Lakshya Sharma is student coordination manager for the Resource Center of Excellence Greater Atlanta, one of dozens of such centers around the world working to advance the United Nations’ sustainable development goals. An ORAU Innovation Partnership Grant was awarded to RCE Greater Atlanta and Georgia Tech to help fund an Urban Horticulture and Permaculture Workshop, which brought together students from Georgia Tech, the University of Georgia, Georgia State, Morehouse College, Spelman College and other institutions across the Atlanta area. In this episode of Further Together, Sharma talks to host Michael Holtz and guest host Tracie Curtright from ORAU’s Research and University Partnerships Office about the workshop. Sharma says students learned to incorporate plant life into their daily lives by Gardening where they are. Sharma says the series of workshops also focused on the Mental Health benefits of caring for and having plants in your physical environment. Curtright shared details about the IPG program, and how ORAU’s university partners can apply to use these $4,000 grants to grow attendance and dissemination of events like the one Sharma and his team organized. To learn more about the IPG program, visit https://orau.org/partnerships/grant-programs/innovation-partnerships.html

Most Recent Episodes

December 12, 2024

The state of research at ORAU, and a look ahead to our 2025 annual meeting

Ken Tobin, chief research officer, and Cathy Fore, senior director of university partnerships, sit down with hosts Michael Holtz and Abbey Becker to discuss the state of research at ORAU. As an...

Listen · 49:15

November 21, 2024

A polar vortex, Antarctica and a balloon-borne telescope: A conversation with Ali Alqaraghuli, NASA NPP Fellow

Ali Alqaraghuli, Ph.D., was just about to start his NASA Postdoctoral Fellowship when he was interviewed by Further Together host Michael Holtz. Alqaraghuli's research focuses on the ASTHROS...

Listen · 23:35

November 13, 2024

Under Pressure: An epidemic of loneliness, a parental/caregiver stress crisis, contributing factors and how ORAU is helping

The U.S. Surgeon General says Americans are confronting an epidemic of loneliness. About half of U.S. adults report experiencing loneliness, and that was before the COVID-19 pandemic. Loneliness has...

Listen · 1:23:14

Load More Episodes

Michael Holtz Host, Further Together: The ORAU Podcast

Michael Holtz, APR, MPRCA, is a senior communications and marketing specialist for ORAU, a government contractor based in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. In his role he serves as the host of Further Together: The ORAU Podcast. He is also a content creator for orau.org and ORAU Story, the company's annual report. He also manages media relations activities for the organization. Outside of work, Michael is a cancer activist, leaning into his experience as a 12-year survivor of Stage 3B rectal cancer. Michael is a volunteer for Man Up to Cancer, the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network, Fight Colorectal Cancer and the National Coalition for Cancer Survivorship. Michael lives in Knoxville, Tennessee, with his lovely wife, Sarah, and their rescue dog, a golden bassett named Marley.