The Northeast Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) Program is pleased to announce that its Administrative Council recently approved 29 Partnership Grant proposals for funding, totaling $777,274. Funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's National Institute of Food and Agriculture, Northeast SARE offers competitive grants and education in sustainable agriculture.
Partnership Grants fund projects conducted by agricultural service providers working in partnership with farmers to encourage the understanding and widespread use of sustainable techniques, add to our collective understanding of sustainable agriculture, and strengthen working partnerships between farmers and farm service providers. Projects are conducted in Connecticut, Delaware, Massachusetts, Maryland, Maine, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, West Virginia, and Washington, D.C. All proposals undergo a rigorous review process by panels of farmers, agricultural service providers and researchers in the Northeast.
Partnership projects recommended to receive funding for the 2019 grant cycle include the following (listed in order by state). More information about Partnership and other Northeast SARE grants may be found at: www.northeastsare.org.
Delaware:
David Owens of the University of Delaware Cooperative Extension in Georgetown, DE was awarded $28,221 for the project, “Cost Benefits of Common Insecticide Practices Used to Prevent Soybean Pest Problems in Delaware.”
Maine:
Ryan Dennett of Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association (MOFGA) in Unity, ME was awarded $29,787 for the project, “Maine Climate Resilience Training Program.”
Marissa McMahan of Manomet, Inc. in Brunswick, ME was awarded $29,575 for the project, “Expanding Quahog and Oyster Polyculture in Maine.”
Massachusetts:
Hannah Whitehead of the University of Massachusetts in Amherst, MA was awarded $17,879 for the project, “Identifying the Most Effective and Accessible Queen Rearing Method to Strengthen Northeast Beekeeping Practices.”
Margaret Christie of Community Involved in Sustaining Agriculture (CISA) in South Deerfield, MA was awarded $23,750 for the project, “Improving Producer Cooperatives: Best Practices in Marketing, Distribution and Governance.”
Keith Zaltzberg of Regenerative Design Group in Greenfield, MA was awarded $18,700 for the project, “Measuring Soil Health and Carbon Sequestration in an Emerging Chestnut Agroforestry System.”
New Hampshire:
Matthew Thorne of the Organization for Refugee and Immigrant Success in Manchester, NH was awarded $30,000 for the project, “NH Community Food Ambassadors for Mobile Farmers Markets.”
New Jersey:
Dean Polk of Rutgers University in Bridgeton, NJ was awarded $29,848 for the project, “Alternative and Organic Management Practices to Control Oriental Beetle in Commercial Blueberries.”
New York:
Samuel Anderson of Cornell University in Brooklyn, NY was awarded $20,836 for the project, “Two-spotted Spider Mite IPM for Urban Agriculture.”
Caitlin Arnold of the National Young Farmers Coalition of Hudson, NY was awarded $26,712 for the project, “Training Northeast Farmers to Confront and Dismantle Racism and Inequity in Food and Farming Systems.”
Janet Britt of Agricultural Stewardship Association, Inc. in Greenwich, NY was awarded $28,600 for the project, “Demonstrating Soil Health Improvements through Adoption of Interseeded Cover Crops and Grazing.”
Ethan Grundberg of Cornell University in Middletown, NY was awarded $29,943 for the project, “Developing Integrated Pest Management Strategies to Reduce Damage from the Invasive Allium Leafminer on Organic Farms.”
Betsy Hodge of Cornell Cooperative Extension of St. Lawrence County in Canton, NY was awarded $9,086 for the project, “Creating Goat Artificial Insemination Video Training Materials.”
Crystal Stewart of Cornell University in Johnstown, NY was awarded $29,968 for the project, “Postharvest Handling of Garlic for Control of Pests and Disease.”
Denis Willett of Cornell University in Geneva, NY was awarded $29,684 for the project, “Biological Control of Chestnut Weevil.”
Pennsylvania:
Zachary Larson of The Pennsylvania State University in Martinsburg, PA was awarded $29,526 for the project, “Planting Green Strategies for Maximizing Corn Emergence.”
Margarita Lopez-Uribe of The Pennsylvania State University in University Park, PA was awarded $29,990 for the project, “Maximizing Pollination Services for Blueberry Production in Pennsylvania.”
Wesley Ramsey of the Penn Soil RC&D Council in Warren, PA was awarded $29,993 for the project, “Producing Quality Poultry Bedding with a Trailer Mounted System.”
Robyn Underwood of The Pennsylvania State University in University Park, PA was awarded $22,695 for the project, “Does Artificial Feed Impact Health and Survival of Honey Bee Colonies?”
Vermont:
Eric Bishop-von Wettberg of the University of Vermont in Burlington, VT was awarded $20,224 for the project, “Increasing Yield and Carbon Sequestration of Hemp Production with Understory Companion Crops.”
Andrew Chamberlin of the University of Vermont in South Burlington, VT was awarded $27,280 for the project, “The Ag Engineering Podcast: Tools, Tips and Techniques for Improving Sustainability on Your Farm.”
Heather Darby of the University of Vermont in Saint Albans, VT was awarded $29,973 for the project, “Developing Pest and Fertility Best Practices for Industrial Hemp.”
Josef Gorres of the University of Vermont in Burlington, VT was awarded $29,981 for the project, “Mycoremediation of Phosphorus in Agricultural Runoff using Mycorrhizal-Plant Associations.”
Deborah Neher of the University of Vermont in Burlington, VT was awarded $30,000 for the project, “Anaerobic Soil Disinfestation to Control Soilborne Pathogen Rhizoctonia solani in Vermont Field Conditions.”
Beth Roy of Vital Communities in White River Junction, VT was awarded $29,917 for the project, “Building a Resilient Farmer Network in the Face of Climate Disruption.”
Patrick Solverson of the University of Vermont in Burlington, VT was awarded $29,998 for the project, “Supporting Local Agriculture via Clinical Research: Human Studies with Elderberries to Improve Biomarkers of Obesity.”
West Virginia:
Lisa Jones of the West Virginia University Extension Service in Morgantown, WV was awarded $29,356 for the project, “Preserving the Past for the Future: Evaluating Production, Processing and Marketing of Appalachian Heritage Beans.”
Spencer Moss of the West Virginia Food & Farm Coalition, Inc. in Charleston, WV was awarded $29,067 for the project, “Implementing Beginning Farmer Training in Geographic Areas via WV Collaborative Regional Alliance for Farmer Training.”
Michael Rechlin of Future Generations University in Franklin, WV was awarded $26,685 for the project, “Advancing Walnut Syrup Production for Increased Profitability and Farm Income Diversification.”