|
Having trouble viewing this email? View it as a Web page.
 The NIFA
Update is a weekly compendium of news and information that may be of
interest to Land-Grant and non-Land-Grant Universities, NIFA stakeholders, and
other subscribers..
|
|
|
Oct. 18, 2017
NIFA Honors Land-Grant Partners and Hall of Fame Inductees
NIFA honored several Land-Grant University partners during its annual Day of Appreciation ceremony. Those honored were recognized for supporting NIFA's mission to advance agricultural research, education, and extension to solve significant societal challenges.
The 2017 NIFA Partnership Awards were presented in three different categories to institutions whose work with NIFA support has resulted in exceptional impacts.
 The Multistate Efforts award
recognizes partnership projects that respond to critical needs important to
each project leader’s state. Field corn (Zea mays) is one of the world’s most
important cereal grains, and 40 percent of global supply is produced in the
United States. Heat stress during the growing season can reduce field corn
yield, which may lead to higher prices and food shortages. The Corn Heat Stress
Adaptation Team, led by the University of
Florida, developed multiple corn lines that produced greater yields
under high-temperature conditions.
|
 The Mission Integration of Research, Education, and Extension award honors teams of individuals who work across all three of NIFA’s mission areas to produce positive outcomes in agriculture, the environment, communities, or people. Shiga toxin-producing E. coli (STEC) cause illness in both humans and cattle, and STEC-related illness and death cost the United States more than $400 million each year. The STEC CAP grant executive management team at the University of Nebraska, Lincoln led a team from 18 institutions to develop integrated approaches to prevent STEC contamination and outbreaks throughout the beef production and processing chain.
|
 The Innovative Programs and Projects award acknowledges a project that uses a unique combination of resources and disciplines to enact positive outcomes in response to important regional or national issues. There are approximately 20 million cases of norovirus in the United States each year that result in up to 800 deaths. North Carolina State University leads the NoroCORE Food Virology Collaborative, a group of researchers and stakeholders in basic, food, and environmental virology working to reduce the burden of foodborne disease associated with viruses, particularly noroviruses. In a major breakthrough, the team successfully cultured the human norovirus in intestinal cells, which may lead to new vaccines and treatments.
|
NIFA Hall of Fame Inductees
The agency also inducted four individuals
into NIFA’s Hall of Fame, established in 2011 to recognize exceptional
contributions to NIFA’s mission at the local, regional, national, or
international level and have made a positive impact on humans.
Michel Desbois served as deputy director of NIFA’s Office of Information Technology (OIT) and chief information officer and was responsible for all information technology (IT) resources and applications for the agency. He provided strategic leadership and direction in overall IT, including anticipating future needs and requirements to help NIFA meet its goals and objectives.
|
Dr. John Phillips is executive
director of First Americans Land Grant Consortium (FALCON) and the land-grant
director at the American Indian Higher Education Consortium (AIHEC). Dr.
Phillips also served as the first liaison between 1994 land-grant institutions
and the USDA. He has been instrumental in representing the interests of the
1994 land-grant institutions and contributing to the social and economic
well-being of their communities.
 Dr. Catherine Woteki served as USDA
undersecretary for Research, Education and Economics and chief scientist where
she provided leadership responsibility for advancing scientific knowledge
through research, extension, and education and elevated the stature of
agricultural science. Woteki also served as the USDA’s first undersecretary for
Food Safety. An active member of the National Academy of Medicine, she returned
as a professor to Iowa State University’s Department of Food Science and Human
Nutrition, where she previously served as dean of the College of Agriculture
and Life Sciences and director of the Agriculture Experiment Station.
|
Michael Young retired this year as the
USDA budget officer and director of the Office of Budget and Program Analysis
(OBPA). He also served as chief of the Budget Control and Analysis Division of
OBPA. Prior to his leadership roles, he was a program analyst for USDA
Research, Education and Extension programs and a budget analyst for the Food
and Nutrition Service. During his tenure with OBPA, Mr. Young facilitated the
advancement of USDA research and the NIFA mission as evidenced by his
conscientious review and management of NIFA's program budgets.
|
|
 Don’t
forget to RSVP tomorrow for NIFA Listens: Atlanta, Georgia
To those of you joining us tomorrow in Kansas at our first
listening session, we are excited to see you! If you cannot make it out
tomorrow, there are still three more opportunities you can sign up for. We really
want to hear from you about priorities and opportunities in agricultural! That
is why we are hosting in-person listening sessions in different regions across
the country and accepting submission of written comments—Two ways to share your
thoughts and ideas.
Our next listening session is in Atlanta, Georgia. Details
are below, but please remember to RSVP by tomorrow’s
deadline if you are wishing to attend the in-person session. You must
complete your RSVP via the input
form.
Session Locations and Dates:
-
Overland Park, Kansas (Oct. 19) at Marriott Kansas City Overland Park
-
Atlanta, Georgia
(Oct. 26) at Atlanta Marriott Marquis
-
Sacramento,
California (Nov. 2) at Westin Sacramento
-
Greenbelt, Maryland
(Nov. 8) at Greenbelt Marriott
RSVP Deadlines:
-
Atlanta, Georgia
(Oct. 19) at Atlanta Marriott Marquis
-
Sacramento,
California (Oct. 26) Westin Sacramento
-
Greenbelt, Maryland
(Nov. 1) Greenbelt Marriott
Regardless of attendance at in-person events, submissions of
written comments will be accepted via the input form through Friday,
Dec. 1, 2017.
Visit NIFA website for more information.
|
 Farm Disaster Preparedness Starts with USDA Research
By Sarah Mock
Farm communities
across the country are reeling from the effects of hurricanes, droughts, and
fires, but preparation for these events begin long before they occur, as part
of USDA Funded Research. Watch
the interview with Sonny Ramaswamy on RFD-TV.
|
 Fact Sheet: USDA Assistance Programs – Disaster
USDA’s authority to provide emergency assistance for its various disaster relief programs exists under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief Emergency Assistance Act (Stafford Act), Agriculture Secretary disaster designations, Food and Nutrition Act of 2008, as well as other authorizing legislation. These authorities are identified in the various USDA program descriptions.
The USDA programs identified in this fact sheet helps individuals and small businesses to find resources that can help them after a disaster. The fact sheet covers nutrition assistance, crop losses, loans, livestock losses, risk management, housing assistance and more. Read the full fact sheet.
|
Live
and Work Overseas Representing U.S. Agriculture as a Foreign Service Officer
Are
you interested in representing U.S. agriculture and experiencing a new culture,
language, and country every few years? If so, apply to join USDA’s Foreign
Agricultural Service (FAS) as a Foreign Service Officer (FSO). FAS is a small agency
with a global mission and presence. FAS Officers work every day on trade
policy, trade promotion, and trade capacity building to maintain and expand
opportunities for U.S. agriculture around the world. If you are interested in a
Foreign Service career at FAS, there is plenty of opportunity, but entry is a
competitive process. The next opportunity to apply to take the Foreign Service
Assessment will open Nov. 6-22, 2017, through USAjobs.gov. To learn more
about the FAS Foreign Service as a career and lifestyle, as well as the
requirements and skills of successful candidates, visit the FAS website and join them Nov. 14 from 1-2:30 p.m. for a public information session at
Patriot’s Plaza III, 355 E. Street, SW Washington, DC in Auditorium B on the
first floor. For those not in the Washington, DC area, virtual access
information is available at: www.teleconferenceatt.com, Meeting
number: 1-888-844-9904, Code: 3206162.
USDA Helps Small Businesses Develop New Agricultural Products, Technology
NIFA announced grants to help bring agricultural business ideas from the drawing board to the marketplace. Funding is made through NIFA’s Small Business Innovation Research Program.
In FY17, the SBIR program supported 114 Phase I and II grants totaling more than $24 million. Among the Phase I projects, Arcadia Biosciences of Seattle, Washington, will develop new wheat varieties at their Phoenix, Arizona, facilities to help increase consumer acceptance of whole grain wheat by improving the shelf life and flavor of whole grain flour. A Phase II project by Jun Innovations of Honolulu, Hawaii will take the proprietary super-cooling technology it developed in Phase I and develop commercially viable units for demonstration and licensing with potential partners such as major home appliance manufacturers. More information on these projects are available on the NIFA website.
|
|
|
NIFA’s mission is to invest in and advance agricultural research, education, and extension to solve societal challenges. NIFA’s investments in transformative science directly support the long-term prosperity and global preeminence of U.S. agriculture.
Judy Rude, Editor
If you wish to submit a news item or information, send to NIFAUpdate
USDA is an equal opportunity lender, provider, and employer.
|
|
|
|
