Click HERE for the 2025 D2D application – due January 21

The Driven to Discover Research Facility was launched in 2014 to bring University research and researchers into closer contact with the Minnesota community. Roughly two million people visit the fair each year from across the state making it a great place to connect with people and engage them in exciting, innovative projects from a wide variety of disciplines.

In 2022 & 23, the D2D team visited some county fairs throughout MN.

It provided an opportunity for more people to participate in the research projects that are hosted by the D2D team, and provided opportunities for  D2D researchers to expand outside the Twin Cities metro area. We hope to continue this expansion in the future.

“It was absolutely beyond our wildest dreams. The entire project at the State Fair was a lot of fun and a huge success.”
– 2018 D2D investigator

D2D allows fairgoers to participate in research in a fun, innovative, and convenient way. Most studies take under 20 minutes. See the full schedule of studies here: 2024 Study Schedule

D2D allows researchers to reach a more diverse pool of participants and meet recruitment goals in a matter of hours or days. Over 52,000 fairgoers visited D2D during the 2024 Fair. If you’re interested in conducting research at D2D in 2025, see the For Investigators page for details on applying.

To see how researchers and fairgoers have contributed in a variety of disciplines, review our current list of publications.

“We were able to collect data from a broad section of the State’s rural population which would have been difficult to do any other way.”   -2015 D2D investigator

Follow us on X and Instagram:  @D2DMNState Fair