Weekly Harvest Newsletter
Sustainable Agriculture News Briefs - August 24, 2011
Weekly sustainable agriculture news and resources gleaned from the Internet by NCAT staff for the NCAT Sustainable Agriculture Project website. The Weekly Harvest Newsletter is also available online.
News & Resources
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Conservation Innovation Grant Recipients Announced
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Fall Online Courses for Beginning Farmers Offered
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Natural Areas Provide Key Pollinator Habitat, Says Study
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Scientist's Roundup Research Reveals Potential Problems
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REAP Grant Recipients Announced
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Northwest Clean Energy Farmer Nominees Sought
Funding Opportunities
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Green Thumb Challenge Grant
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Regional Agricultural IPM Grants
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Hobart Center for Foodservice Sustainability 2012 Grant Competition
Coming Events
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Fruit Short Course
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Ranch Management University
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Global G.A.P. Tour 2011
News & Resources
Conservation Innovation Grant Recipients Announced
NRCS is investing nearly $22.5 million in innovative conservation technologies and approaches, through matching grants for projects in 40 states. A summary of the projects selected for 2011 Conservation Innovation Grants is available at www.nrcs.usda.gov.
Fall Online Courses for Beginning Farmers Offered
Registration is now open for 7 online courses offered by the Northeast
Beginning Farmer Project this fall - including 4 new topics. Courses are typically 6 weeks long, cost $175, and include both
online webinars and on-your-own time reading and
activities.
Natural Areas Provide Key Pollinator Habitat, Says Study
Surrounding agricultural crops with natural, biologically diverse areas
helps provide habitat for important pollinators and promotes the
stability and richness of crops worldwide, according to a new study by
an international team of scientists recently published in the journal Ecology Letters.
Related ATTRA Publication: Farmscaping to Enhance Biological Control
Scientist's Roundup Research Reveals Potential Problems
Repeated use of the chemical glyphosate, the key ingredient in Roundup herbicide, impacts the root structure of plants, and 15 years of research indicates that the chemical could be causing fungal root disease, said Bob Kremer, a microbiologist with the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Agricultural Research Service.
REAP Grant Recipients Announced
USDA has announced grants for more than 900 agricultural producers and
rural small businesses across the country to implement renewable energy
and energy efficiency measures in their operations, through the Rural
Energy for America Program (REAP).
Northwest Clean Energy Farmer Nominees Sought
This year’s Harvesting Clean Energy Conference, October 23-25 in Boise, Idaho, will honor the Northwest’s clean energy farmers – awarding one producer each from Idaho, Montana, Oregon and Washington. Nominations are being accepted until September 9, 2011.
>> More Breaking News
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Funding Opportunities
Green Thumb Challenge Grant
Green Education Foundation and Gardener's Supply Company are calling on schools and youth groups to submit chronicles of their garden projects in a race to win a $5,000 prize.
Entries are due by September 30, 2011.
Regional Agricultural IPM Grants
EPA's Office of Pesticide Programs, in coordination with the EPA
Regional Offices, announces the availability of approximately $500,000
for assistance agreements to further, through research, development,
monitoring, public education, training, demonstrations, or studies, the
adoption of Integrated Pest Management (IPM) approaches to reduce
pesticide risk in production agriculture.
Applications must be submitted by September 19, 2011.
Hobart Center for Foodservice Sustainability 2012 Grant Competition
The Hobart Center for Foodservice Sustainability has established a grant
to honor the individual or company submitting a sustainability case
study judged as the most innovative and best-executed foodservice
sustainability project of the year. Winner will receive a cash award of $5,000 to invest in additional sustainability measures.
Entries are due by January 31, 2012.
>> More Funding Opportunities
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Coming Events
Fruit Short Course
October 5, 12, 19 and 22, 2011
Doylestown, Pennsylvania
Penn State Cooperative Extension offers this introduction to the art and
science of growing fruit for profit. Both tree fruits and small fruits will be covered.
Ranch Management University
October 10-14, 2011
College Station, Texas
This five-day program at Texas A&M University targets novice landowners and provides a foundation of knowledge for those that are new to owning land in Texas.
Global G.A.P. Tour 2011
October 17-18, 2011
Atlanta, Georgia
GLOBAL G.A.P provides the latest information to assist Good Agricultural Practice implementation. A Public Crops Base Workshop October 19-20 is designed for producers, consultants, new inspectors, as
well as anyone who is interested in how the GLOBAL G.A.P. certification
system operates.
>> More Events
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The NCAT Sustainable Agriculture Project was developed and is managed by the National Center for Appropriate Technology (NCAT). Visit the NCAT website for more information on our other sustainable agriculture and energy projects.
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