publicly available map of the food, energy and water supply chains of every community in the U.S.
The online resource was created by a team of researchers and data scientists led by Ben Ruddell, associate professor in the School of Informatics, Computing and Cyber Systems at Northern Arizona University. The FEWSION project shows the sources of every U.S. community’s food, oil, gasoline, natural gas, electricity and water. (Machinery and electronics are included as well.) On this episode, we learn about the initiative from Ruddell and lead research scientist Richard Rushforth. They’ll discuss how it came to fruition, how they were able to tap multiple government data sources, and the purposes that the map serves. They include the ability to better plan for natural disasters, promote supply-chain sustainability in local markets, show the environmental impact of individual commodities, and convey a sense of connectivity among communities nationwide.