Rural roads lined with corn and soybeans in Indiana are a stark contrast to the large tech buildings lining the highways of Silicon Valley in California. These two areas differ in almost every way except one: Digital innovation is alive and well in rural Indiana. The Wabash Heartland Innovation Network is working to bring the power of tech to 10 counties.

WHIN began in 2017, after receiving funds from the Lilly Endowment. These funds are used to promote growth, community impact and advancement in digital agriculture in Pulaski, White, Cass, Benton, Carroll, Tippecanoe, Warren, Fountain, Montgomery and Clinton counties.

Jason Tennenhouse, WHIN’s vice president of strategy and design, shared that their goal is to ensure agriculturists and manufacturers aren’t slipping behind in innovation and advancement. WHIN has already worked to solve issues its alliance members have experienced. Examples include creating technology that can read the moisture content of grain bins, weather stations that allow for timely harvest plans and a promise to meet the needs of farmers within its alliance.

Reaching goals

The WHIN Alliance is an exclusive partnership of affiliated agribusinesses in north-central Indiana receiving products and services designed to support and encourage adoption of internet-enabled technologies to reduce costs, increase efficiencies and optimize operations. These technologies aim to solve problems farmers are facing. By expanding broadband, providing high-tech data, investing in community beautification projects and developing opportunities for advancement in manufacturing technologies, WHIN is shaping the future of the agriculture and manufacturing industries.

Through many facets such as community investment, accelerating the adoption of Internet of Things technologies, precise weather stations located on WHIN Alliance members’ land, and an aerostat with the potential to expand broadband for miles, WHIN is fulfilling its mission to develop a community that can operate as a living laboratory for education and scientific research. The ultimate goal is to establish the Wabash Heartland as the global epicenter of digital agriculture and next-generation manufacturing.

Education, research and innovation are all pillars in the goal. With partnerships through Purdue University and Ivy Tech Community College, WHIN is providing education, gaining information, and advancing research and technology used by farmers. These university partnerships provide students and staff with the opportunity to impact the lives of agriculturists and manufacturers in their communities.

Helping economy

By helping to create a 10-county region driven by data and innovation, WHIN hopes to draw key players to the rural Indiana region with data partnerships and potentially supply jobs to Indiana residents. These partnerships also provide alliance members with discounts for technologies that can create a positive impact on their work. Advancing precision agriculture and high-tech manufacturing will ultimately advance the quality of life for residents across Indiana.

Tennenhouse shares that these advancements will not only provide farmers and others with access to innovative agricultural solutions, but they may also attract more investment in Indiana agriculture. These advancements will leave WHIN Alliance members with the tools they need to create a beneficial impact on their land and their livelihoods.

As of 2020, the WHIN Alliance had 50 members across the 10-county region. The alliance continues to grow, providing members and investors with more data to create more precise solutions for the issues farmers are facing in their communities.

Cripps is a senior in agricultural communication at Purdue University.