Three part presentation -- 1) Agriculture MUST play a major role in the future of our world. Feeding nine billion, peace, stability, etc. But, against headwinds including climate change and animal/human health interface. 2) Technology WILL play a role due to exponential growth, applications, etc. Includes conversation about big data, artificial intelligence, sharing economy, automation, driver-less equipment, and the Internet of Things 3) Concludes with a look at an "imaginary" agricultural professional and leader in the year 2027 and how she might use these technologies to address new, exciting needs in the ag industry.

1. Agriculture’s Big
Challenges
(Opportunities) in 2027
& Beyond
John Shutske
Professor and
Extension Specialist
Biological Systems
Engineering

4. Biological Systems Engineering
• BSE – Design, manage, apply
engineered systems and
innovation in food systems,
energy, & the environment
• 225 undergrads
• Accredited Engineering
program (ABET)
• Active Research & Extension
program leadership
• Multi-Disciplinary partner with
other UW units and private
sector

5. MY Work
Engineering & Design solutions to address HIGH RISK issues at the interface
of rapidly evolving ag/food production systems, PEOPLE, & the environment

6. Three Parts (Acts):
• Act 1: The world is in a good place
• Act 2: Solutions = Technology + Great People!
• Act 3: Natalie (our 2027 professional who will start
school in a couple months)

7. The World is in a
Good Place

8. Two very inspiring articles…

9. The Atlantic (late 2015)
• Hunger
• Health
• Poverty
• Freedom
• Education (including
women/girls)

10. VOX (3/20/2015)
•Poverty, hunger,
health
•Leisure time
•Life expectancy
•Violence and
homicide
•Literacy
•Etc. Note: Ezra Klein is Ed in Chief for VOX, formerly
with Washington Post, Bloomberg, MSNBC

11. Good Things & Politics Aside, We
Cannot Take Our Eyes off the Ball!

15. Highest GHIs
• Undernourishment
• Percent “wasting”
of kids under five
• Proportion of
stunted growth
• Child mortality
under age five
Summarized data from: International Food Policy
Research Institute & table from Wikipedia

18. 4
Weird, Wild, Whacky Weather…

20. One Medicine, One Health
MAD
COW
DISEASE
(from USDA-APHIS)

21. Summary Part 1
• Great things on our planet, positive trajectory
• We have major challenges ahead if we want to continue on a
positive path
– Feeding 9.7 million people (especially more protein) but also
continuing production of biofuels
– The “feeding 9 billion” opportunity comes with its own challenges
including a changing climate; a finite land base; and, a strong set of
connections between animal health and human health

22. How will We
Tackle This
Opportunity
& Set of
Complex
Challenges?

23. As a child of
the Apollo Era,
let me suggest
it’s about
TECHNOLOGY
& PEOPLE

24. Technology – Including Phones, Computers,
Vehicles, Biological Advancements
• Exponential
growth and
capability

26. Something Doubles ever year…
• Give me a buck ($1) in 1960…What’s it worth in 1961?
• 1965? $32
• 1969? $512 (Neil Armstrong walked on the moon, and the
Archies had the #1 song)
• 1979? $524,288
• 1993? $8.6 billion
• 2017? $144,115,188,075,856,000 (144 quadrillion)
• That’s a lot of dough!!

27. So What?
• Moore’s Law –
computing power
doubles every 12-18
months
• More computing power
in your pocket than in
ALL of NASA in 1969
• At 1961 cost, the graphic
processor in our IPhone
would cost $637 trillion

28. 5 Mega-Trends
Impacting Agriculture
• Big (and not so big) Data
• Artificial Intelligence
• Autonomous Vehicles
• Sharing and Collaborative
Economy Business Models
• Changes in Future
Workforce & Leadership

29. Big Data (and
just a huge
amount of data
more generally)
• Generation of
data is like a
growing tsunami
• Driven by new
data collection
devices

31. Sensors, Internet of Things
• This tsunami facilitated by
cheap data storage
• Wisconsin MUST figure
out reliable, affordable
broadband & mobile (or,
we will be eating dust)
• Questions about data
security, ownership,
impact on asset values

33. Flickr: iphonedigital
SIRI

34. Alexa (Echo)

35. J.A.R.V.I.S.
Source: http://www.thegeekocracy.com/cool-iphone-interface-marvels-iron-man-3-jarvis-ios-app/

36. Artificial
Intelligence
• Early ag applications
• Healthcare, bio-applications
• Watson (the same one that
won Jeopardy) – Reads
700,000 cancer treatment
journal articles from 1-year
& suggests treatments in
previously untreatable cases
• Can this work in
Agriculture?
• WARNING

37. Autonomous Vehicles: Cars, Trucks,
Tractors, Robotic, UAV’s

38. Autonomous
Vehicles
• Google, Tesla,
international companies
• Safety current concern,
but will ultimately be the
main selling point
• Will include trucks
• Biggest delay NOT the
tech – it’s regulation and
insurers
• Farm applications will
come fast

42. Changes in
Agriculture’s Future
Workforce & Leaders

43. Percentage Enrollment – Women in CALS
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
1970
1975
1980
1985
1990
1995
2000
2002
2003
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
2014
2015

45. The Role of Women
• USDA – Principal operators, $12.9B annual ag sales
• Women MUST play role in “Feeding Nine Billion” – they make
up 43% of ag labor in developing countries
• When women have equal access, productivity can be 30%
greater
• Fortune 500: Boards with more women generate 42% greater
return on sales & 53% higher return on equity

46. Summary
Part 2
• We’ve never seen rates of
change like we see today
• Major applications in
agriculture if we embrace the
possibilities
• Urge caution – Despite the
roles of all this digital stuff,
we STILL NEED PEOPLE
• Some exciting developments
and opportunities with the
growing role of women

47. September 2015 – Meet Natalie

48. Photograph From:
http://www.smac.us/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/Smartening-Businesses-with-Mobile-Technology-through-
Tablets-and-Smartphones.jpg

52. Google

54. v
Drones?

55. • “Soon we will salt the oceans, the land
and the sky with uncounted numbers
of sensors invisible to the eye but
visible to one another…”
• Esther Dyson, Journalist and
Wall Street technology analyst

56. Imagine --
• Every dairy cow in Wisconsin
• Every beef animal in the U.S.
• Every 100th ash tree in the Midwest
• Every musky in Lake Mendota
• Every warm-blooded pet
• Every person Rice-grain sized, near-field
rechargeable battery from
Stanford – an “electroceutical“
device

57. From: http://www.pursuant.com/blog/tag/dikw-model/

59. )
Photo Credits for Feeding Nine Billion Section – Also indicated in
speaker notes section of PowerPoint
Atlantic Magazine: https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2015/12/good-news-in-
2015/421200/
VOX: https://www.vox.com/2014/11/24/7272929/charts-thankful
The Economist: http://www.economist.com/node/18200618
Population Reference Bureau: http://www.prb.org/publications/Datasheets/2012/world-population-
data-sheet/fact-sheet-world-population.aspx
GHI Table – From Wikipedia
Ag and Peace: Food and Ag Org of UN - http://www.fao.org/news/story/en/item/411091/icode/
Water Slide: pandiyan on Flickr, Creative Commons.
One Medicine Slide: From USDA-Animal, Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS)

60. Photo Credit: Moon Light PhotoStudio @Shutterstock.com (under paid license)
Photo Credit: agsandrew @Shutterstock.com (under paid license)
http://www.futuristgerd.com/
Photo Credit: agsandrew @Shutterstock.com (under paid license)
Photo Credit: irin-k @Shutterstock.com (under paid license)
Photo Credit: Rawpixel.com @Shutterstock (under paid license)
Photo from: www.theAgDataConference.com
Photo Credit: a-image @ Shutterstock.com (under paid license)
Photo Credit: boris15 @ Shutterstock.com (under paid license)
Flickr: iphonedigital
Photo from Amazon.com
Photo from: http://www.thegeekocracy.com/cool-iphone-interface-marvels-iron-man-3-jarvis-ios-
app/
Photo Credit: boris15 @ Shutterstock.com (under paid license)
Personal (tractor at FPS)
Photo Credit: posteriori @Shutterstock.com (under paid license)
Graphic from Vladimir Mirkovic – www.transartdesign.com
Photo from: https://www.bloomberg.com/
Photo from: http://www.popularmechanics.com/cars/a4354/4320759/
Photo Credit: Shutterstock (under paid license)
Photo Credit: Left – Alliance @Shutterstock.com Right – Buppha @Shutterstock.com (under paid
license)
Photo Credit: Nolanberg11 @ Shutterstock.com (under paid license)
Photo Credits for Technology Section – Also indicated in speaker
notes section of PowerPoint

61. Both Natalie Slides: Photo from: https://www.flickr.com/photos/83633410@N07/ Used via Creative
Commons lisc.
SmartPhone Hologram pic: http://www.smac.us/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/Smartening-Businesses-
with-Mobile-Technology-through-Tablets-and-Smartphones.jpg
Tech Teacher in Classroom: https://www.fastcompany.com/2681458/in-ciscos-classroom-of-the-future-
your-professor-is-just-an-illusion
VR: oculusvr.com
Driverless Car: Google, creative commons, on Flickr
Big Drone: Creative Commons license https://www.flickr.com/photos/69214385@N04/
Small Drone: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z78mgfKprdg
Tiny Battery: http://news.stanford.edu/news/2014/may/electronic-wireless-transfer-051914.html
Knowledge Pyramid: pursuant.com (see contact in speaker notes)
Photo Credits for Natalie Futures Section – Also indicated in
speaker notes section of PowerPoint