Browsing by Author "Lindberg, Heather"

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    Cyberbiosecurity Workforce Preparation: Education at the Convergence of Cybersecurity and Biosecurity
    Adeoye, Samson; Lindberg, Heather; Bagby, B.; Brown, Anne M.; Batarseh, Feras; Kaufman, Eric K. (2024-01)
    Cyberbiosecurity is an emerging field at the convergence of life sciences and the digital world. As technological advances improve operational processes and expose them to vulnerabilities in agriculture and life sciences, cyberbiosecurity has become increasingly important for addressing contemporary concerns. Unfortunately, at this time, educational opportunities for cyberbiosecurity workforce preparation are limited. Stakeholders’ perceptions may help guide cyberbiosecurity workforce preparation efforts and bridge the gap from the classroom to the field. Toward this end, we identified stakeholders in education, private industry, and state agencies in [State] and sought their input through both an online survey and focus groups. Findings suggest limited awareness and understanding of cyberbiosecurity. Results indicate that both formal and non-formal learning components—including short modules and comprehensive standalone courses—are important for cyberbiosecurity education programming. Stakeholders tied potential success of education programming to systems thinking and collaborative designs. Moreover, results reveal insights into concerns at the convergence of information technology (IT) and operational technology (OT), which is central to effective workforce preparation for today’s agriculture and life sciences professionals. Continuous interdisciplinary collaboration and academia-industry partnerships will be critical for developing robust cyberbiosecurity education and securing the future of agriculture.
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    Pathways for Cyberbiosecurity Workforce Preparation: Integrating Insights from Both Cybersecurity and Biosecurity
    Adeoye, Samson; Bagby, B.; Batarseh, Feras A.; Brown, Anne M.; Kaufman, Eric K.; Lindberg, Heather (2023-04-18)
    As technological advances have improved operational processes and exposed them to vulnerabilities in the agricultural and life sciences, the convergence of life sciences and information technology has become the inevitable proposition among researchers and educators. Cyberbiosecurity, as an emerging field between life sciences and the digital world, needs broad stakeholder input to properly align the needs of both sectors. As the complexity and strain on essential biological pipelines increases, it is essential for life scientists to be supported and educated in concepts and mediums that promote computational, data, and risk management skills development related to cyberbiosecurity. Our survey research is helping to reveal stakeholder perceptions of priorities for guiding cyberbiosecurity workforce preparedness and serve as a foundation for creating educational initiatives in higher education for cyberbiosecurity.