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24 November 2021

In This Issue:

Policy News

Science and Society News

International Corner

Research, Education, Extension Funding Opportunities

Policy News

The House on Friday passed a sprawling, roughly $2 trillion social policy, climate and tax measure that is the central pillar of President Biden’s domestic agenda. The product of months of intense negotiations, the package would bolster the federal safety net, enhancing support for children and families with child care subsidies and universal prekindergarten, expanding health coverage, increasing housing assistance and investing heavily in combating climate change. The measure is likely to change as it moves through the evenly divided Senate, where Republicans are unanimously opposed and Democrats cannot afford to lose even a single vote from their party. Read the full article.

The Florida Legislature's special session, demanded by Gov. Ron DeSantis to undermine the COVID safety measures for large businesses from the Biden administration and stop local governments and schools from enacting their own, wrapped up Wednesday night with a predictable outcome. All four bills under consideration passed, all largely along party lines. Read the full article.

From climate to COVID, naivety about how science is hijacked promotes more of the same. Researchers at the COP26 climate talks this month know well how doubt can be weaponized to delay action — something many COVID-19 scientists have taken too long to appreciate. They point out problematic methods, poor study design and unjustified claims, but their efforts would be much more effective if they first considered a larger strategy: how ‘sciency-ness’ is used to distract from reality and hinder effective policy. Read the full article.

Getting to this point, a community solar garden that sells 1.2 megawatts of power back into the local grid, wasn't easy, even in a progressive county like his that wanted to expand renewable energy. When Kominek approached Boulder County regulators about putting up solar panels, they initially told him no, his land was designated as historic farmland. Read the full article.

Science and Society News

For 2021, the ASA, CSSA, SSSA Congressional Visits Day will be a VIRTUAL event! VCVD participants will be put into small groups to meet with Members of Congress and their staff and advocate for USDA research funding. Participants will attend 3-6 webinar meetings with Members of Congress and their staff. Scheduling and logistics for the virtual meetings will be provided and all participants will receive policy, communication, and advocacy training to prepare you to effectively work with members of Congress and their staff.  VCVD is an exciting opportunity to use your voice and your skills to help shape federal science policy. Applications for two awards to participate in VCVD are now open to ASA, CSSA, and SSSA members only, deadline January 7. Learn more and apply here.

The Annual Report features the Science Policy Office’s achievements in advocacy, policy, and partnerships. The report highlights the SPO’s work advocating for research funding, submitting public comments, and publishing impact statements. Read more here.

Being a potato breeder is kind of like playing the world’s most complex game of 48-die Yahtzee. Your typical russet or red has four copies of its 12 chromosomes, and it’s notoriously difficult to get new traits to show up where you want them—and to keep them there. Read the full article.

A well-tended grapevine in a modern vineyard produces a bountiful harvest for at least two decades. And a healthy permaculture crop starts with healthy roots. Modern vineyard managers rely on soil preparation methods like fumigation to make sure grape seedlings—Vitis vinifera L.—get a vigorous start. Methyl bromide (MeBr) used to be a key tool in the viticulturist’s kit. But on 1 Jan, 2005, MeBr—a potent greenhouse gas—was phased out from agricultural use when the U.S. signed the Montreal Protocol. Read the full article.

International Corner

Nigerian farmers growing the country’s first GMO food crop — pod borer-resistant (PBR) cowpea, or beans — say they have seen less pest damage in their fields compared to when they grew conventional varieties. Read the full article.

The EU’s rigidity partly informs the United Kingdom’s post-Brexit quest to develop a homegrown policy framework that could allow it to capitalize on burgeoning trade opportunities outside the EU and leverage its considerable research and innovation proficiency.  The UK is mulling a flexible, science-driven approach to the regulation of second-generation genetic technologies, such as gene editing. Read the full article.

Country says it can no longer be ‘rice first’ as it urges farmers in Mekong Delta to change planting techniques or consider alternatives. At the United Nations COP26 summit in Scotland, Vietnam’s Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh joined 109 countries in pledging to reduce methane emissions by 30 percent by 2030. To meet the commitment, the Southeast Asian nation will need to look at rice – one of the country’s key exports and a staple food – but also the second biggest contributor to greenhouse gas emissions among foodstuffs after beef. Read the full article.

Research, Education, Extension Funding Opportunities

The Community Forest Program of the Forest Service offers a unique opportunity for communities to acquire and conserve forests that provide public access and recreational opportunities, protect vital water supplies and wildlife habitat, serve as demonstration sites for private forest landowners, and provide economic benefits from timber and non-timber products. Deadline: January 10, 2022. Read the full announcement.

The purpose of the SCRI program is to address the critical needs of the specialty crop industry by awarding grants to support research and extension that address key challenges of national, regional, and multi-state importance in sustaining all components of food and agriculture. Deadline: January 21, 2022. Read the full announcement.

Maryland commercial, industrial, farms, and other agricultural entities can apply for grants for the implementation of energy efficiency improvement projects to their facilities. Funding is available for projects that increase the energy efficiency of electric and non-electric fuel consumption of existing facilities or dedicated spaces within buildings. Renewable energy measures are not eligible for funding under the CI&A Program. Deadline: December 28. Read the full announcement.

The California Department of Agriculture’s Healthy Soils Program (HSP) Demonstration Projects aim to improve soil health, sequester carbon, and reduce atmospheric greenhouse gases (GHGs). Funding is available for on-farm demonstration projects that collect data and/or showcase conservation management practices that mitigate GHG emissions and increase soil health, and for creating a platform promoting widespread adoption of conservation management practices throughout the state. Type A projects will demonstrate implementation of conservation management practices, measure field GHGs emissions, and conduct analysis on cost/benefits for adoption of the proposed practice(s) and anticipated barriers. Type B projects will demonstrate implementation of HSP conservation management practices and/or conduct analysis on cost/benefits for adoption of the proposed practice(s) and anticipated barriers. Deadline: December 31. Read the full announcement.

The Department of Defense’s (DoD) Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program (SERDP) is seeking to fund environmental research and development in the Environmental Restoration and the Resource Conservation and Resiliency program areas. SERDP invests across the broad spectrum of basic and applied research, as well as advanced technology development. The development and application of innovative environmental technologies will reduce the costs, environmental risks, and time required to resolve environmental problems while, at the same time, enhancing and sustaining military readiness. Pre-proposal deadline: January 6, 2022 at 2 pm ET. Read the full announcement.

USDA’s Pandemic Assistance for Producers initiative is offering financial assistance to organic and transitioning producers and handlers through the Organic and Transitional Education and Certification Program (OTECP). This program will provide up to $20 million to help eligible applicants cover expenses paid during the 2020, 2021, and 2022 fiscal years. Eligible expenses include organic certification fees, transitional expenses, soil testing, and educational event registration fees. Deadline: January 7, 2022. Read the full announcement.

Each year $5 million is provided to the Department of Agriculture (USDA) to support grants, technical assistance, and other activities related to USDA’s Farm to School Program. Additional funding for the Farm to School Program was made available from the FY 2018 through FY 2021 agriculture appropriations acts and, as a result, USDA expects to award approximately $12 million under this solicitation to improve access to local foods in eligible schools, for activities such as training; supporting operations; planning; purchasing equipment; developing partnerships; and, implementing farm to school programs. Deadline: January 10, 2022. Read the full announcement.

NOAA invites small businesses to submit research proposals under this NOFO. In addition to mission‐area relevance, NOAA gives high priority to proposals developing technologies that integrate any of the NOAA Science & Technology Focus Areas, which include: Uncrewed Systems (UxS), Artificial Intelligence, Data and Cloud Computing, ‘Omics, and Citizen Science. Following are NOAA’s key Long‐Term Goals, which highlight important mission and research priorities where they are prioritizing internally: Climate Adaptation and Mitigation, Weather‐Ready Nation, Healthy Oceans, and Resilient Coastal Communities and Economies. Deadline: February 18, 2022. Read the full announcement.

The National Science Foundation’s IUCRCs help industry partners and government agencies connect directly and efficiently with university researchers to achieve three primary objectives: 1) Conduct high-impact research to meet shared and critical industrial needs in companies of all sizes; 2) Enhance U.S. global leadership in driving innovative technology development, and 3) Identify, mentor and develop a diverse, highly skilled science and engineering workforce. The IUCRC program provides a structure for academic researchers to conduct fundamental, pre-competitive research of shared interest to industry and government organizations. Individual award sizes (total costs): $20,000 for Planning Grants, $150,000 per year for Phase I, $100,000 per year for Phase II, $150,000 per year for Phase II+, and $50,000 per year for Phase III. Deadline: March 9, 2022. Read the full announcement.

Sources: New York Times, Tallahassee Democrat, Nature, NPR, Cornell Alliance for Science, Al Jazeera,

Vision: The Societies Washington, DC Science Policy Office (SPO) will advocate the importance and value of the agronomic, crop and soil sciences in developing national science policy and ensuring the necessary public-sector investment in the continued health of the environment for the well being of humanity. The SPO will assimilate, interpret, and disseminate in a timely manner to Society members information about relevant agricultural, natural resources and environmental legislation, rules and regulations under consideration by Congress and the Administration.

This page of the ASA-CSSA-SSSA web site will highlight current news items relevant to Science Policy. It is not an endorsement of any position.