Cary Mitchell has taught environmental plant physiology, plant growth and development, controlled environment agriculture, photobiology, and aquaponics. He has worked with NASA’s Space Biology, Controlled Ecological Life-Support System (CELSS), and Advanced Life-Support (ALS) programs. He’s been Director of two NASA Specialised Centers of Research and Training (NSCORTs) in bioregenerative and advanced life support, and served as Program Scientist for the Gravitational Biology and Ecology program at the NASA Ames Research Center. Cary credits NASA with providing the leadership and funding for advances in lighting technology that have enabled CEA development on Earth to develop into a current growth industry with importance for food production on Earth as well as in space.