The University of Nebraska’s Robert B. Daugherty Water for Food Institute and the Rural Futures Institute are partnering to offer “Transdisciplinary Conversations,” a series of events designed to spur new directions in water for food research and collaboration.

The series brings together faculty, staff and students with a variety of backgrounds and expertise, along with colleagues in the private and nonprofit sectors, who share an interest in finding ways to help feed our growing world with less stress on water resources. The events aim to provide a forum for scientists, students, UNL Extension educators, business leaders, policymakers, farmers and others to gather informally and make cross-disciplinary connections they might not otherwise.

“In order to tackle some of our world’s biggest problems, interdisciplinary collaboration is needed,” said Christopher Neale, director of research at the Water for Food Institute. “The more we take time to come out of our silos and work with others, the more proficient we will become in developing creative and lasting solutions.”

The first Transdisciplinary Conversations event is from 4:30 to 6 p.m. Feb. 18 at the Nebraska Innovation Campus Conference Center. Food and drinks will be served. The event is open to the public; however, space is limited. Advance registration is required. To attend, RSVP here.

A brief talk will be given by Nick Brozovic, director of policy for the Water for Food Institute. Brozovic will share his experience building transdisciplinary collaborations on water management projects that include faculty and students from the social and biophysical sciences together with stakeholders from the private and governmental sectors. His informal presentation will focus on challenges to building research teams to improve understanding of interactions between groundwater pumping and related stream flow impacts.