Posts Tagged: program teams

Program Team meetings, fire summit and programmatic orientation dates set

Save the dates for Program Team meetings, a fire summit and UCANR's programmatic orientation.

Vision 20/20: A fire-resilient California: April 16-17, ANR-only follow-up meeting, April 18, Redding CA

The fire summit will bring together community leaders, policymakers, and movers and shakers—people like you!—from a wide range of disciplines on April 16-17. Vision 20/20: A Fire-resilient California will expand our understanding of California's fire problem and provide an opportunity to build connectivity, interaction and integration across disciplines and better understand the complexity of and find solutions to California's wildfire challenge.

On April 18, we'll have an internal ANR meeting where we can share our own work in fire and strategize how together we can better respond to California's fire challenges at local and regional levels. We hope ANR academics and staff from a wide range of disciplines will attend. Travel funds will be available for ANR-affiliated academics and programmatic staff.

Open to ANR academics and programmatic staff – registration now open.

UC ANR Programmatic Orientation: April 23-25, Kearney Agricultural Research and Extension Center, Parlier, CA

Plan to join ANR leadership for the Programmatic Orientation to discuss the mission of UC ANR and our varied roles in California and the University, as well as see examples of successful research and outreach programs. Take this opportunity to engage in discussions with colleagues about the resources and opportunities available through ANR as a UC division. 

All early career UC Cooperative Extension advisors and specialists, academic coordinators and administrators are invited to attend – registration now open.

Upcoming Program Team meetings

                Water Resources PT – March 5-7 – Registration

                Positive Youth Development Meeting – March 18-20 – Registration

                Pomology (PECC) PT – March 27-28 – Registration opening soon

                Dairy Production and Food Safety PT – April 9-10 – Registration opening soon

                Research to Policy PT – April 10-11 – Registration opening soon  

How might we connect better?

Being able to connect is key to the success we in UC ANR enjoy in developing and providing solutions to help the people of California. 

Please provide your input (see #3 under "Where are we?) to see how we might do this even better.

A summer survey to program team leaders and workgroup chairs asked for input on how we currently connect (and our current structure). 

The three main findings were:

1. Our current structure [roles of Workgroups (WG), Program Teams (PT) and Strategic Initiatives (SIs)] is - shall we say - somewhat “fuzzy.”
2. Even with the lack of clarity on WG, PT and SI functions, people greatly value the opportunities to engage and interact.
3. There is a desire to identify which of our (80+) workgroups are active and still needed.

Where are we? What are the actions in play?

1. Workgroups: Frequently Asked Questions” A fact sheet on our structure was developed to help clarify roles – your feedback is welcome.
2. Identify active Workgroups. This week, we are doing a follow up survey with WG chairs to seek input on the level of WG activity and connections.
3. Your input welcome. We welcome your input through this simple survey - 5-10 minutes can help us all move forward. Please complete the survey https://ucanr.edu/survey/survey.cfm?surveynumber=26325 by Jan. 4.

What's next? After receiving input from you and the workgroup chairs, we will revisit our structure (program teams, etc.) and see how we can better connect.

Thanks for your efforts to help us positively impact the lives of all Californians.

Integrating Climate Change in UCCE Programs Workshop set for Jan. 23-24

Climate change is one of the greatest challenges facing farmers, natural resource managers and communities in California.

On Jan. 23-24, the Climate Change Program Team will hold the Integrating Climate Change in California Cooperative Extension Programs Workshop at UC Merced.

“It's open to all ANR academics and program staff who are interested in the topic,” said Ted Grantham, UC Cooperative Extension specialist in the Department of Environmental Science, Policy, and Management at UC Berkeley.

“This meeting will bring together ANR academics and programmatic staff to strengthen interdisciplinary collaborations and enhance the capacity of UC Cooperative Extension to advance climate-change mitigation and adaptation efforts in California,” he said. 

The day-and-a-half-long workshop will include updates on the latest science on climate impacts and sessions that focus on disaster preparedness and response, climate science communication, and climate-smart agriculture. The workshop will also include interactive dialog to identify priorities for enhancing the visibility, relevance and impact of ANR's climate-change research and extension programs.

In breakout sessions, participants will discuss wildfire hazard mitigation, environmental education and citizen science, building climate resilience with tribes and vulnerable communities, environmental horticulture and more.

To register and view the draft agenda, visit https://ucanr.edu/sites/CalClimateChange/2019_Workshop.

ANR funding support update

Colleagues,

As mandated costs continue to outpace available funds, UC ANR is taking action to ensure financial prudence while continuing to devote our limited resources to our priorities. These include the approved systemwide merit program and the two UC ANR equity programs designed to improve the competitiveness of salaries for academics and staff, among other goals. As Vice President Humiston recently said, “People are our greatest asset; without you, we cannot achieve our research and extension mission.” Please see related programmatic funding updates below.

Program Team Funding 

• For FY2018-19, UC ANR is providing funding for Program Team meetings, during which related Workgroups can also meet. These meetings provide the opportunity to network, share and learn. To find out about the meetings, check the Program Team meetings web page.
• Over this coming year, UC ANR program leadership will continue to solicit input on opportunities to improve our Strategic Initiative, Program Team and Workgroup structure and roles. Thanks to Program Team Leaders and Workgroup Chairs who provided input through the August survey. 

CE specialist and AES travel funds to work with CE advisors or at the RECs

• Continuing in FY 2018-19, UC ANR is making travel support available for CE specialists to collaborate with UC ANR academics off-campus, including CE advisors in the counties and UC ANR academics at the research and extension centers. Each specialist may apply for up to $2,500. These travel funds must be expended by June 30, 2019, and used by the UCCE specialists only, and cannot be used for out-of-state travel.
• UC ANR continues to support travel by AES faculty to meet and work with UC ANR county-based or REC-based academics. Support is limited to $1,000 per AES faculty member with a cap on the total pool of funds available set at $25,000 for FY 2018-19. This travel support must be used by the AES faculty member for his/her own travel to plan and execute research or present research findings at meetings hosted by UC ANR academics. Additional support may be available through the campuses; AES faculty should consult their departments or colleges.
• Completing a short online survey is the only step in accessing these funds.

ANR funding opportunities/grants

• For 2018-2020, UCANR will not be issuing a call for proposals for the ANR Competitive Grants Program nor the High-Risk/High-Reward Program, and the Matching Program is on hold. These funds are being redirected given the current budget situation.  
• UC ANR continues to accept submissions for the Opportunity Grants Program, which provides small amounts of funding to initiate and complete critical short-term research, outreach, or training efforts. Proposals are accepted at any time. For more information, see the web page.

Sincerely,

Wendy Powers
Associate Vice President

 

 

AVP Powers announces 51 proposals invited for competitive and high-reward grants

AVP Wendy Powers announced the letters of intent (LOIs) for which principal investigators have been invited to submit full proposals to ANR's Competitive Grants Program and High-Risk/High-Reward Grants Program. The list of 51 approved projects can be found at http://ucanr.edu/sites/anrstaff/files/261626.pdf.

This year ANR received a total of 108 letters of intent — 97 for the Competitive Grants Program and 11 for the High-Risk/High-Reward Grants Program. Strategic Initiative leaders and their respective panels reviewed all letters of intent thoroughly to address the appropriateness of the proposals in addressing the goals and criteria outlined by each funding opportunity.

ANR Competitive Grants Program

The purpose of the ANR competitive grants program is to address high-priority issue areas identified by at least one of the strategic initiatives: Endemic and Invasive Pests and Diseases (EIPD), Healthy Families and Communities (HFC), Sustainable Food Systems (SFS), Sustainable Natural Ecosystems (SNE), and Water Quality, Quantity and Security (Water).

ANR Competitive Grants Program 2017 Cycle:

• Full proposals due June 19
• Technical peer review: mid-June – early September 2017
• Strategic Initiative review and recommendations: end of September 2017
• Program Council review and recommendations: October/November 2017
• Announcement of funded grants: November/December 2017

High-Risk/High-Reward Grants Program

Given the complexity of societal problems, high-risk research is necessary to achieve gains for real progress in addressing present and emerging challenges. This program will provide funds to initiate and complete research and proof-of-concept efforts that serve as the basis for larger funding opportunities. These projects must be of a high-risk/high-reward nature that are best conducted in a controlled, research setting and, if successful, lend themselves to subsequent larger funding opportunities and/or intellectual property development.

Proposed projects must be within the scope of the ANR Strategic Vision. All ANR academics with PI status are eligible to apply. Proposals will be accepted using the same timeline as outlined for the traditional competitive grants program, but reviewed separately due to the nature of the proposal.

For questions about ANR's competitive grants program or high-risk/high-reward grants program, please contact Melanie Caruso at mmcaruso@ucanr.edu.

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