Dr. Uttara Samarakoon is an associate professor at The Ohio State Agricultural Technical Institute (ATI). She is also the coordinator of the Associate of Applied Degree program in Greenhouse and Nursery Management at OSU. Her research program focuses on developing sustainable crop production technology for ornamentals and hydroponic vegetables in controlled environment agriculture. Current research focus on developing sustainable production techniques for hydroponic food crop production. via nutrient optimization, substrate selection and diversification of hydroponic crops. She organizes an annual workshop for K-12 teachers to provide training in greenhouse management and to integrate CEA education into the school curriculum.