Deadline: 13-Sep-24
The U.S. Department of Agriculture, Foreign Agricultural Service, International Climate Hub, announces this funding opportunity to support the Technical Agricultural Assistance Program by issuing a new award to to design, plan, and implement the FAS Agricultural Export Market Challenge (“Challenge”) for the 2024-2025 academic year.
Launched as a pilot program in 2021, the Challenge is an immersive learning experience targeted to upper-level undergraduates attending a minority-serving educational institution. The Challenge is designed to increase student awareness around the work of FAS, pique student interest in a career in international trade and within the agency, and provide a rich learning experience, while fostering FAS’ relationships with participating institutions.
In the Challenge, students simulate the work that FAS performs every day in global food and agricultural trade. The simulated export case study in the Challenge will help students gain knowledge and skills across the disciplines of economics, diplomacy, scientific analysis, marketing, and trade policy. The students will develop and propose a market entry strategy for an American company that is seeking export sales opportunities for a hypothetical U.S. food or agricultural product in the students’ recommended overseas target market.
Objectives
- The Challenge has three primary objectives:
- Offer an experiential learning opportunity to students at minority-serving institutions (MSIs) that familiarizes them with the mission and daily work of FAS.
- Generate interest from MSI students in exploring careers in international trade, in general, and at FAS, in particular.
- Expand the network of relationships between FAS and academic leaders at MSIs in a way that complements the existing National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) platform and USDA Liaison infrastructure.
Funding Information
- Total Available Federal Funding: $250,000
- The initial funding amount will be $85,000. Subject to availability of funding, a cumulative total of $250,000, may be available throughout the period of performance of the award, including extensions if authorized.
Eligibility Criteria
- Eligible Applicants:
- Nonprofits (with or without 501(c)(3) status), other than institutions of higher education.
- All applicants must have an active registration in the U.S. Government System for Award Management before the application submission deadline of the announcement.
For more information, visit U.S. Department of Agriculture.
