Funding boost to scope zero-carbon hub for plant and microbial science

The John Innes Center and Sainsbury Laboratory have received £ 1 million to advance plans to develop a world-leading center for plant and microbe research in Norwich Research Park.

The UK Research & Innovation (UKRI) award is part of a £ 50 million investment in more than a dozen science and innovation infrastructure projects and scoping studies.

This funding will support a project to develop a state-of-the-art, carbon-free center to realize the ambitious vision of Healthy Plants, Healthy People, Healthy Planet (HP3).

The world’s leading research institutes are working together to develop an argument for investing in the hub as the core of this vision. The £ 1 million award will enable early-stage concept developments and accelerate workflows that have been delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

John Innes Center Director Professor Dale Sanders FRS said: “This is the next step in our journey to provide a new home for the John Innes Center and Sainsbury Laboratory in Norwich and our place as a global interdisciplinary center for plant and health microbial sciences. “

“The funding will enable the next phase of design development, which will allow us to complete the conceptual design of the new infrastructure and advance our plans to be energy self-sufficient and carbon neutral in the future.”

Sainsbury Laboratory’s Executive Director, Professor Nick Talbot FRS, said, “Sainsbury Laboratory and the John Innes Center share a commitment to building a safer, healthier and more sustainable future through the power of plant and microbial science”.

“The new facilities that we are planning will enable us to be at the cutting edge of biological research, with a seamless integration of structural, analytical and cell biological facilities and the latest approaches in artificial intelligence and machine learning. It’s an exciting prospect. “

“This investment shows the confidence UKRI has in the future of our institutes and their ability to transform global agriculture through innovation.”

When the overall project is ultimately driven forward, after this concept development phase it will:

• Creation of the infrastructure for a global interdisciplinary center for plant and microbial sciences in Norwich Research Park,
• Integrate plant genetics, genomics, pathology and phenotyping skills alongside field testing facilities to meet global research challenges
• Reducing greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture by understanding plants, microbes and plant-microbe interactions and providing strategies to improve gene cultures
• Develop clinical treatments and dietary interventions to improve human health

The UKRI Infrastructure Fund represents the first portfolio of investments to come from UKRI’s Infrastructure Roadmap program to strengthen the UK’s research and innovation capacity. It is the first time that UKRI has taken a long-term strategic approach to infrastructure across all research disciplines.

The projects cover the research and innovation spectrum. They include:

• A boost for the world’s largest and most sensitive radio telescope network
• CO2 capture technologies
• A state-of-the-art airborne research laboratory
• A £ 17 million investment in digital research infrastructure

UKRI Managing Director Dame Ottoline Leyser said: “The infrastructure and skilled people who design, build, maintain and operate it are critical to research and innovation. This investment forms the basis from which the UK will continue to play an important role in promoting scientific research and understanding around the world. “

Science Secretary Amanda Solloway said, “If the past year and a half has taught us anything, it is that new challenges can come from anywhere, anytime. By investing millions in the UK’s research infrastructure, we put science and innovation at the heart of our efforts to better rebuild while making sure we can respond to challenges now and in the future – from pandemic preparedness to fighting of climate change. “

source https://dailyhealthynews.ca/funding-boost-to-scope-zero-carbon-hub-for-plant-and-microbial-science/