Contracts and Grants Updates

• Funding Opportunity: Smith-Lever Special Needs Competitive Grants Program (SLSNCGP)

  Nov 19, 2024

  Dear Colleagues,

  USDA NIFA invites applications for the Smith-Lever Special Needs Competitive Grants Program (SLSNCGP). This program enables the Cooperative Extension System (CES) to assist communities in preparing for, responding to, recovering from, and mitigating disasters and disaster threats. The SLSNCGP will fund the development of educational programs, resource deliverables, and demonstration activities that focus on disaster preparedness, response, recovery, and mitigation.  

  SLSNCGP projects must address at least one of these Topical Areas:

  • Agriculture: Includes but is not limited to row crop and forage health and production; livestock health and production; aquaculture; fruit and vegetable production; food loss and waste; farm and agribusiness management; economics; urban agriculture; farm safety; and agricultural biosecurity.  
  • Natural Resources: Includes but is not limited to water; forestry; wood sciences; range; waste management; energy, wildlife; recreation; and environmental education. 
  • Community and Economic Development: Includes but is not limited to small business; workforce development; community planning; placemaking; revitalization; tourism; visioning and strategic planning; leadership development; housing; homeowner education; civic engagement; volunteerism; broadband; and rural life. 
  • Family and Consumer Sciences: Includes but is not limited to nutrition; food safety; food loss and waste; nutrition security; health management and wellness; health equity; well-being; mental health; personal and family finance; child development; early childhood education; individual and family relationships; textiles; and hospitality.  
  • 4-H and Youth Development: Includes but is not limited to youth development; career exploration; civic engagement; STEM education; and volunteerism. 

  SLSNCGP projects must address at least one of the Strategies as detailed in the solicitation: 

  • Program and Resource Development
  • Exercise and Training
  • Communications
  • Disaster Planning
  • Professional Development and Capacity Building

  Key Details:
  

  Grant Types:

  • Extension Standard Projects: Duration: 12–36 months; Maximum Award: $115,000
  • Extension Planning Projects: Duration: 12 months; Maximum Award: $30,000

  Required match: 1:1 match required
  Proposal Deadline: February 13, 2025

  Visit the NIFA website to learn more about this funding opportunity and access the full Request for Applications (RFA).

   

  Thank you,

  Kendra Rose, Associate Director, ANR Proposal Development Services

• Research Program to Address H5N1 Risk to Swine

  Nov 6, 2024

  Dear Colleagues,

  The Swine Health Information Center (SHIC), in collaboration with the Foundation for Food & Agriculture Research (FFAR) and the Pork Checkoff, has launched a $4 million research initiative to strengthen the U.S. swine industry's capabilities in prevention, preparedness, mitigation, and response for H5N1 influenza. With ongoing H5N1 outbreaks in poultry and rising cases across diverse mammalian species, the disease has become a priority for the pork industry. The recent discovery of H5N1 in a dairy herd and a backyard pig in Oregon highlights the urgent need for a deeper understanding of the virus and proactive risk management.

  Eligibility and Project Priorities

  All projects should strive to address the H5N1 risk to swine research priorities, aiming for high impact, industry-wide benefit, and clear value to pork producers. Collaborative projects involving the pork industry, allied sectors, dairy or poultry industries, academic institutions, or public/private partnerships are strongly encouraged. Proposals that focus on the most urgent priorities and provide significant value to pork producers will be prioritized for funding. The program priorities include:

  1. Vaccines: Develop and assess H5N1 vaccines.
  2. Clinical Presentation: Study H5N1 symptoms and transmission.
  3. Mammary Transmission: Examine virus transmission from sows to piglets via milk.
  4. Surveillance: Identify effective sampling and testing for early detection.
  5. Transmission Risks: Assess potential H5N1 entry points from livestock and wildlife.
  6. Caretaker Protection: Define PPE and practices to prevent zoonotic transmission.
  7. Biosecurity: Create protocols to prevent H5N1 spread on farms.
  8. Pork Safety: Ensure safe handling and assess H5N1 presence in pork products.
  9. Production Impact: Develop strategies to limit spread and production losses.
  10. Business Continuity: Manage swine movement from exposed herds with safety measures

  Key Details

  • Award ceiling: $250,000 per award
  • Required match: None
  • Performance Period: 12 – 18 months
  • Proposal Deadline: 5 p.m. CST on December 31, 2024.

  For more information and to access the proposal template, visit Swine Health Information Center website.

  Thank you.

  Kendra Rose, Associate Director, ANR Proposal Development Services