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Unlocking the Climate-Smart Potential
of Controlled Environment Agriculture

Resource Innovation Institute (RII) is a not-for-profit, public-private partnership who brings together industry leaders, governments, and utilities to collaboratively find data-driven solutions to advance controlled environment agriculture (CEA), and to shape supportive policies, programs, and best practices.

Read about the US CEA Market Accelerator ➝

In partnership with

RII's Latest Report on CEA in the Census

Explore key 10-year trends in controlled environment production with our comprehensive report. Gain valuable insights into the U.S. market potential for CEA, complete with thoughtfully designed data visualizations. Empower your decision-making and stay ahead in the industry with actionable findings tailored for professionals like you.

Our Vision

We advance farm productivity and community resilience.

To us, climate-smart agriculture includes water-wise, locally grown production that is quantifiably lower in life cycle carbon emissions impacts. We’re here to prove it.

We achieve our mission by working in three program areas:

  • Data & Research
  • Education & Training
  • Market Development

Access best practice guidance towards resource efficiency

RII offers Best Practices Guides designed specifically for producers of food, floriculture and medicine, as well as key market actors like governments and utilities. These reports, sponsored by partners like the USDA and the US Department of Energy, are written by RII’s technical team with insights from our subject matter expert Technical Advisory Council faculty members.

Download our latest guides
to begin your journey towards resource efficiency
Water Circularity
Controls & Automation
Environmental Accounting & Reporting
Latest News
September 18, 2024 in Press Release

RII Announces CEA Accelerator Working Group Topics Focused on AI, Robotics, Energy Management, and High-Tech Greenhouse Strategies

Funded by the U.S. Department of Energy, working groups will be hosted in partnership with Berkeley Lab as part of the CEA Accelerator ProjectPORTLAND, Ore. (September 17, 2024) — Resource Innovation Institute (RII), a not-for-profit, public-private partnership advancing climate resilience, announced today the topics for its working groups under the CEA Accelerator Project. Funded through…
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Quick Links
Press Releases
Blog posts
Published Stories
Events
September 18, 2024 in Blog

Georgia on The CEA Accelerator’s Mind

In the iteration of the CEA Accelerator Community Profile series, we look at the potential impact CEA can have in Georgia and the industry vision Ebony Tree Farms hopes to bring to life.As part of their shared development work on the national Controlled Environment Agriculture Accelerator program, Resource Innovation Institute (RII) team members and representatives…
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September 13, 2024 in Blog

Circularity Opportunities to Reduce Your CEA Operation’s Carbon Footprint

Looking at downstream outputs can help controlled environment agriculture growers unlock carbon footprint-reducing solutions.In developing sustainable agriculture businesses that serve local communities, controlled environment agriculture (CEA) companies are pioneering innovative ways to enhance efficiency and reduce waste. By embracing circularity, indoor farms can significantly reduce their carbon footprints, enhance resource efficiency, and create economic value…
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September 9, 2024 in Blog

CEA Food Trends in the USDA Census of Agriculture

CEA is often pitched as a tool to address food deserts and swamps, and data from the 2022 USDA AgCensus supports that story.On August 7, RII presented some of the main food-related CEA trends found in the USDA Census of Agriculture. RII’s Carmen Azzaretti and USDA’s James Altland, a Research Leader in the Application Technology…
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EDUCATION

Improve Your Efficiency With RII’s Best Practices Guides

The horticultural market has changed a lot, technology has advanced, and so have the technical terms used to describe everything. RII’s peer reviewed Best Practices Guides help growers understand the most resource efficient HVAC and lighting technologies for controlled environment agriculture. We are here to show growers how to use efficient.

➝ Download Reports

INTELLIGENCE

Resource Benchmarking, Baselines & Standards

PowerScore, our resource benchmarking platform analyzes facility-level performance on energy, emissions, water and waste. We help compare farm performance against similar peers. Cultivators and their supply chain partners can assess differences between HVAC and lighting technologies designed for controlled environment agriculture operations.

➝ See PowerScore

POLICY & UTILITY COORDINATION

Resource Efficient Controlled Environment Agriculture

As an objective, data-driven non-profit organization, RII informs effective policies and incentives that accelerate conservation. RII has provided a trusted, stakeholder-driven voice as leading jurisdictions, including Massachusetts, California, Illinois and Colorado, have established policies and codes addressing the energy and water impacts of controlled environment agriculture. In late 2019, RII formed its Utility Working Group on Controlled Environment Agriculture to enable power suppliers and energy efficiency program administrators to learn from each other and advance best practices on program design, savings methodologies and grower outreach.

➝ Join Utility Working Group

Featured Press
Resource Innovation Institute: Advancing Resource Efficiency to Create a Better Agricultural Future