Deadline: 9-Nov-22
The Administrative Council of the Western Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) Program has announced the call for proposals for Professional Development Program competitive grants for 2023.
Professional Development Program (PDP) grants are aimed at helping Cooperative Extension Service, Natural Resources Conservation Service and other agricultural professionals in the Western Region increase their understanding and proficiency in sustainable agriculture.
This grant program focuses on training agricultural professionals to help them spread knowledge about sustainable agriculture concepts and practices.
Goals
- Promote good stewardship of the nation’s natural resources by providing site-specific, regional, and profitable sustainable farming and ranching methods that strengthen agricultural competitiveness; satisfy human food and fiber needs; maintain and enhance the quality and productivity of soil; conserve soil, water, energy, natural resources and fish and wildlife habitat, and maintain and improve the quality of surface and ground water.
- Enhance the quality of life of farmers and ranchers and ensure the viability of rural communities, for example, by increasing income and employment, especially profitable self-employment and innovative marketing opportunities in agricultural and rural communities.
- Protect the health and safety of those involved in food and farm systems by reducing, where feasible and practical, the use of toxic materials in agricultural production, and by optimizing on-farm resources and integrating, where appropriate, biological cycles and controls.
- Promote crop, livestock, and enterprise diversification.
- Examine the regional, economic, social, and environmental implications of adopting sustainable agriculture practices and systems.
Successful proposals for the PDP grant program should:
- Increase ag professionals’ sustainable agriculture knowledge, skills, and action using a multi-disciplinary approach.
- Have outreach plans that demonstrate how the project will effectively deliver this knowledge.
- Be written clearly with objectives that are easily identifiable.
- Demonstrate economic viability of the project.
- Include a robust plan for project evaluation.
Funding Information
- Projects may be one to three years in length.
- Funding limit is $100,000 per project.
Eligibility Criteria
- Ag professionals and educators are eligible to apply.
- Projects must be conducted in the Western region of the US, which includes the following states: AK, AZ, CA, CO, HI, ID, NM, NV. MT, OR, WA, WY, and island protectorates of American Samoa, Guam, Micronesia and Northern Mariana.
For more information, visit https://western.sare.org/grants/professional-development-program/