Building Collaborative Research and Extension Networks

The land-grant university (LGU) system was developed when most U.S. residents lived in rural areas. Since the passage of the 1887 Hatch and 1914 Smith Lever Acts, an overwhelming majority of our population has relocated to metropolitan centers. While the mission of the LGU system has not changed, the system must update the methods, topics and questions of our research and Extension units to deliver on that mission in the 21st century

To support urban research and implementation, NUREC is providing leadership on a National Research Support Project. If funded, this project will:

1. Build and facilitate 3 urban research and extension communities of practice in:
   1. Urban Agriculture and Food Systems
   2. Nutrition, Health, and Wellness
   3. Built Environment
2. Develop and maintain an Urban Data Hub that a) includes a map room with thousands of mappable data layers and the capacity for uploading local data sets, allowing researchers to explore and visualize data to support research teams, and b) assembles, stores, and distributes materials, resources, and information related to urban research activities and priorities.
3. Provide professional development training for LGU professionals in collaborative, basic, applied and community-based research with urban communities.

This project will support researchers, Extension professionals, community practitioners, and metropolitan leaders by reinforcing productive connections between public, land-grant universities and urban communities. Housed within the NUREC, this project will leverage our local and multistate connections to Extension to advance the discovery, co-creation and application of knowledge.