Past Work & Special Projects
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Global Standards for the Bioeconomy
The engineering biology field is poised for growth and the technologies under development will be pivotal in addressing global challenges. However the field is lacking robust standards and metrics that could specifically enable cohesive, distributed biomanufacturing. A Task Force that held international, multidisciplinary, and multisector convenings was supported to enable community-identification of standards and metrics priorities. Their findings are captured in a public report available on the Task Force website.
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Accelerating the Bioeconomy Through a Pre-Competitive Knowledgebase for Biomanufacturing and Biotechnology
Data sharing and access is a foundational capability that has the potential to accelerate the scale-up and commercialization of biotechnological processes. While significant investments have been made to advance biological engineering, attention to the sharing of bioprocess data lags, increasing the time and resources required for transitioning ideas from lab to commercial viability. The Society for Industrial Microbiology and Biotechnology (SIMB) convened workshops to discuss a Pre-Competitive Knowledgebase for biotechnology and biomanufacturing, addressing data inclusion, standards, industry incentivization, and partnership management. Their findings and recommendations are available on the SIMB website:
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Identifying a Training Model and Community Assets Needed for Scaling Bio-Opportunities Nationwide
The BioBuilder Educational Foundation, Inc. was supported to conduct a strategic planning process designed to grow the bioeconomy workforce at scale in urban, rural, and tribal communities following the successful implementation of the BioBuilder program in Eastern Tennessee.
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Building a Network to Advance Manufacturing for the Bioeconomy
U.S. industrial biotechnology is lacking sufficient fermentation resources, and small companies are struggling to navigate finding facilities to test and scale their products. The BioP2P Network was created to help address concerns about facilities, equipment and capabilities, and build a marketplace enabling developer to capacity connections.
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Nucleus: Open-Source Synthetic Cells
This project aims to facilitate a scalable approach to studying and engineering biological systems through synthetic cells composed entirely of known molecular components. Through the development of Nucleus, an open-source package of modular synthetic cells, and associated digital tools, biological materials, laboratory protocols, and documentation for the full process of cell building, this project will accelerate ongoing global efforts in synthetic biology.
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Task Force on Synthetic Biology and the Bioeconomy
In October 2021, an interdisciplinary Task Force on Synthetic Biology and the Bioeconomy was launched to help maximize the potential of the bioeconomy. Published in April 2022, “The U.S. Bioeconomy: Charting a Course for a Resilient and Competitive Future,” provided a strategy for a resilient and competitive bioeconomy fueled by new job creation, a diverse workforce, distributed bioproduction, and revitalized rural communities. The strategy aligns with the work of The Schmidt Family Foundation, which has partnered with communities around the world to restore a balanced relationship between people and planet, and transition away from fossil fuels.
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