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Posts Tagged: UC Merced
Central Valley agrifood initiative F3 receives major boost
The Fresno-Merced Future of Food Innovation Initiative (F3) – of which UC ANR is an anchor institution – took a big step forward during the UC Regents meeting May 18.
The Regents unanimously approved the formation of F3 Innovate – a new 501(c)(3) nonprofit that will raise funds for the partnership initiative that also includes the Central Valley Community Foundation (CVCF), California Department of Food and Agriculture, UC Merced and CSU Fresno.
Largely funded by a $65 million Build Back Better grant from the U.S. Economic Development Administration, F3 aims to advance innovation and entrepreneurship in agrifood technology, strengthen food systems, bolster local and regional economies, and bring greater prosperity to the San Joaquin Valley and beyond.
The new F3 Innovate nonprofit will focus on agrifood systems research and commercialization, services for micro-enterprises and small businesses in under-resourced communities, ag-tech innovation seed funding, and building a talent pipeline to sustain these efforts.
“This 501(c)(3) is critical to all of that, because it really lets us bring together the public and private partners, and ensures that broader stakeholder participation and benefit,” said Glenda Humiston, UC vice president for agriculture and natural resources, during her presentation to the Regents (view recording of the meeting).
UC Merced Chancellor Juan Sánchez Muñoz and CVCF President and CEO Ashley Swearengin also spoke passionately during the meeting about the need to form the nonprofit as a key connector and catalyst for the F3 initiative.
F3 – and the new F3 Innovate – will continue to take shape through the work of Gabe Youtsey, UC ANR chief innovation officer; Josh Viers, associate dean for research of UC Merced's School of Engineering; and many other academics and staff across UC ANR and UC.
"Establishing F3 Innovate as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization is a strategic move designed to unlock and accelerate agriculture technology from lab to market. It will pave the way for a wider range of collaboration opportunities between the UC and industry, and ensure the inclusion and representation of all our stakeholders, from small and socially disadvantaged farmers to startups and corporates," said Youtsey, who is also founder of The VINE, UC ANR's Innovation & Entrepreneurship program that is co-leading F3.
"The UC Regents were enthusiastic about this partnership as it aligns perfectly with our mission of transforming cutting-edge agricultural research into practical, market-ready solutions while doing the hard work of engaging our local workers, communities and farmers to adopt these new technologies," Youtsey added. "It enables us to foster deep and meaningful collaborative relationships with industry partners, advancing technology commercialization that is inclusive and truly beneficial to all involved."
UC Merced, UC Santa Cruz named Agricultural Experiment Station campuses
UC President Michael Drake announced during the UC Regents meeting Nov. 16 that UC will designate UC Santa Cruz and UC Merced as Agricultural Experiment Station campuses.
The Agricultural Experiment Station is a network of campus-based scientists whose mission is to develop knowledge and technologies to address agricultural, natural resources and health issues. UC's AES faculty members conduct land-grant mission research and UC Cooperative Extension puts that knowledge in the hands of people who can apply it to improve their lives and businesses. The Hatch Act of 1887 established Agricultural Experiment Stations at land grant colleges in each state.
The AES, which is a component of UC ANR, currently includes the three agriculture and natural resources colleges at UC Berkeley, UC Davis and UC Riverside, and the School of Veterinary Medicine at UC Davis.
“Both UC Santa Cruz and UC Merced have long conducted research on agricultural issues, so it is appropriate that these campuses also receive this designation and have their work recognized as contributing to the overall UC agricultural research portfolio,” Drake told the regents. “With the AES designation, Santa Cruz and Merced have the potential to receive additional funding from the University's budget for this research, and they will be able to make a stronger case for competitive grants in the larger agricultural research area.”
Vice President Glenda Humiston, who also serves as director of AES in California, congratulated our colleagues at UC Merced and UC Santa Cruz for joining the Agricultural Experiment Station and welcomed their collaboration.
“The San Joaquin and Salinas valleys are critical agricultural regions in California so UC ANR already has UC Cooperative Extension specialists at both UC Santa Cruz and UC Merced conducting research on agriculture and food-related issues,” Humiston said. “Having these two campuses receive this AES designation expands UC's agricultural research portfolio, which will help us develop the solutions needed for the many challenges Californians face.”
UC Cooperative Extension specialists Tapan Pathak, Karina Diaz Rios, Safeeq Khan and Jackie Atim are based at UC Merced and UC Cooperative Extension specialist Joji Muramoto is based at UC Santa Cruz.
“Our campus has been working toward this designation for some time and I'm so pleased that the hard work of our faculty and staff has paid off,” said UC Santa Cruz Chancellor Cynthia Larive.
Josh Viers, UC Merced professor of watershed science and associate dean for research, wrote on LinkedIn: “Not only does the official Agricultural Experiment Station (AES) designation for UCM and UCSC provide legitimacy among our peers nationwide, but importantly it recognizes our recent efforts to tackle the most difficult challenges we face to feed a planet under a rapidly changing climate. This designation makes us eligible for new opportunities and in so doing make further investments into our research infrastructure including our Experimental Smart Farm.”
