THE PHOSPHORUS CRISIS PRESENTS A MAJOR CHALLENGE TO FOOD SECURITY. WHILE PHOSPHORUS (P) IS CRITICAL FOR CROP GROWTH, P IS A NONRENEWABLE AND INCREASINGLY LIMITED RESOURCE. OUR GLOBAL POPULATION IS FED AT THE EXPENSE OF THE REMAINING MINEABLE P RESERVE, WHICH MAY BE DEPLETED IN AS EARLY 30 YEARS. FURTHER, FERTILIZER RUNOFF FROM FARMLAND AND URBAN AREAS POSES A DANGEROUS PROBLEM AS INCREASED NUTRIENTS IN WATERSHEDS TOXIFIES OUR WATER SUPPLY AND AQUATIC ECOSYSTEMS. THIS PROJECT COMBINES RESEARCH AND EXTENSION TO TARGET THE P CRISIS BY ENHANCING PHOSPHATE-USE EFFICIENCY, DECREASING FERTILIZER INPUTS, AND INCREASING PUBLIC AWARENESS. I PROPOSE TO TRANSLATE FUNDAMENTAL DISCOVERIES I HAVE MADE IN THE LABORATORY INTO A STRATEGY TO REDUCE FERTILIZER INPUTS AND RECLAIM P POLLUTED SOILS. I WILL ACHIEVE THIS IN THREE DISTINCT AIMS. (1) FIRST, I WILL ARTIFICIALLY MANIPULATE HOW PLANTS INTERNALLY DETECT INORGANIC PHOSPHATE TO DETERMINE HOW THIS IMPACTS CROP REQUIREMENTS FOR FERTILIZER. (2) ADDITIONALLY, I WILL ENGINEER P-ACCUMULATING CROPS AND CONVERT THEM INTO A NOVEL SOIL AMENDMENT PRODUCT (BIOCHAR) TO ASSESS CROP P RECLAMATION POTENTIAL. (3) FURTHER, I HAVE DEVELOPED AN EXTENSION STRATEGY TO SPREAD AWARENESS OF THE P CRISIS AND AGRICULTURAL SUSTAINABILITY ON THE LOCAL, REGIONAL, NATIONAL, AND GLOBAL LEVEL. ULTIMATELY, THIS INTEGRATED RESEARCH AND EXTENSION PROJECT WILL ENHANCE P USAGE TO PROTECT THE GLOBAL FOOD SUPPLY AND ENVIRONMENT.