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ARS Home » Plains Area » Fort Collins, Colorado » Center for Agricultural Resources Research » Agricultural Genetic Resources Preservation Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #395077
Research Project: Efficient and Effective Preservation and Management of Plant and Microbial Genetic Resource Collections

Location: Agricultural Genetic Resources Preservation Research

Title: GRIN-U.org: An online repository for learning materials on plant genetic resources

Author
item BYRNE, PATRICK - Colorado State University
item NAMUTH-COVERT, DEANA - Colorado State University
item Kinard, Gary
item Gu, Lirong
item CHEN, KATHERYN - Colorado State University
item Volk, Gayle

Submitted to: ASA-CSSA-SSSA Annual Meeting Abstracts
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 8/31/2022
Publication Date: 11/7/2022
Citation: Byrne, P.F., Namuth-Covert, D., Kinard, G.R., Gu, L.M., Chen, K., Volk, G.M. 2022. GRIN-U.org: An online repository for learning materials on plant genetic resources [abstract]. 2022 ASA-CSSA-SSSA International Annual Meeting. Paper No. 77-1.

Interpretive Summary: N/A

Technical Abstract: Genebank curatorial staff and plant genetic resources (PGR) stakeholders require knowledge and skills to conserve and use germplasm effectively. With funding from a USDA-NIFA Higher Education Challenge Grant, a team of USDA-ARS and university scientists has developed learning materials (including videos, ebook chapters, infographics, and online courses) to support training in PGR conservation and utilization. GRIN.org is a new component of USDA’s Germplasm Resources Information Network (GRIN) that provides access to these materials. Since becoming available in July 2021, the site has received more than 1,500 unique users, mostly from the U.S. Some of the materials focus specifically on genebank operations (e.g., the ebook ‘Training in Plant Genetic Resources: Cryopreservation of Clonal Propagules’), while others are targeted to a general audience (e.g., the video ‘Three Sisters: Companion Planting of North American Indigenous Peoples’). The videos produced by this project are also accessible through a YouTube channel, GRIN-U Education. As part of the same project, three 1-credit graduate level online courses are being offered by Colorado State University in Fall 2022 and will continue to be offered in future years. The courses focus on the origins and structure of plant genetic diversity; genebank management operations; and use of PGR for gene discovery and crop improvement. Current efforts include publishing an ebook on the impacts of climate change on PGR; compiling breeding success stories; completing additional videos to support genebank operations; and measuring impacts. Our goal for GRIN-U is that it will be widely used in university courses, genebank training programs, and informal educational settings, thereby highlighting the role crop genetic diversity plays in ensuring global food security.