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Since 1988, SARE has
awarded $245 million for more than 6,100 research and education
initiatives led by innovative farmers, ranchers, researchers, and
educators who are committed to improving agriculture’s profitability,
stewardship, and quality of life. The SARE program is based on work supported by NIFA.
Since 1988, what projects has SARE funded in your state? Here is just a glimpse:
- Using funding from a
Southern
SARE Producer grant, researchers from Alabama Cooperative
Extension (ACE) tested low-cost pest exclusion systems suitable for high
pest pressure areas using high tunnels and shade cloths. ACE created a
series of bulletins that highlight research data and field observations
about the success of shade cloth as a more permanent barrier system around
high tunnels.
- A Western SARE
Graduate Student grant recipient in Washington is examining the
efficiency of biodegradable plastic mulches, their performance, degradation, and impacts on agroecosystems. A model will be developed to predict soil
water and heat flow, as well as crop growth and productivity under
biodegradable mulch production systems.
- A South Dakota
cattle rancher received a North
Central SARE Farmer Rancher grant to experiment with
reduced-pesticide fly control systems to conserve beneficial insects,
especially the dung beetle. Using non-chemical and chemical controls, she
has reduced pesticide use and developed a manual, A Dung Beetle’s Place on Your Ranch,
to share her results.
- A team of New York
farmers and researchers received a Northeast
SARE Research and Education grant to study combinations of
perennial grains and legumes that can be no-till seeded to increase yields
and profits on under-producing pasture and hayfields that cannot be seeded
using conventional tillage. Twenty farmers will establish perennial grant
crops on a total of 400 acres with the aim of reducing soil erosion and
establishing a new niche market.
NIFA News
 CAST Seminar on Crop Protection Contributions Toward Agricultural Productivity
The Council for Agricultural Science and Technology (CAST) is releasing an issue paper #58, "Crop Protection Contributions Toward Agricultural Productivity" as part of a series on The Need for Agricultural Innovation to Sustainably Feed the World by 2050. It can be download from the CAST website.
The seminar presenter is Dr. Susan Ratcliffe, task force chair of the project
and director of the North Central Integrated Pesticide Management Center at the University of Illinois.
The authors of the paper examine the current plant protection revolution that
is driven by the biological realities of pesticide resistance, various market
forces, and real or perceived side effects of pesticides, while stressing the
need for new technologies and an integrated cropping systems approach.
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Events
Veterinary Services Grant Program Webinars
The purpose of the Veterinary Services Grant Program (VSGP) is to develop, implement, and sustain veterinary services and relieve veterinarian shortage situations in the United States and U.S. Insular Areas. Grants will be made available on a competitive basis to qualified entities to develop, implement, and sustain veterinary services through education, training, recruitment, placement, and retention of veterinarians, veterinary technicians, and students of veterinary medicine and veterinary technology.
To help applicants understand the VSGP application process, NIFA is hosting two webinars on April 10.
- The first webinar, Education, Extension, and Training is from 1-2:15 p.m. EDT.
- The second webinar, Rural Practice Enhancement is from 2:30-3:45 p.m. EDT.
The Veterinary Medicine Loan Repayment Program (VMLRP) Application Guide and the VMLRP Applicants page are helpful applicant resources.
Access: Adobe Connect
Phone: 1-888-844-9904
Access code: 1966323
Date and Time Changes for CPPM/ARDP Webinars
NIFA is hosting two
webinars for interested applicants concerning the Fiscal Year 2017 Request for
Applications for the Crop Protection and Pest Management Program. More
information on this funding opportunity is on NIFA’s website. Please note that language in the Request for Applications
was added for ARDP, page 30, “Response to Previous Review.” NIFA plans to record
the webinars for those unable to attend.
Both webinars will be held on April 13, 2017
The first webinar, "Extension Implementation Program Area (EIP)," will
address the program requirements and application procedures. This webinar is from 1-2 p.m. EDT.
This second webinar, "Applied Research and Development Program Area Webinar (ARDP)," will address the program requirements and application procedures. The webinar is scheduled to take place from 2:15-3:15 p.m. EDT.
- To access Adobe Connect, enter the meeting room as a guest with your first and last name. The process should require no software downloads, but you will need to have Flash installed on your computer.
- To access the phone connection, call 1-888-844-9904 and enter access code: 7982356.
Contact Kathy Kimble-Day for information on the
webinars. She can be reached at (202) 401-4420.
Grants, RFA Announcements
Higher Education Challenge Grants Program
Projects supported by the Higher Education Challenge Grants Program will: address a state, regional, national, or international educational need; involve a creative or non-traditional approach toward addressing that need that
can serve as a model to others; encourage and facilitate better working
relationships in the university science and education community, as well as
between universities and the private sector, to enhance program quality and
supplement available resources; and result in benefits that will likely
transcend the project duration and USDA support.
Request for Applications
Apply for Grant
Closing
Date: Tuesday, May 30, 2017
Funding
Opportunity Number: USDA-NIFA-CGP-006325
Estimated Total Program Funding: $4,500,000
Alfalfa and Forage Research Program
Alfalfa and Forage Research Program (AFRP) will support the development of
improved alfalfa forage and seed production systems. Proposals submitted to
AFRP should address one or more of the following priorities: Improving
alfalfa forage and seed yield through better nutrient, water and/or pest
management; Improving persistence of alfalfa stands by lessening biotic or
abiotic stresses; Improving alfalfa forage and seed harvesting and storage
systems to optimize economic returns; Improving estimates of alfalfa forage
quality as an animal feed to increase forage usage in animal feeds; and/or Breeding to address biotic and abiotic stresses that impact forage yield and
persistence and the production of seed for propagation.
Request for Applications
Apply for Grant
Closing
Date: Monday, May 1, 2017
Funding
Opportunity Number: USDA-NIFA-OP-006285
Estimated
Total Program Funding: $1,900,000
 Veterinary Services Grant Program
The Veterinary Services Grant Program supports development, implementation, and sustainability of veterinary services to relieve veterinarian shortage situations in the United States and insular areas. Grants will be made available on a competitive basis to: Establish or expand accredited veterinary education programs, veterinary residency and fellowship programs, or veterinary internship and externship programs carried out in coordination with accredited colleges of veterinary medicine. Provide continuing education and extension, including veterinary telemedicine and other distance-based education for veterinarians, veterinary technicians, and other health professionals needed to strengthen veterinary programs and enhance food safety. Cover travel and living expenses of veterinary students, veterinary interns, externs, fellows, and residents, and veterinary technician students attending training programs in food safety or food animal medicine.
NIFA’s Veterinary Services Grant Program was authorized by the 2014 Farm Bill.
Request for Applications
Apply for Grants
Closing Date: Friday, May 19, 2017
Funding Opportunity Number: USDA-NIFA-VSGP-006344
Estimated Total Program Funding: $2,400.000
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