Federal Funds Available to Document
Environmental Services of Organic Agriculture

USDA’s National Institute for Food and Agriculture (NIFA) has released its request for applications for the Organic Transitions program. This year a total of $4.5 million will be awarded to support projects that investigate the environmental services provided by organic farming systems, particularly in mitigating global climate change by reducing greenhouse gas emissions and sequestering carbon in soil. 

The two priorities identified for this year’s projects are: 

1. Document and understand the effects of organic practices such as crop rotation, organic mulch and compost additions, cover crops, and reduced tillage on soil quality, erosion, and carbon sequestration. 

2. Develop improved technologies, methods, model development and other metrics to document, describe, and optimize the environmental services and climate change mitigation ability of organic farming systems. 

Integrated projects that include research, education, and extension activities are solicited with budgets of up to $300,000 per year for a duration of one to three years. The total amount awarded for a project will not exceed $700,000. NIFA expects to make a total of six to eight awards. Proposals must be submitted electronically through grants.gov by July 1, 2010. 

Applications describing multistate, multi-institutional, multidisciplinary, and multifunctional activities will be given priority. However, a single university demonstrating significant collaboration with various agencies or organizations within the host state may also be competitive. 

Colleges and universities including four year Hispanic-serving institutions are eligible to apply.  

For more information on project requirements and application procedures, read the full request for applications at Organic Transitions. 

This is a Special Edition in a series of occasional bulletins providing selected information on organic research programs, positions, funding, and reports, as well as news about SCOAR itself. Original items may be reproduced with attribution to OFRF. These reports are sent via email to registered SCOAR participants. For previous bulletins, registration and other information about SCOAR, see http://ofrf.org/networks/scoar.html

The Organic Center
P.O. Box 20513
Boulder, CO USA 80308
tel 303.499.1840
fax 419.858.1042
www.organic-center.org

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