Research & Education Planning Grants and Preliminary Grants

For researchers who are not yet ready to submit a systems research proposal, Southern SARE now offers two entry-level funding opportunities. R & E Planning Grants and R&E Preliminary Research Grants are intended to support researchers while they design more competitive broad-based projects, All Research and Education applincants must choose a grant category.

Research and Education Planning Grants

The Southern Region USDA Program on Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education ( SARE ) funds systems research projects that are undertaken by interdisciplinary and often multi-institutional teams.  Bringing together such teams takes both time and expense. To be effective, teams should use shared leadership and group process as the dominant mode of planning.  Working as an interdisciplinary team is not an easy task.  Planning Grant Call for Proposals

After a team has been formed and a research idea cemented, it again takes time and effort to adequately plan systems research.  The research team must define the project scope, establish goals and objectives and perform extensive literature reviews across multiple disciplines.  The experimental design must be matched to the goals and statistical designs must be established. The goal of a SSARE Planning Grant is to develop and submit a full sustainable agriculture systems research proposal to a funding institution, not necessarily Southern SARE.

How much will Planning Grants fund?
Planning Grants will award up to $20,000 for one year’s planning activities. Pre-proposals will be not required.

Research and Education Preliminary Research Grants

R&E Preliminary Research Grants fund necessary research that would feed into the interdisciplinary team’s objectives. It is likely that such a missing link would be discovered during the literature review of a Research and Education Planning Project. Activities could include but are not limited to statistically sound surveys, laboratory and/or field research needed to provide information necessary to develop a systems research proposal. Preliminary Research Grant call for proposals.

How much will Preliminary Research Grants fund? Preliminary Research Grants will award up to $50,000 for up to 2 years of project activities. Pre-proposals will be not required.

Grant Category Notice

Whether applying for a Research and Education Grant or an entry level Planning or Preliminary grant, all Research and Education Grant applicants must propose systems-oriented research that fits one of three grant categories:

• Production research—Focused on actual production methods, this kind of research has made up the bulk of SARE’s project portfolio in the past and has developed techniques that have become common tools for farmers.
  
• Postharvest/food systems research—These projects examine what happens past the farm gate such as in the markets, distribution systems and policy making. This category can serve as a funding path for social science researchers to also make a difference in our farm and food systems.
  
• A combination of production and postharvest/food systems research—The ultimate in systems research would connect what goes on in the ground with everything that happens after a crop is harvested, including adding value, marketing, infrastructure for processing and transportation, as well as policy making.

For more information about Research & Education Planning Grants, or Research and Education Preliminary Research Grants email Jeff Jordan or call him at (770) 412-4787.

Return to Calls for Proposals

Return to R&E Grant information