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Now, perhaps more than ever, people are better understanding the importance of supply chains and food supply to national security.  Greenhouses offer resilient, controlled growing environments capable of producing efficient, targeted, high quality yields.  Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA) has a significant and expanding role to play in the Canadian economy.  Ontario Greenhouse vegetable production alone is a billion dollar industry that has plans to grow at unprecedented rates over the next five years.  The sector is rich with innovation and development. Growers, government agencies, NGOs, consutants, and academia have each contributed to moving Canada's CEA industry forward.  While there are examples of inter-agency cooperation, no one agency exists that can act as a central hub for the research, dissemination, and knowledge translation - to put innovation into wide practice.  A prospective GREAT Institute and Network would provide links for the coordination of CEA research opportunities and activities, but also the wider education of all CEA stakeholders (including the public).  Such an Institute would leverage the expertise of grower, government, NGO, retailer, consumer, and academic members to train the next generation of CEA professionals for Canadian and wider global employment.

Overarching Objectives of the GREAT Institute.

• Enable the GREAT potential of Canada's Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA) Sector.

• Radically improve CEA Project Team Building through a redundantly connected GREAT Network.

• Create opportunities for Multi-institutionally Integrated CEA Training for domestic and international students.

• Capture the interest and passion of the Next Generation of Amplified Agriculturalists to drive foundational future growth of Canadian CEA.

• Educate the Canadian public on the critical value of CEA to National Food Security.

• Build the best brand for Exporting Unique Canadian CEA Expertise to the rest of the world.

Who Should Participate?

The next GREAT Network webinar.

The GREAT Network Webinar Objectives.

• To radically advance the expansion, profitability, and sustainability of the Canadian CEA Sector in the next 5 years - participants will explore what major technical, economic, and social barriers need to be overcome to make major progress toward this goal by 2026.

  • Inclusive lists of barriers and opportunities for innovation will be built - including radical re-thinking of conventional practices.

  • Potential mechanisms for enabling/funding actions required for change will be sketched out.

  • Next steps and next date for action will be set.

Recent GREAT Webinars

Outcomes of Webinar 4: Grand Challenges and Opportunities in CEA.

Outcomes of Webinar 3: Education and Training in CEA.

Outcomes of Webinar 2: GREAT Network - Who Does What and Where?

Outcomes of Exploratory Webinar 1

Outcomes of Webinar 1: Institute Concept Exploration.

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