Southwest College of Naturopathic Medicine
Gaia Herbs has endowed the botanical chair at SCNM for the last four years and has committed to the next 4 years as well. We are dedicated to advancing naturopathic botanical education and feel our alliance with SCNM is a terrific partnership with one of the leading naturopathic colleges in the country. Gaia Herbs is also partnered with SCNM and its medical research director, Dr. Linda Kim, N.D., in conducting its NIH-funded research on Echinacea. For more information on the programs at SCNM visit their web site at www.scnm.edu.

Clemson University
Clemson University is the closest major research university to Gaia Herbs, only a 75 minute drive down the mountains. Clemson also houses the Institute for Nutraceutical Research (INR) under the direction of Dr. J. David Gangemi. The Institute’s mission is to coordinate a statewide research and economic development strategy in South Carolina for improving the health of the people while increasing economic opportunities in agriculture and manufacturing. Nutrional genomics refers to the emerging health science of customizing people's dietary intake to their specific genetic profiles in order to maximize disease prevention opportunities. The Trustees of Clemson University, along with the University of South Carolina and the Medical University of South Carolina, understand the promise of greater wellness, lowered heath care costs, and economic stability that nutraceuticals and natural products could represent. They are investing significant resources, including matching grants, to establish South Carolina as a leading nutritional genomics research state. The Institute, therefore, has been charged with finding and collaborating with private sector partners to engage in innovative research in horticulture, natural products chemistry, genomics, and pharmacology leading to successfully commercialized natural products. Gaia Herbs is one such private sector partner, having funded two post-doctoral research fellowships at Clemson to date (see Research Collaborations). For more information on the programs at Clemson University visit their web site at www.clemson.edu/NNC

Arizona State University
Currently Gaia Herbs has engaged ASU to conduct in-vitro and in-vivo studies on Echinacea. This effort is led by Dr. Yueng Chang, Principal Investigator, for this segment of the research. For more information on the programs at Arizona State University visit their web site at www.asu.edu.