Rhode Island

The grants summary  includes a project highlight, a breakdown of funding by SARE project type, the total funding for the state since 1988 and state grant recipients.

Northeast SARE’s network of state coordinators--housed at each land grant university throughout the region--conduct professional development programs and share information about our grant programs and other sustainable agriculture resources in their respective states.

State Contacts

Rachel Bespuda

Rachel Bespuda

Project Coordinator
University of Connecticut
Bio
Rachel coordinates the tri-state SARE program for CT-MA-RI, focusing on providing educational training to both agricultural service providers and farmers in the area of sustainable livestock production practices. Before joining the tri-state team in 2017, Rachel worked in the animal nutrition field at a Connecticut feed mill as well as a local feed retailer. Rachel grew up on a small family farm in Northeast Connecticut, raising beef cattle. She graduated from the University of Connecticut in 2009 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Animal Science and, in 2011, earned a Master of Science degree in Animal Science with a focus in animal nutrition. Rachel and her husband currently raise beef cattle, poultry and swine for local meat sales on his family's farm in southern Connecticut.
Keiddy Urrea-Morawicki

Keiddy Urrea-Morawicki

Project Coordinator
University of Rhode Island
Bio
Currently, I work as a Research Associate III at the University of Rhode Island Cooperative Extension University of Rhode Island working with growers. I work at the University of Rhode Island Plant Protection Clinic, where I help growers with pest and disease identification and management recommendations to prevent and control plant health issues. Growing up in Colombia, I was inspired by small farmers’ sustainable agriculture practices who provided food for the local community. This motivated me to pursue a career in agriculture and to study Agronomy first and then to pursue a Master's and Ph.D. in Plant Pathology at the University of Arkansas, focusing on soilborne pathogens and seedling diseases. In 2017, I joined the University of Arkansas Cooperative Extensions Service’s Plant Health Clinic as a Program Associate, Diagnostician, and Instructor and worked there until 2022.

SARE in Rhode Island

Since 1988, SARE has awarded numerous grants in every state and Island Protectorate. Aimed at advancing sustainable innovations, these grants add up to an impressive portfolio of sustainable agriculture efforts across the nation.

Two women hugging outside of a house

Rhode island impacts

$2.2
million
in funding since 1988
43 projects
funded since 1988