[USCC] Fwd: Organic Farming Research -

[Jim McNelly]

>
>*   Organic Farming Research - On September 5, 
>the Organic Farming Research Foundation posted 
>on its www site its "Request for Proposals" in 
>its organic farming research grants program, 
>which is " ... open to all applicants residing 
>in Canada, Mexico and the United States. OFRF 
>particularly encourages farmers, ranchers, 
>researchers, and extension personnel to consider 
>applying for funding ... The average grant 
>awarded in OFRF's last full year of grantmaking 
>was $10,360 ... Matching funds from other 
>sources and/or in-kind contributions from 
>cooperators are encouraged but not required ... 
>This request for proposals is open to any 
>agricultural production, social, economic, or 
>policy-related topic of concern to organic 
>farmers and/or ranchers. OFRF supports research 
>that is relevant to and takes place in certified 
>organic systems. OFRF does not normally fund 
>studies that compare conventional with organic 
>systems as a primary objective ... OFRF has 
>identified the following as areas of particular 
>interest: Organic livestock systems; Economic 
>constraints and opportunities relevant to the 
>viability of small- and medium-scale organic 
>farms and ranches; Projects that investigate the 
>interactions between components of organic 
>systems and that take a systems-management 
>(rather than an input-substitution) approach to 
>solving production problems ..." - Proposals are 
>accepted twice a year with applications due by 
>December 15, 2006 and July 16, 2007 - Details 
>are posted at 
><http://www.ofrf.org/research/application.html>http://www.ofrf.org/research/application.html 
>- Questions may be directed to the OFRF 
>technical program coordinator, Jane Sooby, at 
>831 426 6606; e-mail: 
><mailto:Jane at OFRF.org>Jane at OFRF.org - 
>Information about OFRF is posted at <http://www.ofrf.org/>http://www.ofrf.org
>
>http://www.ofrf.org/research/application.html
>
>Organic Farming Research Foundation
>
>Request for Proposals
>
>Posted September 5, 2006
>
>The Organic Farming Research Foundation grants 
>program is open to all applicants residing in 
>Canada, Mexico and the United States. OFRF 
>particularly encourages farmers, ranchers, 
>researchers, and extension personnel to consider 
>applying for funding. Farmers and ranchers often 
>find that working with professional researchers 
>can make it easier to design and carry out a 
>research project, and OFRF encourages applications from such partnerships.
>
>Proposals are considered twice a year. The 
>deadlines and notification dates for the next two granting cycles are:
>
>Proposal due date Applicants will be notified by
>
>Dec. 15, 2006  April 15, 2007
>July 16, 2007  Dec. 1, 2007
>
>Overview
>
>The Organic Farming Research Foundation (OFRF) 
>funds research on organic farming and food 
>systems and the dissemination of these research 
>results to the greater agricultural community. 
>Proposals must involve farmers or ranchers in 
>project design and implementation and take place 
>on working organic farms or ranches whenever 
>possible. Additionally, proposals should 
>articulate how the proposed research project 
>will foster the improvement or adoption of 
>organic farming systems. OFRF will only fund 
>projects in North America (which includes 
>Canada, the United States, and Mexico). Project 
>proposals are reviewed and awarded by the OFRF 
>Board of Directors, the majority of whom are certified organic producers.
>
>Funding levels
>
>OFRF requests proposals which have objectives 
>that are realistically achievable with a modest 
>level of funding. The average grant awarded in 
>OFRF's last full year of grantmaking was 
>$10,360. OFRF will not fund a project for more 
>than $15,000 per year. Matching funds from other 
>sources and/or in-kind contributions from 
>cooperators are encouraged but not required.
>
>Multi-year projects
>
>OFRF acknowledges the importance of conducting 
>long-term research to verify experimental 
>results. OFRF will consider funding multi-year 
>projects, but can only commit to funding one 
>year of a multi-year project at a time. 
>Submission of an interim report and new proposal 
>is required for OFRF to consider continued funding in subsequent years.
>
>Topics
>
>This request for proposals is open to any 
>agricultural production, social, economic, or 
>policy-related topic of concern to organic 
>farmers and/or ranchers. OFRF supports research 
>that is relevant to and takes place in certified 
>organic systems. OFRF does not normally fund 
>studies that compare conventional with organic systems as a primary objective.
>
>Additionally, OFRF has identified the following 
>as areas of particular interest:
>
>Organic livestock systems;
>
>Economic constraints and opportunities relevant 
>to the viability of small- and medium-scale organic farms and ranches;
>
>Projects that investigate the interactions 
>between components of organic systems and that 
>take a systems-management (rather than an 
>input-substitution) approach to solving production problems.
>
>Proposals submitted in any topic area will be 
>given the same consideration in the evaluation 
>process, but by articulating these priorities 
>the Board hopes to receive a larger number of proposals in these subject areas.
>
>Proposal requirements
>
>Your proposal should begin with a short (1-2 
>paragraph) summary of your project, and then 
>continue by addressing each of the 10 points 
>outlined below under Proposal Content. The 
>successful application will provide a clear 
>rationale for the project, showing that there is 
>a significant need for the research project 
>proposed. It is important that the objectives 
>for your project be clear and well-structured. 
>Demonstrate why your project is necessary and 
>what, specifically, you hope to accomplish. You 
>may include an appendix with any additional 
>documents that you feel are necessary.
>
>General budget information
>
>OFRF funds can only be used for expenses 
>directly relating to your original research 
>project; general overhead and operational costs 
>may not be included in your budget proposal.
>
>OFRF generally will provide funding for:
>
>Labor and other expenses for recording, 
>analyzing, documenting and disseminating results;
>Rental of equipment necessary to the project;
>Stipends for farmer/rancher cooperators;
>Mileage for field travel (reimbursed at a rate 
>no greater than the U.S. General Services 
>Adminstration's rate on the date of application, currently 44.5¢ per mile).
>
>Ordinarily, OFRF will not provide funding for:
>
>Faculty salaries;
>Farm labor not related to research activities;
>Other farm expenses not related to research activities;
>Permanent equipment;
>International travel;
>Travel to professional meetings.
>
>Proposal content
>
>Provide a short summary of the project and its 
>objectives, then address each of these points in order:
>
>List the name, phone number, address, and 
>electronic contact information for all the 
>researchers and farmer/rancher collaborators 
>involved in the project. State total amount of 
>funding requested from OFRF. (Provide budget 
>detail later in proposal. See question 10.)
>
>What is the issue that you are addressing, and 
>why is it important to organic producers? Detail 
>how farmers/ranchers have been involved in 
>determining the focus of the project and in its 
>planning. How will they be involved throughout the project?
>
>What are the project objectives and what, 
>specifically, do you hope to accomplish with this project?
>
>What steps have you taken to determine that the 
>project you're planning has not already been 
>done? What organic farmers and/or ranchers have 
>you consulted on the topic? OFRF requires that 
>you conduct a literature search on the subject 
>matter and present your findings in the proposal.
>
>What is your methodology for this project? 
>Include details of the actual mechanics of your 
>project, including experimental design, 
>treatments, materials, measurements, etc. How 
>have farmer/rancher collaborators been involved 
>in developing the methodology of the experiment? 
>How will they be involved in the experiment's implementation?
>
>Organic certification. Describe the organic 
>certification status of the research area and 
>list the certifier. If an area is not certified organic, please explain why.
>
>What is your plan for delivering the information 
>from the project to farmers/ranchers or other 
>end users? Each project MUST have a plan for 
>dissemination of information, e.g. field day, 
>article, publication, video, etc. If you develop 
>a publication or video, describe how it will be distributed.
>
>What are your qualifications to do this work? 
>What previous experience do you have in 
>conducting organic systems research? Include the 
>qualifications of any researchers or producers with whom you are collaborating.
>
>Provide a timeline or calendar of important 
>milestones. If submitting a proposal for a 
>multi-year project, please provide a 
>year-by-year breakdown of the project timeline.
>
>What is your project budget? Document other 
>sources of support for the project, all matching 
>and in-kind resources, and list other funding 
>sought. Your budget should detail labor, 
>materials, travel, and outreach costs, with 
>justification for each. If applying for a 
>multi-year project, please provide a breakdown of your budget by year.
>Submission requirements
>
>Make sure to supply the name, address, e-mail 
>address, and telephone number for the principal investigator for the project.
>
>Send eight (8) copies of your proposal (faxed or 
>emailed copies will not be accepted) to:
>
>Grants Program
>
>Organic Farming Research Foundation
>P.O. Box 440
>Santa Cruz, CA 95061
>
>For express shipping purposes, OFRF’s street 
>address is 303 Potrero St., Ste. 29-203, Santa Cruz, CA 95060.
>
>Proposals must be received by the close of 
>business in the OFRF office by the proposal 
>deadline. Upcoming deadlines are Friday, Dec. 
>15, 2006, and Monday, July 16, 2007.
>
>Do not bind or staple the proposal.
>
>Please number the pages of your proposal and 
>limit it to 12 pages. Most proposals can convey 
>the necessary information in 6-8 pages.
>
>Proposals that do not address organic farming 
>issues or follow these guidelines will not be considered for funding.
>
>Review
>
>Proposals will be reviewed by the members of the 
>Board of Directors of the foundation. OFRF 
>reserves the right to seek outside technical consultation as necessary.
>
>If your project is funded
>
>OFRF requires that successful applicants sign a 
>grant contract before initial payment of the 
>grant award. OFRF will retain 10% of the total 
>grant award until completion of the project, 
>timely submission of a final report by the 
>grantee, and a satisfactory evaluation of the 
>project by OFRF staff. Evaluation involves 
>analyzing whether or not the original project 
>objectives were met, not the success or failure 
>of a project. OFRF expects all grantees to post 
>their final results to the OrganicAgInfo website 
>( http://www.organicaginfo.org/) as part of their dissemination of results.
>
>ATTENTION FARMERS AND RANCHERS: Additional 
>consulting is available to help you craft your 
>research proposal. Contact OFRF’s technical 
>program coordinator, Jane Sooby, at (831) 
>426-6606 or jane at ofrf.org for details.
>
>Suggested references
>
>These references are available on the OFRF 
>website at http://www.ofrf.org/research/index.html
>
>OFRF's List of funded projects. This will give 
>the applicant a sense of the type of projects 
>the Board has an interest in funding, and help 
>avoid duplicating previously funded work.
>
>OFRF's Guide to Conducting On-farm Research, 
>which may be useful in determining project objectives and experimental design.
>
>OFRF's Guide to Conducting an Information Search 
>for your OFRF Grant Proposal.
>
>Investing in Organic Knowledge: Impacts of the 
>First 13 Years of the Organic Farming Research 
>Foundation's Grantmaking Program. A new report 
>documenting the widespread impact of OFRF's grantmaking.
>
>Additional background on your topic may also be 
>found at http://www.organicaginfo.org/
>
>If you have additional questions, you may write 
>to, call, or e-mail the OFRF office,
>phone 831-426-6606, e-mail jane at ofrf.org
>
>Revised August 2006
>
>END
>
>
>
>The above information was sent to you by:
>
>Jack Cooper
>
>Food Industry Environmental Network, LLC (FIEN, 
>LLC) - see http://www.fien.com - FIEN, LLC is a 
>regulatory and policy e-mail update service for 
>the agriculture and food industry which is operated as a partnership by:
>
>Jack L. Cooper
>Food Industry Environmental Network, LLC
>33 Falling Creek Court, Silver Spring, Maryland 20904
>Phone: 301 384 8287 --- E- Mail: JLC at fien.com
>and
>Cindy Roberts
>Food Industry Environmental Network, LLC
>1464 Harvard St. NW, Suite 14
>Washington, DC 20009-4610
>Phone: 202 669 6951 --- E-Mail: CAR at fien.com