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Making a Difference
GusNIP Awards First Funding to U.S. Insular Areas
For the first time since its establishment in 2019, the Gus Schumacher Nutrition Incentive Program has funded projects serving U.S. territories. GusNIP is increasing the purchase of fruits and vegetables by low-income consumers, in turn improving the health and nutrition of participating households. Projects were funded to organizations in Puerto Rico to support consumers participating in Nutrition Assistance Program Block Grants. Additionally, a Produce Prescription award serving women veterans in Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands and American Samoa was made to the Pacific Islands Health Research & Education Institute in Hawaii. Read more about these grants to these and other U.S. territories.
Fresh produce displayed in market. Image courtesy of Adobe Stock.
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NIFA Director Visits Florida Land-grant Institutions
NIFA Director Dr. Manjit Misra recently toured both Florida A&M University and the University of Florida. His tours focused on agriculture, NIFA-funded research, Extension and 4-H and agriculture students. Additionally, Dr. Misra heard from current project directors at both institutions.
NIFA Director Dr. Manjit Misra speaking at Florida A&M University. NIFA image.
NAL Launches Pilot Office Hours Program
The National Agricultural Library (NAL) has announced a new pilot customer support initiative to improve awareness and compliance with USDA’s public access policies. USDA requires all peer-reviewed scholarly publications resulting from USDA funding on or after Oct. 1, 2022, be made publicly accessible through PubAg, USDA’s public access archive system.
NAL will offer weekly office hours via Zoom, chat and individual appointment for USDA-funded researchers, librarians and sponsored program officers to discuss PubAg submission with the Public Access Outreach Librarian. Beginning Wednesday, Jan. 10 and occurring for three hours weekly, users are encouraged to join with questions or comments about article submission, submission system issues, and general PubAg usage. Information on the ways you can connect with NAL can be found here.
Transforming Agriculture Webinar
NIFA National Science Liaison Dr. Sheila Fleischacker will join USDA Agriculture Research Service (ARS) Research Chemist Dr. Mike Bukowski for the next Transforming Agriculture webinar. Slated for February 7 at 3 p.m. EST, they will address how research impacts the nexus of climate, food and health. The “Transforming Agriculture” webinar series is presented by ARS to highlight high impact, cross-cutting agricultural research aimed at addressing some of the world’s most pressing issues. Register here.
Registration Opens Soon for 2024 National 4-H Conference
Registration for the 2024 National 4-H Conference opens February 1. National 4-H Conference, the flagship youth development opportunity of USDA and hosted by NIFA, will be April 19 through 24. Read more about National 4-H Conference including registration details here.
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USDA Invests Approximately $11.5 Million in Composting and Food Waste Reduction Projects in 23 States
USDA is investing approximately $11.5 million in 38 cooperative agreements that support innovative, scalable waste management plans to reduce and divert food waste from landfills. The Composting and Food Waste Reduction cooperative agreements are part of USDA’s broad support for urban agriculture. The program is jointly administered by USDA’s Office of Urban Agriculture and Innovative Production and the National Institute of Food and Agriculture. The recommended projects will be implemented between now and 2026. Read more about this program and funded projects.
NIFA Invests $600K in Response to Extreme Weather Events Across the U.S.
NIFA has funded — through the Rapid Response to Extreme Weather Events Across Food and Agriculture Systems program — two projects related to the 2023 Maui wildfire.
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Ohio State Research Shows Promise to Boost Rubber Production in U.S.
With disease and high demand posing threats to the world’s primary natural rubber supply in Southeast Asia, Ohio State scientists are working to ramp up the U.S. rubber market by advancing methods to extract latex from two sustainable North American plant sources: a dandelion species and a desert shrub. The dandelion work was published recently in Industrial Crops and Products, and the guayule research in Environmental Technology & Innovation. Read more about their NIFA supported work.
A greenhouse filled with the desert shrub guayule on the Ohio State Wooster campus. Image courtesy of Ohio State/Katrina Cornish.
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Spanish User Guide Now Available for NIFA Grant Funding Dashboard
The NIFA Grant Funding Dashboard provides an inside look into NIFA funding for competitive and capacity grants from fiscal year 2018 forward. The dashboard provides an interactive platform to search for specific information sourced from USAspending.gov and is refreshed monthly.
A Spanish dashboard user guide, in addition to an English version, is now available that further details NIFA’s grant programs, detailed information a user can access on the NIFA Grant Funding Dashboard and how to run specific searches using the tool.
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The National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) is committed to ensuring that its programs and services are accessible to all individuals, including individuals with disabilities and individuals with limited English proficiency. If you need a reasonable accommodation to participate in any NIFA event, please contact the appropriate Program staff no later than 10 days prior to the event. To find Program staff by event, please visit the NIFA Calendar of Events. NIFA Language access services, such as interpretation or translation of vital information, will be provided free of charge to limited English proficient individuals upon request. If you need interpretation or translation services please visit NIFA language services or contact Lois Tuttle, Equal Opportunity Specialist, at Lois.Tuttle@usda.gov or (443) 386-9488 no later than 10 days prior to the event.
NIFA’s mission is to invest in and advance agricultural research, education, and Extension that solves societal challenges. NIFA’s investments in transformative science directly support the long-term prosperity and global preeminence of U.S. agriculture. Keep informed about NIFA, USDA, our Land-grant and non-Land-grant university partners, and stakeholders with the NIFA Update. Read past issues online, sign up for email updates or follow us on X (formerly Twitter) @USDA_NIFA, #NIFAImpacts or LinkedIn @usda-nifa.
If you wish to submit a news item or information, send an email to NIFAUpdate.
USDA is an equal opportunity lender, provider, and employer.
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