applied research skills learned at NRRI are invaluable in securing employment after graduation. University faculty and students interact with NRRI researchers to conduct collaborative research on a wide range of topics. Institute evolution Many of the early research directions for the Institute proved to be very productive and defined NRRI’s ongoing research agenda. For example, applied research to assist the taconite industry with more efficient processing and to improve pellet quality has been a mainstay of the NRRI’s minerals research since its inception. Likewise, helping the forest products industry develop value-added products and improve silvicultural practices have been primary objectives. A resurgent interest in renewable energy production has refocused research on biomass as a source of energy. An early focus on ecological research to understand the role of humans and natural disturbances in regulating aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems also continued through the decades. In 1989, the Institute was reorganized from the four original divisions to its current structure based on three research centers: The Center for Water and the Environment with biologists, ecologists and limnologists to study development impacts and provide tools and data for informed decision-making by environment managers. The Center for Applied Research and Technology Development includes elements of the original minerals and biomass divisions. The UMD Center for Economic Development is a joint program of NRRI, the School of Business and Economics, and the College of Science and Engineering. NRRI expansion In 1986, NRRI began a long-term relationship with United States Steel Corporation to manage its Coleraine, Minnesota, laboratory. The laboratory was transferred to University ownership in 1989. As part of NRRI's CARTD, the minerals lab has a three-pronged strategy for improving taconite ore products from the Iron Range: flowsheet improvement, the use of by-product rock for construction and highway purposes, and the development of value-added iron nodules from the iron ore concentrate. Serving all Minnesota taconite plants, the research projects regularly reach the stage of commercial implementation after testing and demonstration in the lab's large pilot plants. The lab is currently developing a focus on the extraction of non-ferrous minerals from Northeast Minnesota's Duluth Complex of copper, nickel, and precious metals-bearing ore. The Biomass Conversion Lab at Coleraine has an industrial-scale kiln to convert woody and agricultural biomass into a variety of chars for a variety of applications. NRRI received a National Science Foundation grant in 1990 to establish a geographic information system (GIS) laboratory within