A delegation of students and faculty from Iowa State University College of Agriculture and Life Sciences recently undertook a technical learning visit to the ACE4ES Multicultural Technology Park, hosted by the CSIR-Crops Research Institute. The visit formed part of an academic exchange focused on understanding how tropical agriculture integrates agroecology and circular economy innovations to reduce agricultural emissions.
The delegation was received by Dr. Kwaku Onwona-Hwesofour Asante, Principal Investigator of the ACE4ES Project, who led a detailed exposition of the technologies installed at the Park. These included composting and biochar systems for maize residues, alternative wetting and drying and SRI approaches for rice, symbiotic rice–duck–fish systems, integrated soil fertility management, and livestock biomass management solutions. Together, these innovations demonstrate practical pathways for reducing methane, black carbon, and nitrous oxide while sustaining productivity.

The tour was coordinated by Dr. Erasmus Tetteh, who guided the delegation across multiple sections of the Park and other research facilities at CSIR-CRI. Faculty members engaged actively with researchers, examining how field-based experimentation, emissions monitoring, and farmer-oriented demonstrations are combined within a single living laboratory.
Participants expressed strong interest in the Park’s integrated design, noting its relevance for research, training, and technology scaling across the Global South. Faculty members highlighted opportunities for joint research, graduate training, and extension collaboration with the ACE4ES team and CSIR-CRI.

The visit reinforces the position of the ACE4ES Multicultural Technology Park as a regional hub for applied research on super-pollutant mitigation in agriculture and the waste sector, linking science, practice, and policy to advance climate-smart food systems in Africa and beyond.