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A research and development project led by Iowa State University and joined by other Iowa and Nebraska institutions of higher education has received a multimillion-dollar grant from the National Science Foundation to explore innovations in biomanufacturing.
ISU announced in a news release that RuralSTAMINA, or Ascending Rural communities through Sustainable, Transformative, Advanced Manufacturing INnovations and Alliances, was one of 12 projects selected by NSF to receive two-year, $15 million awards, with the potential to see as much as $160 million over the next decade.
According to the release, the NSF RuralSTAMINA Biomanufacturing Engine in Iowa and Nebraska will bring together academics, research and business to create new products from innovations in the fields of biomass conversion and biomanufacturing, with a focus on developing products like pharmaceuticals, animal vaccines, pesticides, nutraceuticals and coatings.
"Innovation and collaboration are part of Iowa State's DNA and this award is a testament to those strengths," said ISU President David Cook in the release. "The RuralSTAMINA initiative is another example of how we're serving the state of Iowa and region by supporting rural communities."
These efforts will be aimed at supporting small and medium-sized manufacturers, the release stated, as well as agricultural producers, startups and education programs.
Housed at the Ames university, RuralSTAMINA also has core partners in the University of Iowa, Des Moines Area Community College, University of Nebraska-Lincoln and Southeast Community College, as well as BioConnect Iowa, the Iowa Biotechnology Association, Invest Nebraska and others totaling more than 70 public and private organizations.
NSF Chief of Staff Brian Stone, performing the duties of the organization's director, said in the release NSF's investments in engines like RuralSTAMINA will strengthen rural economies across the Midwest by creating new products and new jobs and bolstering domestic manufacturing.
Peter Dorhout, ISU vice president for research and principal investigator for RuralSTAMINA, said in the release the initiative will "stimulate economic growth in rural communities" by financially supporting producers through development of products from what they produce.
"We are proud to be part of this alliance to grow rural Iowa," said University of Iowa President Barbara Wilson in the release. "Through this collaborative effort, we'll help strengthen communities across our state."