Resource Innovation Institute

What Resource Innovation Institute does

Resource Innovation Institute (RII) is a Portland, Oregon-based non-profit organization founded in 2016 that develops research, benchmarking tools, and educational resources to advance resource efficiency in controlled environment agriculture (CEA), including greenhouses, vertical farms, and indoor cultivation facilities. Its portfolio spans four core product lines: PowerScore, a benchmarking platform that enables producers to measure energy, water, and emissions performance against peer facilities using standardized KPIs; CEA SiteScout, a geospatial feasibility tool that integrates environmental, social, and infrastructure data to evaluate greenhouse siting and data center colocation potential; the GrowBuild Certificate Program, a self-paced professional training credential issued in partnership with Ohio State University; and a library of expert-reviewed Best Practices Guides covering topics from AI and robotics to water circularity, HVAC, lighting, and fire safety.

RII serves four overlapping stakeholder groups: CEA producers seeking efficiency guidance and benchmarking, governments and utilities developing CEA-related policy and incentive programs, design/construction/operations professionals needing workforce training, and academic and research institutions conducting CEA research. Its technology architecture combines a geospatial siting tool (SiteScout), a benchmarking data platform (PowerScore), and a structured Technology Catalog organized across energy, water, building envelope, hardware, process, CO2 utilization, and colocation categories, all developed under multi-year programs such as the DOE-funded CEA Accelerator with Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.

The organization's revenue model is a mix of federal government grants (U.S. Department of Energy IEDO and USDA NRCS), recurring membership fees, and project-based research collaborations with state governments, universities, and private companies. Most publications are distributed free via the website, while the GrowBuild certificate program operates on an annual membership-discounted pricing model with the Ohio State University issuing the credential. Distribution is primarily self-serve digital, with engagement supplemented by webinars, community visits, and working groups. RII's strategic positioning has increasingly centered on the intersection of CEA decarbonization and data center waste heat utilization, evidenced by active colocation feasibility studies in Virginia and North Dakota.

Name

Resource Innovation Institute

Legal name

Resource Innovation Institute

Website

https://resourceinnovation.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Resource Innovation Institute is a non-profit organization that develops benchmarking tools (PowerScore), geospatial feasibility analysis (CEA SiteScout), best practice guides, and credentialed training to advance resource efficiency in controlled environment agriculture for producers, governments, utilities, and design professionals.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Agricultural Research Services

NAICS

Other Scientific and Technical Consulting Services (541690), Environmental Consulting Services (54162)

SIC

Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731), Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

akta.pro primary industry

CEA Monitoring, Sensors & Automation Software (SCADA, IoT, Climate/Recipe Control) (AFAAAHAG)

Keywords

• Controlled environment agriculture
• Resource efficiency benchmarking
• Greenhouse energy management
• Agricultural research services
• Professional certification programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Portland

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Government Grants: Primary funding from U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Industrial Efficiency and Decarbonization Office and USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service for research projects, CEA Accelerator program, and market transformation initiatives.
2. Membership Fees: Organization offers membership with benefits including up to 50% discount on certificate programs. Members include producers, vendors, governments, utilities, and academic institutions.
3. Research Collaborations: RII partners with state governments, universities, and private companies on specific research projects such as the Legendary Harvest Project with NDSU and Virginia colocation feasibility studies.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Resource Innovation Institute (RII) is a Portland, Oregon-based non-profit that convenes research, policy, and industry stakeholders to advance resource efficiency in Controlled Environment Agriculture (CEA), including greenhouses and indoor farms. It sells and licenses data-driven benchmarking tools (PowerScore), geospatial siting tools (CEA SiteScout), a professional certification program (GrowBuild Certificate), best practices guides, a technology catalog, and market intelligence reports. Its services are funded through government grants, membership dues, and paid research collaborations with utilities, regulators, and producers.

Product overview

Resource Innovation Institute (RII) is a not-for-profit organization offering a portfolio of research, benchmarking, and educational products focused on controlled environment agriculture (CEA) resource efficiency. The core offerings include: PowerScore (benchmarking platform for energy, water, and carbon tracking), CEA SiteScout (geospatial site feasibility tool), GrowBuild Certificate Program (professional training in partnership with Ohio State University), and comprehensive Best Practices Guides covering AI & robotics, energy management, greenhouse colocation, and other CEA topics. RII also conducts research through initiatives like the DOE-funded CEA Accelerator (in partnership with Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory), Data Center & Greenhouse Colocation studies, and the Pennsylvania Circular Agriculture Research Project. The organization develops market intelligence reports and maintains a Technology Catalog documenting greenhouse systems. These products and services are designed to serve CEA producers, governments, utilities, researchers, and the design & construction sector.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• CEA Accelerator: Partnership between RII and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory to develop tools and resources to advance resource efficiency in US greenhouse crop production
• PowerScore
• GrowBuild
• CEA SiteScout

Products and services

• PowerScore Online benchmarking platform that enables controlled environment agriculture (CEA) producers to measure, record, and compare their energy, water, and carbon performance against a confidential dataset of peer facilities, producing a standardized efficiency score.
• CEA SiteScout Geospatial decision-support tool that helps growers, municipalities, and utilities evaluate and score candidate sites for CEA facilities based on energy, water, infrastructure, climate, and resource-access criteria.
• GrowBuild Certificate Program Professional certification program delivered with Ohio State University that trains architects, engineers, contractors, and growers on resource-efficient CEA facility design and operations. Members receive a 50% discount on the certificate fee.
• Best Practices Guides Technical guides for CEA producers covering topics such as greenhouse HVAC integration, indoor lighting, and benchmarking methodology, available as free downloadable publications.
• Technology Catalog Curated catalog of vetted resource-efficient technologies and solution providers for CEA producers, accessible on the RII website.
• Market Intelligence Reports Sponsored market intelligence reports that quantify the size, growth, and resource footprint of the CEA market to inform industry, utility, and government stakeholders.

Quantifiable outcome

• Each 65-acre greenhouse supports 140-270 jobs
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability2 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core and flagship.

• North Dakota State UniversitycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 17 February 2026The Legendary Harvest Project evaluates the feasibility of colocating high-tech greenhouse food production systems with data center infrastructure near Fargo, North Dakota. NDSU Agricultural and Biosystems Engineering Department leads technical research framework integrating expertise in water management, CEA, automation, and energy efficiency.
• Applied Digital CorporationcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 17 February 2026Applied Digital contributes site access, funding, and operational insights to the Legendary Harvest Project. Their Polaris Forge 2 development near Harwood, North Dakota serves as the study location for evaluating technical, economic, and environmental feasibility of using data center waste heat for greenhouse operations.
• Institute for Advanced Learning and Research (IALR)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 9 September 2025Partnership on Virginia colocation feasibility study examining how Southern Virginia can adapt global best practices for data center-greenhouse colocation. IALR brings research assets including the CEA Innovation Center and applied research capabilities.
• GO Virginia Region 3coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 9 September 2025GO Virginia Region 3 collaborated on the Virginia colocation feasibility study, providing regional economic development perspective and funding support for the initiative focused on growing and diversifying Southern Virginia's economy.
• Ohio State University (OHCEAC)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 February 2025RII partnered with Ohio CEA Center at The Ohio State University to launch the GrowBuild National Training Program, specifically the Horticultural Essentials for CEA Building & Biosystems Certificate. Ohio State provides the certificate of completion for program participants.
• Lawrence Berkeley National LaboratoryflagshipStrategic or Co-development Partner · 20 February 2024RII partners with Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory on the CEA Accelerator Project, funded by the U.S. Department of Energy. This two-year initiative develops tools and resources including CEA SiteScout, a Technology Catalog, Best Practices guides, and a National Training Program to advance resource efficiency in U.S. greenhouse crop production.
• American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerACEEE collaborated on market transformation strategy development for energy-efficient CEA, supporting the creation of coordinated support systems and best practice adoption initiatives.
• Pennsylvania Department of AgriculturecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPDA partnered on the Pennsylvania Circular Agriculture Research Project aimed at establishing a thriving circular agricultural economy by 2035, integrating animal agriculture, CEA, and mushroom production sectors.
• Crenshaw Institute of Applied Science & Technology (CIAST)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCIAST, a community-based organization advancing innovation in the Food-Energy-Water Nexus, partners on the Pennsylvania Circular Agriculture Research Project with expertise in clean technology, workforce development, and sustainable resource management.
• VirginiacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerState government partnership on data center-greenhouse colocation feasibility study. Virginia is strategically building CEA capacity and exploring colocation as a path to economic growth and food system resilience.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• GreenBiz Group: Sustainability media, research, and benchmarking organization serving corporate sustainability and energy professionals. Broad incumbent peer because GreenBiz offers comparable benchmarking, benchmarking publications, and event-driven convening that overlap with RII's benchmarking and best practices guides.
• Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI): Large non-profit focused on clean energy transition and industrial decarbonization research. Broad incumbent peer because RMI addresses similar decarbonization and resource-efficiency themes as RII but at materially greater scale, with overlapping funder relationships and policy advocacy channels.
• International Fresh Produce Association (IFPA): Large industry trade association for the global fresh produce and floral supply chain. Broad incumbent peer because IFPA sets industry standards and convenes producers in segments overlapping with RII's CEA producer audience, and has board overlap (Vonnie Estes on RII's board).
• U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC): Non-profit that administers the LEED green building certification and related workforce credentials. Broad incumbent peer because USGBC operates a comparable certification-and-training model at much larger scale, providing a template for how RII's GrowBuild program could evolve into a CEA-wide credential.

Direct peers

• American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE): Non-profit research organization that collaborates on market transformation strategy for energy-efficient CEA. ACEEE is a direct peer because it shares RII's non-profit research model, federal grant funding base, and policy advocacy role, but operates at much larger scale across all energy end-uses.
• Agritecture: CEA-focused consulting firm that provides feasibility studies, market research, and advisory services to controlled environment agriculture ventures globally. Direct peer to RII's SiteScout feasibility work and benchmarking research, though structured as a for-profit consultancy.
• Association for Vertical Farming: International non-profit industry association promoting vertical farming and CEA. Direct peer because it operates as a membership-driven non-profit advancing CEA best practices, training, and standards, comparable to RII's convening role in the CEA ecosystem.

Others

• World Wildlife Fund (WWF): Global conservation non-profit with a food systems program. Adjacent peer through board representation (Julia Kurnik) and overlapping sustainability themes, but WWF operates at far greater scale and across broader environmental issues beyond CEA.
• Ohio State University Ohio CEA Center (OHCEAC): University research center advancing controlled environment horticulture research and education. Adjacent/partner peer because OHCEAC co-delivers RII's GrowBuild certificate and conducts overlapping CEA research, but is structured as an academic unit rather than a non-profit advocacy organization.
• Cornell CEA Group (Cornell University): University research group conducting CEA and controlled environment horticulture research. Adjacent academic peer because Cornell is a working group member contributing to RII's research outputs, but is not a commercial or non-profit competitor.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/RIInstitute
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UC0kljBUUR-urqFgQsQ6hM_w/featured
• Facebookfacebook.com/ResourceInnovationInstitute
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/resource-innovation-institute
• Instagraminstagram.com/ResourceInnovation

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Resource Innovation Institute