AFRI Food and Agriculture Non-formal Education Program Webinar

The ECOP Monday Minute will be on hiatus until December 5, 2022.
Have a safe and pleasant Thanksgiving holiday. 

AFRI Food and Agriculture Non-formal Education Program Webinar - The USDA NIFA Agriculture and Food Research Initiative, Food and Agriculture Non-formal Education (FANE) program area priority will support content development and activities for non-formal education to foster development of technology-savvy youth. Projects must develop activities that cultivate interest and competencies in STEM and in food and agricultural sciences supported by the six Farm Bill Priority areas of AFRI. Data science, including artificial intelligence, automation, and robotics as well as gene editing, and biotechnology will be supported in this program area priority. Register Here in advance for a webinar November 29, 2022, 2:00 p.m. ET. For more information visit https://www.nifa.usda.gov/afri-food-agriculture-non-formal-education-webinar and to review the RFA go to https://www.nifa.usda.gov/sites/default/files/2022-05/FY22-AFRI-EWD-RFA-508-MOD1.pdf.

Report on Enhancing Relations Among Land-grants - On November 3, 2022, a consensus study report by the National Academies Press was released to the public. USDA-NIFA began the effort acting on a congressional directive. The study examined enhanced cooperation across the land-grant system could deepen and expand the impact of its agricultural work, which is critical to address evolving industry and environmental challenges, as well as demands from consumers. Past-chair of ECOP, Wendy Powers, Washington State University, represented Extension on the Blue Ribbon Panel as they explored the opportunities and limitations of inter-institutional projects by focusing on case studies chosen from the portfolio of past Multistate Research and Extension Activities, Coordinated Agricultural Projects (CAP) of the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI), and other regional initiatives involving research, education, and extension. 

• Video Release of Report: https://youtu.be/UTyKEOrHvUk
• View/Download Document: https://nap.nationalacademies.org/read/26640/chapter/1

Meet New Budget & Legislative Committee Members - ECOP is not the only 15-member decision-making body for the System. The Section also relies heavily on the Budget & Legislative Committee (BLC) to establish federal legislative, budget and advocacy agenda and strategies for the Cooperative Extension System. In October, Jason Henderson, Purdue University, took the helm as Chair the ECOP BLC and the at the same time the EDA Team was on-boarding 6 new members. For short-bios and photos of each leader go to https://drive.google.com/file/d/1IunhWCAq2hqxo9qSXQZauVvkb8_tTo8U/view?usp=sharing
The complete list of ECOP BLC Members if found on page five of the 2022-2023 ECOP Directory.

The ECOP Monday Minute will be on hiatus on May 30. Have a safe Memorial Day Weekend.

The bipartisan report, Boots on the Ground: Land-grant Universities in the Fight Against Threats to Food and Agriculture, highlights the unique role of land-grant universities in safeguarding the Nation's food and agriculture and can be downloaded here. The report finds that land-grant universities can play a critical role in protecting the Nation’s food and agriculture, and details 15 specific recommendations to maximize their effectiveness. The report’s recommendations address the coordination of federal and Land-grant food and agro-biodefense efforts, early warning of threats to food and agriculture, and incorporation of Land-grant Universities into preparedness, response, and mitigation of biological events.



Funding Opportunity – Positive Youth Development - Among the AFRI Education and Workforce Development program areas, 2 brand new Special Workforce Development projects funded by the Farm Bill were recently announced. Extension Directors and Administrators and their assigns might wish to attend a webinar Friday, June 3, 2022, 2:30pm to 4:00pm ET, regarding RFAs for Youth Innovators Empowering Agriculture Across America (YEA) and Youth Innovators Empowering Agriculture Across America Coordinated Network (YEA-CN) projects. Projects must be fully integrated to include research, education, and Extension components. To see/download the new AFRI review criteria, click here. Applications are due August 4, 2022. To learn more about the Request for Applications, who to contact for more information, and register for the webinar, go to https://www.nifa.usda.gov/rfa-youth-innovators-empowering-agriculture-across-america-yea-webinar.

2022 Academy on Social Justice Kicks off June 1 - The kickoff of OneOp’s 2022 Military Family Readiness Academy on social justice for family well-being will be on June 1. The kickoff event will feature representatives from USDA/NIFA and DoD to welcome attendees and encourage participation in the 2022 Academy series. Both will also speak to the importance of this topic for providers, military service members, and their families. The 2022 Academy features high quality content with diverse and respected course authors and experts in subjects such as social justice, racial equity, identity formation, media representation, resilience, engagement through an antiracist lens, and building communities of belonging. Three FREE courses offer participants insight into myriad aspects of social justice such as examining history, community standards, prejudice and discrimination, institutional discrimination in organizations, and advocate for fostering well-being for military families. Each course offers an attendance certificate and/or continuing education credits from various credentialing agencies. Click here to RSVP for the kickoff and learn more. Courses will be available to access June 1 after the event.



Recap 2022 National Health Outreach Conference - More than 200 Extension professionals from across the country gathered in Kansas City, MO recently to participate in Cooperative Extension’s National Health Outreach Conference hosted this year by the University of Missouri. Keynote speakers include Salma Abdalla of the Boston University School of Public Health, Andrea Everett, Community Development Extension Agent of Prairie View A&M University, Sara Bleich of the USDA Food and Nutrition Service, and Dan Meers, mascot for the Kansas City Chiefs. Attendees engaged in their choice of 45 concurrent sessions and 30 poster presentations on such topics as coalition building, systems change, workforce development, immunization education, diabetes prevention, and food insecurity. Save the date for the next conference May 22-24, 2023, to be held in Ithaca, NY.

Urban Ag Event 12/10/2020

The ECOP Monday Minute is on hiatus on November 30^th and returns on December 7^th. Have a safe and pleasant Thanksgiving.

Urban Agriculture: Needs, Opportunities, and Actions - Last Thursday members of the Cooperative Extension Section were personally invited to a Zoom event set for December 10^th, 3-4:00 p.m. ET organized by the Cooperative Extension System/ECOP National Office. A special Thursday edition of  Learning for Leaders is planned to network and engage with a panel of experts who will present multiple strategies that support the sustainable development of commercial and community-focused urban agriculture. ECOP Chair Chris Watkins will moderate the conversation with his colleagues and 2 experts to reveal findings of a NIFA-funded research study and for engaging current opportunities at the state, region, and national levels. To receive complete details and connection information, contact Sandy Ruble sandyruble@extension.org. 

USDA Ag Outlook Forum in 2021- USDA announced that its 2021 Agricultural Outlook Forum will be a virtual event, and registration will be free. The two-day forum will take place February 18-21. Its theme is “Building on Innovation: A Pathway to Resilience,” and builds on the current administration’s Agriculture Innovation Agenda, launched earlier this year to align USDA’s resources, programs, and research toward the goal of increasing U.S. agricultural production by 40% while cutting the environmental footprint of U.S. agriculture in half by 2050. Agricultural Outlook Forum registration ▪ USDA – Agriculture Innovation Agenda




Safety Matters: Cybersecurity Put First for Youth - The FEMA Region 5 (out of Chicago) Regional Youth Preparedness Council is hosting a youth preparedness webinar next Monday, November 23,^rd from 6:00 – 7:00 PM CT. This webinar is open to anyone interested. Please feel free to register for this informational webinar and share with any interested youth or youth-serving organizations in your network. Guest speakers include Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI): Amanda J. Knutson, Supervisory Special Agent and Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA): Tony Enriquez, Cybersecurity Advisor (CSA) Registration Link: https://fema.zoomgov.com/webinar/register/WN_RXZo2NsNQaulxPijx8euwg



Sustainable Ag Funding Opportunity - Applications to the Agriculture and Food Research Initiative - Sustainable Agricultural Systems program focuses on approaches that promote transformational changes in the U.S. food and agriculture system. NIFA seeks creative and visionary applications that take a systems approach for projects focused on the themes in the USDA Science Blueprint: sustainable agricultural intensification; agricultural climate adaptation; value-added innovation; and/or food and nutrition translation. These projects are expected to significantly improve the supply of affordable, safe, nutritious, and accessible agricultural products, while fostering economic development and rural prosperity in America. These approaches must demonstrate current needs and anticipate future social, cultural, behavioral, economic, health, and environmental impacts. For more information, read the AFRI SAS funding opportunity.

Family & Consumer Sciences Report

Family & Consumer Sciences Report - Through research, education, and extension, the USDA NIFA Division of Family & Consumer Sciences (DCFS) provides resources that strengthen families, farms, communities, and the economy by focusing on the human and community dimensions of food and agriculture. DFCS incorporates two broad thematic areas: Family Well-Being contributing to the empowerment of families to achieve optimal well-being, and Community Vitality contributing to advancing the socio-economic potential of communities by addressing critical community needs and opportunities. During 2016, the DFCS portfolio was the third largest of nine at NIFA in terms of grant dollars. At over $180 million, the portfolio encompassed 13% of NIFA funding. For information on DFCS and competitive grant program opportunities, see the 2016 Year in Review DFCS Newsletter.

Culture of Health Partnership with Robert Wood Johnson Foundation: June 7 Webinar - Click here to register for a webinar on June 7 at 2:00 pm ET to learn more about the latest funding opportunity related to Cooperative Extension's anticipated multi-year partnership with the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The goal of the Request for Proposals is to identify one land-grant university to lead professional development for the five pilot program states spearheading the Building a Culture of Health initiative. Don’t miss out on the opportunity to get all of your questions answered regarding the RFP during this live webinar and Q&A session. The RFP application deadline is June 30 at 11:59 PM ET. Click here to access the RFP on WebGrants. For more information, contact Joanne Leatherman at jleatherman@fourhcouncil.edu.

eXtension Introduces New Services - Given increasingly complex issues and rapid changes our communities face, eXtension Foundation has transformed to deliver more meaningful member value and to provide a national Cooperative Extension presence for all. eXtension’s purpose is to help CES professionals across all Land Grants, innovate, accelerate, and amplify measurable impact on local issues. eXtension is achieving this through our new national flagship program called Impact Collaborative. In this year-long, multi-faceted, issue-focused program, a national cohort of Cooperative Extension project teams adopt new research and innovative practices in their local program design and delivery. ECOP, USDA-NIFA, and Directors/Administrators from the five Extension regions define the issues the program addresses. Learn more here about Impact Collaborative’s 6 value building blocks, the year-long experience, issues addressed, and how local Extension teams can join the 2017 cohort.

4-H – Strong Partnerships Enable Positive Youth Development - National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) has produced a 4-H infographic that highlights this public-private partnership of federal, state, local, and non-profit support with a rich history of being a leader in positive youth development experiences for more than a century. 4-H reaches nearly 6 million young people in the United States through local 4-H clubs, school and after school programs, camps, and special interest groups. The strong bond with land-grant universities' Cooperative Extension and NIFA assures a research and science base to the 4-H program. A 4-H Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) http://bit.ly/4H_MOU encourages collaborative and enhanced communication and management of national 4-H policies and procedures affecting state and local programs.