What We Do

    Advancing agriculture's ability to become a solution to climate change.

    OpenTEAM began in 2019 to create build a supportive community and technology ecosystem for agriculture and soil health through interoperable tools for land stewards. Facilitated by Wolfe’s Neck Center for Agriculture and the Environment, the OpenTEAM community has grown to include over 45 organizations that contribute to a team of over 250 skilled professionals problem solving across traditional boundaries.

    Our goals are not simply to create better research and decision tools, but to demonstrate a collaborative approach to data portability & soil health research that will catalyze transformation in agriculture and global systems science.​

    OpenTEAM Progress Update: Year Two in Review

    OpenTEAM Progress Update: Year Two in Review

    OpenTEAM has collectively designed and built a free and open source digital equity toolkit that provides a framework for universal access to agricultural knowledge and laid the groundwork to accelerate future development that is responsive to the needs of producers, purchasers, governments and markets. We are incorporating an equity lens into the work that we do so that we can design a technology ecosystem that is more accessible, equitable, and universal for the diverse group of farmers and food companies that are a part of it. By acting as a convener, technology steward, and technical facilitator, OpenTEAM is increasing integrability, interoperability, and knowledge shared across the agricultural technology landscape for a more sustainable technology ecosystem.

     

    By using a farmer-focused design process, this technology ecosystem provides farms of all scales, geographies and production systems with the best possible knowledge to improve their soil health. Driven by farmer trust and local innovation, this ecosystem enables farmers to both customize recommendations and tools for their own farms and accelerate shared public scientific understanding. OpenTEAM links global networks of farms to enable the exchange of agricultural knowledge, information, and inspiration on a global scale—ultimately improving soil health, accelerating innovation, and mitigating climate change.

    CONVENING COLLABORATORS

    Through working groups, Collabathons, and In-Depth Learning Series, we are targeting specific work streams to develop stronger support systems for farmers and ranchers, test and refine our technology toolkit, and convene over major projects like the development of a conceptual framework to an environmental claims clearinghouse. Using these collaborative approaches to peer-to-peer support and learning, members of the OpenTEAM community have opportunities to connect with others who can support their work, test out services and platforms in the field, and co-create the technology ecosystem.

    STEWARDING TECHNOLOGY

    OpenTEAM believes that developing greater access to tools that provide data-driven feedback is key to helping land stewards understand their soils and make better, timely decisions. We are building an interoperable technology ecosystem that includes field-level carbon measurement, digital management records, remote sensing, predictive analytics, and input and economic management decision support. This connected technology toolkit supports adaptive soil health management for farms of all scales, geographies and production systems and reduces the need for farmer data entry. Through working groups and Collabathons, we are helping agricultural technologies to work together while simultaneously building feedback mechanisms throughout our Hub & Associated Network Farms and Ranches that allow these technologies to adapt to the needs of the communities they serve.

    EQUIPPING FOOD SYSTEMS LEADERS

    At OpenTEAM, we recognize that farmers and ranchers require trusted local networks and data-driven feedback to adapt their management plans to become more resilient economically and ecologically. Not only are we collaboratively building an open agricultural technology ecosystem, but we are equipping food systems leaders with the knowledge necessary to navigate and apply this ecosystem themselves in order to transition to regenerative agriculture practices, improve their soil health, and combat climate change. By developing feedback mechanisms, providing training on tools, and adding additional capacity, we hope to create stronger systems of support and bridge the gaps farmers and ranchers currently face within the OpenTEAM technology ecosystem.