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Community Impact

Research universities support a broad array of public service and outreach activities. Through their research and service, faculty and students at AAU institutions are continually improving their local communities, our country, and the world. Research universities help to: improve education, enhance public health and safety, advance the arts and humanities, protect the environment, bolster crop yields and food production, promote economic growth, and improve our overall quality of life. AAU seeks to strengthen the many ways in which research universities serve society. 

Impacting Communities, Changing Lives

President Mary Sue Coleman writes about how America’s leading research universities are transforming lives through public service and community outreach.
Impacting Communities, Changing Lives
Ed Kaiser, research technologist, of the Penn State Mushroom Spawn Lab.

Penn State Mushroom Spawn Lab Aids Industry

Commercial mushroom farms, academic researchers and mushroom hobbyists rely on the Penn State Mushroom Spawn Lab. The Lab is especially important for Pennsylvania's $764 million mushroom industry, which leads the United States in mushroom production. The industry also supports 8,600 jobs in the state.
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Engineers’ Plan Would Avert NYC’s Dreaded L Train Shutdown

Cornell and Columbia engineers have developed a new plan to avert the L Train shutdown in New York City, a perhaps a new model for how major infrastructure projects can be evaluated.
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An expert group of engineers, including Cornell Engineering Dean Lance Collins and Professor Tom O'Rourke, tour the Canarsie Tunnel.
Image: Wind turbine overlooks harbor.

Eight Ways Boston Could Become Carbon Free

Research led by the Boston University Institute for Sustainable Energy (ISE) reveals the massive strides that Boston will have to make in order for the city to reach its goal of carbon neutrality—having a zero net carbon footprint—by 2050.
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Ready, Set, Brake

Researchers at UNC are asking the tough questions to ensure that the driverless car picking you up will be safe for passengers, bicyclists, and pedestrians alike.
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Illustration of driverless car
Pothole image

Pavement Research Center Keeps California on the Road

The UC Pavement Research Center is one of a handful of advanced labs in the world carrying out scientific research on road materials, with the goal of making roads that are cheaper and faster to build and maintain.
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Employees at AAU Universities

Economic Impact of AAU Universities

AAU universities create jobs, produce innovative technologies, and boost local economies. In 2019 alone, AAU paid $95.5 billion in salaries to 811,222 employees, produced 5,033 patents, and fostered the creation of 668 start-ups. 39 AAU universities are in the top 50 for producing venture capital-backed entrepreneurs in 2020, and 427 start-up companies were generated in the university's home state in 2019.

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Economic Impact Guidelines

AAU-APLU Economic Impact Guidelines

AAU, in partnership with the Association of Public & Land-grant Universities (APLU), published a report for universities that are studying and communicating about how they contribute to economic development and advancing their economic engagement.

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Explore More: Stories of Community Impact

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In partnership with Providence’s Building Futures, Brown jump-starts careers in construction

Over 15 years, more than 320 apprentices from Building Futures have trained at dozens of construction sites on Brown’s campus — providing them with the training they need to secure stable, well-paying careers.
Brown University | Community Impact

Brown med school students elevate health care for Rhode Island’s underserved and underinsured

At Providence’s Clínica Esperanza and the Rhode Island Free Clinic, student volunteers from the Warren Alpert Medical School work tirelessly to improve not only health care but the health care system.
Brown University | Community Impact

A Summer of Discontent in Long Island’s Coastal Waters

Scientists at Stony Brook University have completed their assessment of water quality in Long Island’s estuaries in 2021 and the news is not good. During the months of June through October, every major bay and estuary across Long Island was afflicted by toxic algae blooms and oxygen-starved, dead zones. Excessive delivery of nitrogen from onsite wastewater has been cited as the cause of these disturbing events. The news was announced on October 7 at the Patchogue waterfront by Christopher J. Gobler, Ph.D., Endowed Chair of Coastal Ecology and Conservation at the School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences (SoMAS) at Stony Brook University.
Stony Brook University - The State University of New York | Community Impact | University Research

Scientists at UF use AI to try to more accurately predict citrus yield

University of Florida researchers are using artificial intelligence to help citrus growers better forecast their seasonal production. So far, they’ve found in a preliminary study that their technology predicts yields with 98% accuracy.
University of Florida | Community Impact | University Research

Hemp flowering behavior research provides further guidance for Florida growers

New UF/IFAS research suggests Florida growers must carefully select hemp varieties and factor the length of a given day when scheduling when to plant.
University of Florida | Community Impact | University Research