Arkansas Tech University agriculture business student Anna Douglas recently participated in a study away opportunity that allowed her to learn how technology, artificial intelligence, data and innovation are shaping the future of agriculture.
Douglas traveled to North Carolina for the National Society of MANRRS (Minorities in Agriculture, Natural Resources and Related Sciences) S².M.A.R.T. Academy, which provides educational opportunities in supply chain and manufacturing, sales and marketing, agricultural education and recruitment and technology.
She visited BASF, Syngenta, Stratagon and North Carolina A&T State University to learn how those organizations are advancing agriculture.
“One of my highlights was spending the day at BASF’s Center for Sustainable Agriculture, where we learned how they’re utilizing AI and technology to optimize workflows and bring new advancements and systems to the field for farmers to use,” said Douglas, who is from Russellville. “We also had the opportunity to tour one of their greenhouses and see how technology is being used in controlled environments to improve how crops are grown and managed.”
Additional experiences included following the journey of an agricultural product at Syngenta, learning how to create efficiencies through internal processes at Stratagon and observing how artificial intelligence can be deployed to increase milk production and health among dairy cattle at North Carolina A&T.
“Beyond all of the technology we got to see, one of my favorite parts of the academy was meeting more members of the MANRRS family,” said Douglas, who serves as vice president for the ATU chapter of the National Society of MANRRS. “I loved getting to build my network, learn from people who are passionate about agriculture and see firsthand how deep the MANRRS roots run. I especially enjoyed meeting former MANRRS members who are now leaders within these companies and hearing about their journeys and the role MANRRS played along the way.
“This experience gave me a much bigger picture of what the future of agriculture can look like,” continued Douglas. “From horticulture and crop protection to AI, business technology and precision livestock systems, there are so many different ways technology is changing agriculture. I am incredibly grateful to MANRRS for giving me the opportunity to learn from so many incredible people and see that innovation firsthand.”
Learn more about the ATU agriculture program at www.atu.edu/agriculture.
