The first hub city for the BAM Institute will be Sioux Falls, SD. But why? The truth is that Sioux Falls has some unfair advantages that make it the ideal spot to launch this concept. Here are a few. 

• Very low regulatory burden - The is an upside to our libertarian spirit here, very few regulations.

• Low cost of entry - Spinning up an idea here is cheap as land and people are affordable.

• Direct access to local and state government - Getting a meeting with city or state leadership is often just 1-2 emails away. You can literally just DM the mayor of Sioux Falls and he will respond or show up. 

• A failing ag economy looking for answers and ready for disruption -  We are in an epicenter of an ag-dependent, ag-centric region. Precision farming isn’t enough to solve the global economic challenges of commodities. Many farmers are on their 3rd of 4 years of crop insurance. A major change is coming. 

• Landowners looking for opportunities - Because of the commodity pricing landowners are becoming increasingly interested in other ways to make money and “save the farm.”

• An observable watershed - The Big Sioux River drains approximately 8,282 square miles in eastern South Dakota, southwestern Minnesota, and northwestern Iowa. The river provides the drainage system for the unique land formation called the Coteau des Prairies or Hill of the Prairies. This north-pointing, flatiron-shaped Coteau des Prairie is the most conspicuous landform of the Mid-continental United States; some 200 miles long and 100 miles wide, rising some 300-700 feet above the prairie. You could drive all the way around it in one day if you wanted. Most other watersheds are too large where ours is a perfect fractal of watersheds such as the Mississippi.

• Low barrier to entry in real estate development - Affordable and low regulations.

• A growing, recession-proof mid-American city - Sioux Falls lives in a bubble. This provides ideal laboratory environments because it is a robust little city that is largely not affected by the US economy.

• Sioux Falls is a small urban laboratory on mitigating sprawl - Basically every type of sprawl is happening here led by just a few developers. It’s a great place to propose something new. 

• Not immediately affected by sea-level rise - It’s hard to get farther from the ocean. 

• No income tax - yup.

• Indigenous people - Every piece of South Dakota is one of 8 Native Nations. This provides unique opportunities at nearly every level. 

• Extreme terrain differences - You can visit The Badlands, a Mars-like barren land, the Missouri River Basin, a lush river valley, and vast grasslands all in one day.

• Tri-state access - Sioux Falls is just minutes from Iowa and Minnesota.

• A sheltered population - Again, a unique ecosystem-level opportunity to work with a relatively untouched population in the US.

• The epicenter of human-animal testing - Groups like SAB Biotherapeutics lead the way in the space between human and animal science. 

• Seed testing, GMOs, CAFOs - South Dakota State University, just one hour north, is the epicenter of large-scale ag research.

Want to learn more?

What is the BAM Foundation?

What is the BAM Institute of the Civic Biodesign?

What are the BAM Camps?

How does BAM work?

What is the “first hub?”