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Collaboration
A key element of the committee' s vision of the future is greater collaboration
to enable the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) Research, Education, and
Economics (REE) mission area to address future research opportunities more
effectively. Collaboration will need to be enhanced both within REE and between
REE and other research institutions. This chapter considers current collabora-
tions and mechanisms to support collaboration, including collaborative research
across scientific disciplines, among agencies within REE, with other federal
research agencies outside USDA, with nonprofit and international research orga-
nizations, and between research and extension. The final section of this chapter
considers collaboration between the public and private sectors in agricultural
research in some detail because this is a subject of growing importance.
MULTIDISCIPLINARY RESEARCH
The success of the agriculture and food enterprise that followed the estab-
lishment of USDA and development of the Agricultural Research Service (ARS)
in production agriculture through the 1980s was the result of targeted investments
in meeting needs of individual states and agricultural regions. That led to produc-
tion of abundant food, feed, and fiber for America and the world. To realize that
success, agricultural scientists generally maintained fairly sharp disciplinary
divisions in their educational background, research orientation, criteria for
research-problem choice, and publication activities (Busch and Lacy, 1983;
Huffman and Evenson, 1993~. Disciplinary problems were likely to receive more
support than research on complex applied problems that crossed disciplinary lines.
Such problems are more specialized, reductionist in approach, and easier to assess
96
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COLLABORATION
97
in terms of disciplinary significance. However, that self-reinforcement also
implied that the stock of knowledge produced by each of the disciplines could be
disconnected from that of other disciplines. Moreover, by focusing on aspects of
the world that are deemed relevant by a particular discipline, scientists appeared
to ignore problems that resided outside their competence. Today, the increasing
complexity of the issues and challenges facing our food and fiber system, the
environment, and families and communities requires disciplinary, multi-
disciplinary, and systems-level approaches. The future success of the agriculture
enterprise in solving complex applied problems will require collaborative and
interactive participation across greater numbers of disciplines.
The committee observed that a key conceptual shift in the scientific founda-
tion of agriculture has been the recognition that effective solutions to many food,
health, environmental, and community-development concerns require both a
strong disciplinary perspective and a multidisciplinary and integrated systems
perspective. For example, research that is strictly physical and biologic will yield
physical and biologic solutions, but most complex agricultural, environmental
and community challenges require an equally rigorous understanding of social
and economic issues. In many cases, the socioeconomic portion of a problem is
as complex and unstudied as the biologic and physical and requires fundamental
social-science research. For example, Matson et al. (1997) describe how social,
demographic, and economic factors have affected adoption of various farming
practices and therefore agriculture's impacts on ecosystem processes, and they
call for research integrating social and natural sciences to develop sustainable
agriculture.
A multiscale, integrated systems approach to research will yield complemen-
tary and robust scientific insight and results. It also will produce research that is
more anticipatory by providing a deeper understanding of food and agricultural
systems. Ultimately, effective approaches will depend on an integration of the
biophysical and socioeconomic research, and the integration should occur from
the outset. An integrated approach to research will enable scientists and analysts
to more rapidly determine which new technologies or changing agricultural prac-
tices and policies will cause beneficial and adverse impacts and consequently
provide a richer set of options for ensuring a sustainable food system, generating
environmental benefits, and enhancing communities.
A systems approach to evaluating agricultural technologies, for example,
requires more than understanding how effective technologies will be. In the case
of new plant-based technologies, such as transgenics, a systems approach would
ask such questions as, Will this particular option provide potential environmen-
tal, economic, or social benefits, either direct or indirect? For example, how
might integration of the technology into existing cropping systems affect, favor-
ably or adversely, nontarget organisms, overall biodiversity, water quality, fresh
water and marine ecosystems, and community infrastructure? A systems ap-
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FRONTIERS IN AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH
preach that incorporates multidisciplinary research must also address economic
and social viability of technologies.
Agriculture and our food system affect and are profoundly affected by human
societies and behaviors. Developing policies that shape agriculture's future and
serve the public good will require an understanding of societal changes the
quality of life in rural communities, aesthetics and the burgeoning land-trust
movement, projected demographic and land-use changes, and the effects of
globalization on local and national economies (e.g., Flora, 2001~.
REE has engaged in a number of effective multidisciplinary efforts. For
example, the 1990 National Water Quality Initiative provided a potential model
for coordinating multidisciplinary and multilocal research and extension efforts
across federal agencies to meet a national environmental-research need (Amerman
et al., 2001; Caswell, 2001; Zucker and Brown, 1998~. This 10-year program was
a joint venture of ARS, the Cooperative State Research, Extension, and Educa-
tion Service (CSREES), the Economic Research Service (ERS), the National
Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), and the Natural Resources Conservation
Service (NRCS) with the Department of the Interior (DOI), the US Geological
Survey, the Department of Commerce (DOC), and the Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA). The aim of the program was to reduce agricultural watershed
contamination by nitrogen, phosphorus, and pesticides through a combination of
research, education, and outreach projects funded competitively by ARS base
funds, ERS cooperative agreements, CSREES special grants, and cost-sharing
and technical assistance via NRCS. The program was implemented by using five
Management Systems Evaluation Areas, 149 inhouse and cooperative projects,
and incentive payments for the adoption of improved farm-management systems.
From its inception, the initiative used a multidisciplinary and systems-level ap-
proach, with representation of all relevant disciplines and coordinated implemen-
tation. Initially, a small working group was formed with representatives of each
of the USDA agencies. Although disciplinary identity was maintained in the
agencies, multiple efforts were coordinated by a steering committee at the
secretary's level in USDA; this resulted in integration of the results of local re-
search projects and outreach efforts to accomplish a national goal. This model
deserves further consideration in REE agencies' strategic planning, implementa-
tion, and program execution.
Another key example within CSREES of a strong commitment to multi-
disciplinary approaches has been the various competitive research-grantpro-
grams, such as the National Research Initiative (NRI), the Fund for Rural America
(FRA), and the Initiative for Future Agriculture and Food Systems (IFAFS).
Through those programs, the agency has committed hundreds of millions of
dollars to multidisciplinary work, recognizing that many of the important ques-
tions facing food, agriculture, the environment, and communities are at the
disciplinary boundaries. Under legislative mandate, the NRI requires that a
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99
portion of awards be multidisciplinary, and the FRA and IFAFS have multistate
and multidisciplinary requirements.
At the same time, leaders at ARS and ERS indicate that although some inter-
action between their staffs occurs, the interaction is not systematically organized
to provide the kind of long-term multidisciplinary research needed for the future.
They note that the staffs of ERS and ARS operate essentially in different domains.
The ARS administrator observed in an interview with the committee that the lack
of a mechanism to involve social scientists is "a major deficiency" in the national
agricultural research program. In REE research programs the extent of integration,
multidisciplinary research, and multidisciplinary complementarily varies widely.
Developing a systems approach will require a greater emphasis on multi-
disciplinary research planning and execution that combine rigorous techniques in
the biologic, social, and physical sciences. Because multidisciplinary work brings
together knowledge and methods from different fields, it involves fewer simpli-
fying assumptions and can yield more robust solutions to complex problems.
This kind of approach is essential for many of the new agricultural methods,
processes, and technologies. USDA's research system, particularly ERS and
ARS, will need to evaluate the success of multidisciplinary structures such as
task forces, centers, institutes, and initiatives in terms of their potential applica-
tion in REE.
Institutions responsible for and engaged in graduate education need to expand
multidisciplinary education to include a broader understanding and appreciation
of different scientific perspectives and to provide a better integration of those
perspectives. Multidisciplinary interdepartmental graduate fields are promising
developments, but they often lack adequate institutional support and must rely on
academic departments for resources and faculty time. The restructuring of gradu-
ate education must start with policies, practices, and norms regarding curriculum,
seminars, professional meetings, appropriate journals, and other key means of
mentoring and professionally socializing the next generation of scientists. Such
changes have the potential to strengthen multidisciplinary agricultural and food-
systems research. (Examples of CSREES-funded education efforts are discussed
further in Chapter 7.)
In the context of more rigorous and advanced disciplinary sciences, multi-
disciplinary programs risk producing "jacks of all trades but masters of none."
Some multidisciplinary programs in colleges of agriculture have not always been
particularly successful, especially at the PhD level. Graduate integrated pest-
management programs and programs in sustainable agriculture are examples. But
there are some successful multidisciplinary graduate programs, such as molecular
biology programs, bioinformatics, and risk-assessment programs. Although
developing multidisciplinary programs for the sake of being multidisciplinary is
not useful, and not all problems need multidisciplinary approaches, new disci-
plines are being demanded, and the system needs to move forward to meet the
demands.
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FRONTIERS IN AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH
COLLABORATION WITHIN REE
Effective collaboration among the land-grant universities and their colleges
of agriculture, forestry, and human ecology (CSREES) and other REE units has
been in effect for a long time. With the passage of the Federal Research and
Marketing Act in 1946 (US Congress, 1946), one-fourth of the formula funds
(Hatch and McIntire-Stennis) were set aside for regional research, thereby stimu-
lating many interuniversity collaborative efforts. The Agricultural Research,
Extension, and Education Reform Act of 1998 (US Congress, 1998) changed the
title of these programs from regional to multistate, as many of these projects are
national in scope. Today, many regional research projects involve multiple states,
multiple regions, multiple universities (land-grant and non-land-grant), ARS,
ERS, and other profit and nonprofit organizations. Examples of REE leadership
in regional research efforts are found in Box 5-1.
Regional rural development centers have been another model for effective
interuniversity collaborative research in CSREES. Although they require more
coordination and cooperation among scientists and more administrative support
than individual-scientist projects, the regional efforts generally have been success-
ful. Most projects have produced numerous important scientific peer-reviewed
publications and policy analyses and have addressed relevant practical issues with
sound science in ways not often possible through individual projects.
In addition to multistate research, ARS has successfully collaborated with
land-grant universities and CSREES particularly in the plant and animal sciences.
ARS has often located its research facilities close to the universities or posted its
scientific staff at universities. Similarly, ERS has joined with land-grant univer-
sities in collaborative work and cooperative agreements primarily with depart-
ments of agricultural and resource economics and to a more limited extent with
rural sociology, nutrition, and public health. As noted above, however, mecha-
nisms for including the social sciences in the ARS research agenda and stimulat-
ing appropriate collaboration pose a major challenge for the national agricultural
research program. ARS and ERS will need to work together to identify ways in
which this collaboration might successfully occur in the future.
In one of the unique collaborations in REE, particularly at the land-grant
university level, knowledge has been generated through research and dissemi-
nated and applied through teaching and extension. No other scientific commu-
nity enjoys a direct and formal relationship with a community-based educational
organization committed to putting its knowledge and scientific findings to work
to improve communities and citizens' lives. Collaboration has been strengthened
by having extension faculty in university departments of agriculture, forestry,
and human ecology and often by having faculty with joint research and extension
appointments. Organizationally, at USDA, this collaboration was enhanced
several years ago with the merger of the USDA Extension Service and the Coop-
erative State Research Service to form CSREES. The collaboration between
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10
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FRONTIERS IN AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH
research and extension has been highly successful in universities, but collabora-
tion between extension and the other REE agencies ARS, ERS, and the National
Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) has not been as effective. There are no
formal links between extension and the other three REE agencies.
COLLABORATION IN THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT
Increasingly, collaboration with other government agencies is important to
REE's success in carrying out its mission. Many of the issues facing REE
agencies require expertise and knowledge that extend beyond its traditional scope.
Therefore, REE agencies have developed numerous collaborations with both fed-
eral research and action or regulatory agencies. The list of collaborators includes
the National Science Foundation (NSF), the National Institutes of Health (NIH),
EPA, National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), FDA, National
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the US Military, DOI, the
Department of Energy (DOE), and the Department of Defense (DOD).
In nutrition, for example, existing NIH-ARS collaborations include the
National Food and Nutrition Analyses Program, which sets priorities for main-
taining the National Nutrient Databank; an interagency agreement between NIH
and the ARS Food Composition Laboratory for the development of new chemical
methods for analyzing nutrients and other biologically active compounds in foods;
and a 1998 Carotenoid Food Composition Database developed jointly by ARS
and the Nutrition Coordinating Center at the University of Minnesota with partial
funding from the National Cancer Institute (NCI) (USDA, 1998~. Other potential
models of collaboration are the National Health and Nutrition Examination
Survey, conducted by ARS and the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) National
Center for Health Statistics (NCHS), and a partnership involving CDC, NIH,
USDA, and others to improve availability of high-quality data related to fruit and
vegetable consumption in support of the "5 A Day for Better Health Program."
There is still untapped potential for collaboration in food and nutrition. In
the case of complex diseases with nutritional components, such as cardiovascular
disease and osteoporosis, most genetic research is conducted under the auspices
of NIH and private industry, but broader collaboration will be essential for
addressing these health issues. Nutrition research at NIH includes the determina-
tion of the biochemical functions of nutrients and other food components in
biologic systems, exploring differences in biochemical functions resulting from
genetics, environmental factors, and disease conditions. NIH nutrition research
focuses on how to prevent, control, and treat diet-related diseases and conditions.
The results of NIH nutrition research could be considered by REE agencies in
planning their research agendas, particularly those that involve selecting foods
and food components for analysis for the National Nutrient Databank (ARS),
applying results to community nutrition programs and determining nutrition-
behavior interventions in community programs (CSREES), and statistical evalu-
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103
ation of the relevance of diet-related demographic variables (ERS and NASS).
USDA had traditionally not been focused on diet-related disease but has more
recently been conducting some research and community programs that concern
obesity and diabetes. USDA's movement into these disease topics could be
strengthened, and USDA could make more progress by having a thorough knowl-
edge of NIH's past and present research in these topics and expanding into com-
munity programs (not traditionally done by NIH) or other topics not covered by
NIH. Another potential collaborative research topic is the development of
methods to assess the intake of dietary supplements by the American public. The
NIH Office of Dietary Supplements (ODS) is communicating with ARS and
NCHS in developing such methods.) This will require the development of a
database on the composition of dietary supplements a tremendous task, consid-
ering the huge number of products and different potencies.
In food-safety research, interagency collaboration has been critical and holds
further possibilities; here collaborative research is the most cost-effective and
timely mechanism for identifying critical control points and implementing inter-
vention strategies. USDA's Foodborne Outbreak Response Coordinating Group-
which links federal, state, and local government agencies to enhance coordina-
tion and communication in responding to outbreaks, uses resources efficiently,
and prepares for new and emerging threats to the food supply is a collaborative
mechanism that could be useful in food-safety research.
Collaborative models exist in environmental research. The Sustainable Agri-
culture Research and Education program is an example of a collaborative model
among USDA, EPA, and several profit and nonprofit organizations for research
using a whole-systems perspective, a participatory approach, and a decentralized
structure. In addition, for many years, ERS, NSF, EPA, and NOAA have coordi-
nated their extramural funding (typically with universities) for climate-change
research, especially addressing the socioeconomic impacts. This approach not
only reduced duplication of research effort and improved efficiency of the fund-
ing process but led to improved planning and coordination of intramural and
multidisciplinary research efforts. There is further room for development of col-
laborative efforts in environmental research. Many of the environmental research
frontiers identified by this report overlap with issues facing other federal agen-
cies, particularly the land and natural-resource management agencies in DOI.
Examples include invasive species, environmentally sound management prac-
tices, carbon sequestration, and integration of spatial technologies and distributed
datasets into decision-making for natural-resource management. At present, how-
ever, collaborative research between REE and DOI agencies is haphazard and
usually involves small-scale, project-by-project funding of REE scientists by DOI
iODS has previously worked with USDA's Food and Nutrition Service to develop the IBIDS data-
base (http://dieta7y-supplements.info.nih.gov/) on research on dietary supplements.
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FRONTIERS IN AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH
agencies. Mechanisms that could enhance collaboration on shared environmental
research problems include collaborative development of requests for proposal
(RFP)s, shared planning of research initiatives and implementation of research
findings on the ground, and congressional appropriations of research funds to
DOI agencies. Such collaborative approaches could be used more widely with
nongovernment organizations whose missions and goals overlap with those of
USDA. Development of the National Management Plan under the recent execu-
tive order on invasive species required USDA, DOI, and other agencies to work
collaboratively in building a research plan, one of several sections of the National
Management Plan. The current administration has requested a cross-cut for 2004
budget requests from the agencies, which presumably could help to clarify where
and how funds and resources will be used to meet shared needs. This approach
provides one potential model for collaboration among agencies.
The national extension network was developed when the economy was pri-
marily agricultural and the population predominantly rural. Today, the US
economy is diverse, the population highly heterogeneous and urban, and the
nation an integral part of a global economy and society. Therefore, the collabora-
tion that extension pursues must be more flexible and adaptable and extend far
beyond its traditional partners in REE (ECOP, 2002~.
Other federal agencies, such as NIH and EPA, have expressed interest in
using the extension system for their own outreach efforts, and there are numerous
models of new partnerships between Cooperative Extension and federal agencies.
For example, a CSREES-administered collaborative project, Healthy Indoor Air
for America' s Homes, links EPA with Cooperative Extension in 46 states to elimi-
nate household hazardous substances. Extension could potentially facilitate the
sharing of information and the coordination of research priorities between federal
agencies (including DOD, DOE, NASA, NIH, and NSF) that address related
research. That would reduce duplication of activities and maximize the use of
resources. Such coordination could include priority-setting, cofunding of initia-
tives, and dedicated funding by single agencies. Strengthening the leadership of
the current CSREES administrator and the REE undersecretary as advocates for
extension and dissemination of the benefits of research could help to promote the
outreach and educational opportunities in CSREES and the land-grant universities.
FINDING: There is tremendous potential for collaboration and strategic
alliances involving the Extension System inside and outside the univer-
sity with ARS, NASS, ERS, and other federal agencies (such as DOC,
DOD, DOE, EPA, and NIH) to address the social and economic issues
facing all communities.
One proposed new mechanism to strengthen collaboration among federal
agencies has been the "virtual research and development centers," temporary task
forces or teams in their home agencies or institutions. It has been suggested that
REE develop this capacity and fund such approaches that would involve REE
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agencies as partners. The leader of an REE virtual R&D center would be
empowered to recruit, organize, and coordinate the services of professionals in
any of the four REE agencies, any other USDA agency, or elsewhere as needed,
such as in government, university, or private-sector institutions. The members of
the center could be based in their home institutions but would provide knowl-
edge, advice, skills, and equipment as needed to accomplish the specific goals of
their center. Possible challenges in implementation include complexity in using a
matrix approach in a line organization, such as USDA. In addition, there is a
strong tendency for centers, once established, to persist, often long past their
useful life, so disbanding of the center when its mission is accomplished may
pose a challenge. However, the committee believes that many national challenges
will require sustained and creative efforts, which such virtual laboratories might
best facilitate.
INTERNATIONAL COLLABORATION
In the increasingly global economy and society, international collaboration
of REE has expanded and will probably continue to do so. The public-sector
agricultural research and extension community has a long tradition of international
collaboration. Perhaps the most well-developed international scientific network
has grown through the Consultative Group on International Agriculture Research
(CGIAR). International agricultural-science collaboration was important for the
latter part of the 20th century in responding to the rising economic growth and
food needs of an expanding global population.
For most of the last century, international students and scholars in the
agricultural, nutritional, environmental, and rural social sciences have generally
constituted the largest international contingent attending US universities and col-
laborating in the federal laboratories. Table 5-1 shows the substantial and consis-
tent investment by ARS in visiting international scientists. In FY 2001, visiting
scientists made up almost 8% of the 1,980 scientists in the ARS workforce
TABLE 5-1 Visiting Scientists at ARS, 1998-2001
2001 2000
1999 1998
Number of visiting scientists
Number of countries represented
Top countries represented
Cost to support each scientist
156 129
15 36
China, Korea, China, Italy,
Brazil France
$303,247 $122,940
135 193
48 41
China, Japan, China, Korea,
Brazil Brazil
$150,000 NAa
aNA = data not available.
Source: USDA ARS (2002).
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(USDA, 2001a). ERS also has hosted visiting scientists from transitioning and
developing economies and details staff to international organizations, such as the
Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the Organization for Economic
Cooperation and Development. NASS has an international data-collection unit
that assists developing and transitioning economies in survey and census design
and data-collection activities.
Many US colleges of agriculture, unlike other university colleges, have
separate offices and associate deans for international programs that coordinate
and promote international collaboration. The Office of International Programs at
ARS is expanding its mission to increase memoranda of understanding with other
countries regarding mutually beneficial agricultural research. It is likely that
public-sector agricultural scientists have engaged in more international collabo-
ration in more countries and locations than any other group of US scientists.
Historically, the emphasis on food and agriculture in the US Agency for
International Development (USAID) has led to substantial funding for inter-
national agricultural collaboration. However, US investments in international
agriculture have declined from $1.2 billion in 1985 to $332 million in 1999
(USAID, 1985, 2000), and funding for bilateral assistance in agricultural research
in USAID declined from a peak of about $250 million in the 1980s to about $60
million in 1997 (in constant 1987 dollars; Alex, 1997~. However, political efforts
are under way to restore and expand USAID investments in agriculture and rural
development. The need remains high for funding agricultural development and
international agricultural collaboration. A major mechanism for USAID-university
partnerships for international collaboration has been the Collaborative Research
Support Program (for example, in sorghum and millet, bean and cowpea, live-
stock, aquaculture, and sustainable agriculture and natural-resource management
research). These multidisciplinary, multiinstitutional, international research pro-
grams have been excellent models for international agricultural collaboration.
They have focused on collaboration among developing national scientists and US
public-sector agricultural scientists working on food, nutrition, and environmental
issues critical to developing nations.
Other international collaborative efforts have involved CGIAR-international
agriculture research centers (CGIAR-IARC; 16 worldwide), FAO, the World
Bank, and numerous national agricultural research systems, such as Empresa
Brasileira de Pesquisa Agropecuaria in Brazil and the India Council for Agricul-
ture Research.
Given the limitations on human and financial resources available in REE
agencies, it may not be feasible or efficient to contribute directly to improving
agricultural productivity in developing countries. It may be preferable to approach
this contribution from another perspective. Public agricultural research has been
and continues to be important in agricultural-productivity growth and enhancing
food security in developing countries. Alston (2002) reviews and summarizes
several studies that conclude that about half the research benefits in any nation
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To conclude, there is evidence that REE has a strong history of working
collaboratively. Strengthened collaboration with new and existing partners holds
promise for addressing the complexity of issues and challenges facing the global
agricultural system and for engaging in the new research opportunities described
in this report.
COLLABORATION WITH THE PRIVATE SECTOR
During the last 20 years, the convergence of a number of political, economic,
social, scientific, and technologic developments has affected how agricultural
science is conducted and commercialized and the evolution of new institutional
collaboration and public and private research partnerships. The new commercial
opportunities; patent laws and decisions (such as the 1980 US Supreme Court
decision in Diamond v. Chakrabarty, 1980, extended by the 2001 US Supreme
Court decision that seeds and seed-grown plants can be patented in J.E.M. Ag
Supply, Inc. v. Pioneer Hi-Bred International, Inc.~; federal policies (such as the
Government Patent Policy [Bayh-Dole] Act of 1980 [US Congress, 19801 and the
Federal Technology Transfer Act of 1986 [US Congress, 19861~; establishment
of minimal standards of intellectual-property protection,2 mechanisms for
intellectual-property rights enforcement, and provisions for dispute settlement
for World Trade Organization (WTO) members under the TRIPS (trade-related
aspects of intellectual property) Agreement (WTO, 1994~; growth in private-
sector research; and a relative decline in public-sector funding of agricultural
research have all contributed to a changing collaborative relationship between
universities and industries (Josling, 2001; Murashige, 1997; Parker et al., 2001~.
The new types of university-industry collaboration are generally more varied, of
wider scope, more aggressive and experimental, and more publicly visible than
past relationships. They involve diverse approaches that include large grants and
contracts between companies, universities, and government laboratories in ex-
change for patent rights to and exclusive licenses of discoveries; programs and
centers organized with industrial funds at major universities (now totaling over
1,000), which give participating private firms privileged access to resources and a
role in shaping research agendas; professors, particularly in the biomedical sci-
ences, serving in extensive consulting capacities on scientific advisory boards or
in managerial positions in firms; faculty and research scientists receiving research
funds from private corporations in which they hold substantial equity; and public
universities and government laboratories establishing business startups and for-
profit corporations to develop and market innovations arising from research.
The Technology Transfer Act of 1986 (US Congress, 1986) established the
cooperative research and development agreement (CRADA), a mechanism
2Intellectual-property protection includes patents, copyrights, plant-variety protection certificates
(Plant Variety Protection Act [US Congress, 1970]), trademarks, copyrights, and technology licenses.
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109
through which federal and nonfederal researchers could collaborate (Adams et
al., 2001; Fuglie et al., 1996; Huffman and Just, 1999a). The principal objective
of a CRADA is to link the research capacity of federal laboratories with the com-
mercial research and marketing expertise of the private sector. Under a CRADA,
a federal laboratory may provide personnel, equipment, and laboratory privileges
for commercial activity. Similarly, the private-sector collaborator may contribute
funds directly to the federal laboratory in return for the right of first refusal to
negotiate an exclusive license of any joint discovery and may be given exclusive
access to data from a joint project. In addition to CRADAs, there are other
arrangements for private-sector collaboration, such as trust-fund agreements,
research instruments in which a private-sector cooperator is not offered a first
right of refusal to negotiate an exclusive license; patent licensing, in which public
entities patent inventions and then grant exclusive, limited exclusive, or non-
exclusive licenses to private companies to use or market the inventions; and
research consortia, in which several institutions undertake joint research with or
without a private-sector partner (USDA, 2000~.
CRADA activity increased rapidly after 1987 (see Table 5-2), and in 2000
over 250 CRADAs were active, using combined public and private resources of
TABLE 5-2 USDA Technology-Transfer Activities, 1987-2000
Patent License Number of Active
Number of Royalties, millions CRADAs with Value of CRADAs,a
Year Patents Awarded of dollars Private Sector millions of dollars
1987 34 0.09 9 1.6
1988 28 0.10 48 8.7
1989 47 0.42 86 15.6
1990 42 0.57 145 18.9
1991 57 0.83 181 25.6
1992 56 1.00 172 30.0
1993 57 1.50 172 34.0
1994 40 1.40 208 61.3
1995 38 1.60 229 80.1
1996 53 2.10 244 98.9
1997 35 2.30 273 155.5
1998 57 2.40 271 120.2
1999 74 2.40 298 136.7
2000 64 2.60 257 125.1
aIncludes total value of USDA and private-sector resources committed to active CRADAs over their
lifetime.
Source: USDA, ERS, compiled from ARS Office of Technology Transfer data in USDA (US
Department of Agriculture). 2000. Agricultural Resources and Environmental Indicators, 2000.
Washington, D.C.: Economic Research Service, Resource Economics Division, US Department of
Agriculture. Available online at http://www.ers.usda.gov/Emphases/Harmony/issues/arei2000/.
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$125 million. ARS contributions are on the average about one-third of total
resources and thus less than 5% of the ARS budget (Day-Rubenstein and Fuglie,
1999~. In FY 2001, ARS inhouse contributions were about $4.2 million, repre-
senting 35% of the total contributions. Cooperator inhouse contributions ($6 mil-
lion, or 50% of the total contributions) and cooperator contributions paid to ARS
($1.9 million, or 15% of the total) accounted for the remainder. A number of
patents have been awarded, and the patenting and licensing royalties returning to
ARS are now $2.6 million per year. According to ARS's Office of Technology
Transfer, in 2001, of the total royalties, 26% is allocated to incentive awards to
inventors (the law requires a minimum of 15%), 41% supports the salaries of
some of the technology-transfer staff to facilitate more agreements, and 27% sup-
ports patent filing preparation, fees, and patent annuity payments (USDA, 2001d).
The CRADA seems to be an important policy tool for increasing technology
transfer. Adams et al. (2001) examined industrial research and found that
CRADAs dominate the channels of technology transfer from federal laboratories
to the private sector, largely because of the effort that they demand of both parties.
Since the CRADA legislation was enacted in 1986, there has been increased
spending by the private sector in federal laboratories. Public-private partner-
ships are less well developed in agricultural research than in industrial research
and account for a smaller share of total research resources. But the existence of
CRADAs to help shape public-private collaboration since 1987 has resulted in
many successful examples of technology transfer. Box 5-2 provides examples of
CRADA activities that have resulted in important innovations in agricultural
production, environmental protection, and human health.
An important question in collaboration with the private sector is how the
results of research are controlled and shared. ARS was delegated authority by the
secretary of agriculture to administer the patent and license programs for USDA.
In contrast, CSREES subordinates its intellectual-property governance to that of
the institution receiving funds. The ARS Office of Technology Transfer is
assigned the responsibility for protecting intellectual property, developing strategic
partnerships with outside institutions, and performing other appropriate functions
that enhance the effective transfer of ARS technologies to users. The Office of
Technology Transfer also ensures that information about the commercial suc-
cesses of ARS is made available to the public. The stated ARS policy is "to use
the patent system to promote the utilization of inventions arising from its research,
to ensure that sufficient rights in inventions are obtained to meet the needs of the
Government, and to bring the invention to practical application." That is an
extremely broad policy statement that should be rewritten to give specific
guidance on USDA patent policy to other constituents in the agricultural research
community (such as industry).
The number of patents and the licensing and royalty fees generated provide
some measure of the effectiveness of technology-transfer efforts at USDA (Table
5-2~. This kind of research is relatively new, so no system is in place for perfor-
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COLLABORATION
111
mance measurement in terms of technology transfer, adoption, and impact. Future
monitoring of the impact of private-sector collaboration would help to assess the
benefits of such arrangements, which would help to address concerns about such
collaboration.
Benefits of and Concerns about Public-Private Collaboration
The outcomes of collaboration between the two distinct and complementary
research communities can be both favorable and adverse. First, ARS, land-grant
university, and industry collaboration may bring useful products to market more
rapidly and promote US technologic leadership in a changing world economy
(Reilly and Schimmelpfennig, 2000~. Second, in light of funding stagnation in
USDA and in many cases at the state level, such collaboration is a means of
raising new funds for public research, graduate education, and postdoctoral
fellowships (Smith et al., 1999~. Third, the collaboration can introduce public-
sector scientists and students to industry and enhance their understanding of the
nonacademic world of science (Rogers and Bozeman, 2001~. Fourth, the joint
efforts may expand the scientific network, increasing communication among some
industry, ARS, ERS, and university scientists to provide them access to cutting-
edge research tools, proprietary materials, and vast databases owned by particular
companies (Shoemaker et al., 2001~.
A number of concerns have been voiced regarding these new relationships.
First and foremost, there is concern that private-sector funds will set public-sector
priorities and divert public resources from research topics with broad social
benefits (Feller et al., 2002; Parker et al., 2001~. If a sufficiently large and influ-
ential number of academic scientists and engineers become involved with industry, a
whole range of research agendas that are traditionally the purview of the public
sector might be de-emphasized (Huffman and Just, l999b; Lacy, 2001~. The
scientific community might become desensitized to the environmental or social
impacts of proprietary research. Second, long-term research, previously a major
emphasis of the public sector, may decline. Dependence on private-sector funds
will generally change not only the time frame but also the stability of funding
(Shoemaker et al., 2001~. It seems unlikely that the public-sector-industry rela-
tionships will provide stable long-term funding, nor will they substantially address
the capital needs of the public sector. Third, there are concerns about restricting
scientific communication or the possibility of shelving research of interest to the
public but not to corporations (Heller and Eisenberg, 1998; Lacy, 2001~. Fourth,
there is concern about how the funds generated by royalty income may be allo-
cated to current research and reserves for future research (Dasgupta and David,
2002~. Finally, a dominant problem that public agencies face is gaining access to
proprietary technologies, an issue particularly relevant to the ability to execute
and commercialize research that is at least partially predicated on other technolo-
gies that are legally sequestered by other organizations so-called "interlocking"
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2
FRONTIERS IN AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH
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4
FRONTIERS IN AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH
technologies. This is an unfortunate characteristic of today's leading-edge agri-
cultural research, especially in biotechnology (Nottenburg et al., 2002~.
Because public-private collaboration is relatively new to the agricultural
sector and these relationships are still evolving, there are many unanswered ques-
tions about their benefits and risks. As we note in Chapter 3, the management of
intellectual property in agriculture constitutes an important opportunity for future
research. The data-gathering and analysis being carried out by ERS for monitor-
ing public and private research and development represent a very important
resource. Such socioeconomic research can help to inform future policy at ARS
and help REE to provide leadership for land-grant universities as they develop
technology-transfer models further. Examination of existing models in other
fields with long-established public-private collaboration, such as colleges of
engineering, can also help the public agricultural sector to define policy (Feller et
al., 2002; Rogers and Bozeman, 2001~.
FINDING: Collaboration between the public and private sectors is
increasing in agricultural research. Benefits of such collaborations
include more-successful technology transfer, increased support for
research, and expanded scientific networks. Concerns about such col-
laborations include their potential effect on priority-setting in the public
sector, on scientific-information generation, and on the allocation of
resources for future research. Many questions regarding the manage-
ment of intellectual property in agriculture are unresolved, and policy is
not well defined.
FUTURE STRATEGIES TO MANAGE
PUBLIC-PRIVATE COLLABORATION
The future will depend on strong, independent, complementary research
efforts by the public sector and the private sector. Neither will thrive for long if
the other is weakened or its goals and integrity are eroded. The future will also
involve continued expansion of public-sector and industry relationships and new
and creative forms of collaboration. REE can play a leadership role in the public
agricultural-research system in helping to define relationships that will best serve
the public interest.
RECOMMENDATION 6: REE should provide national leadership in
developing intellectual-property policy for agricultural research. REE
should address the potential consequences of public-private collabora-
tion with appropriate policies, practices, and organizational arrange-
ments that
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COLLABORATION
· Promote the greatest public benefit from agricultural research.
.
115
Protect the public investment in research.
· Prevent diversion of public resources away from research that can be
carried out only in the public sector.
· Pursue strategic private-sector collaboration necessary to achieve
public goals.
To accomplish these objectives, REE should establish ways to measure
the effectiveness of technology generation and transfer through private-
sector collaboration.
The policy should broadly define the extent to which collaboration would involve
support from the private sector and how earnings from successful technologies
could be reinvested in research programs. The committee acknowledges that, in
practice, implementation of intellectual-property policy is a complex and often
case-specific undertaking, as are the implications of intellectual-property policy
for research.
SUMMARY
This chapter has considered collaboration and strategic alliances as avenues
with great potential for addressing the research frontiers laid out in Chapter 3.
Multidisciplinary, systems-level approaches were discussed as a complement to
disciplinary approaches in addressing increasingly complex research problems.
Examples of effective multidisciplinary and collaborative efforts of the REE
agencies were described. The evolving relationship between the public and
private sectors resulting from changes in policy and in science and technology
was outlined, as were benefits of and concerns about public-private collabora-
tion. A more comprehensive strategy to manage collaboration with the private
sector is needed, including policies, practices, and organizational arrangements
that consider the potential consequences of public-private collaboration for the
public good.
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Representative terms from entire chapter:
ree agencies
