Urban Agriculture Conservation Extension Educators

Urban Agriculture Conservation Extension Educators is sponsored by USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) and National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA). Provides funding for hiring Urban Agriculture Conservation Extension Educators to assist urban farmers with conservation practices.

AGRICULTURE, DEPARTMENT OF This program has two parts: 1.) Capacity Assistance – Urban Agriculture Conservation Extension Educator: Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) is experiencing a large influx of small-scale and urban producers and needs additional capacity to meet this demand effectively.

To bolster customer service to urban producers, experienced Urban Agriculture Extension Educators will be employed to deliver technical assistance and link producers to NRCS conservation planning and program opportunities.

These positions will be administered through the Cooperative Extension Service at the participating Land Grant Universities (LGUs) in the CURE program, in collaboration and coordination with NRCS state offices, will have priority duties that include: a) Working with NRCS to guide urban agriculture producers conserve, maintain, and restore natural resources on their lands while improving the health of their operations and creating a more productive and resilient landscape.

b) Providing direct technical assistance to urban producers to help identify resource concerns and develop science-based solutions for addressing their conservation priorities. c) Assisting producers with awareness of zoning, permitting, and administrative complexities associated with conservation practice implementation.

d) Assisting producers with climate-smart mitigating activities which deliver quantifiable greenhouse gas reductions. e) Assessing the conservation needs and assisting innovative forms of agricultural production including controlled environment agriculture systems. f) Applying experience and academic resources to provide urban agriculture training to NRCS employees and partners.

g) Coordinating with NRCS and the Office of Urban Agriculture and Innovative Production (OUAIP) to evaluate the needs of urban agriculture producers, tailor services towards these needs, and conduct outreach to best reach new customers. 2.)

Impact Collaborative – Scalable urban agriculture service strategy: The other primary component of this initiative is the development of an Impact Collaborative for urban agriculture service delivery with prioritization towards the 27 Urban Agriculture identified areas (listed above).

An Impact Collaborative is a program administered by the Extension Foundation (ExF) that helps partners inform, strengthen, and innovate their project and program development to create greater local impact in their counties and states. Its methodology is founded in design-thinking and has been developed in partnership with Cooperative Extension professionals since 2014.

There are currently 190 trained Impact Facilitators to assist with project designs, and Key Informants (Subject Matter Experts) that can be utilized to inform discussions. Attendees for this Impact Collaborative will include representatives from NRCS, including OUAIP, NIFA, NUEL, NUREC, and Extension professionals currently working in the urban conservation space.

During the three-day Collaborative, teams will develop solutions to questions that include: a) What are the needs of the urban agriculture producer, both general and unique b) What pieces of the puzzle can NRCS provide? c) Who can potentially address other needs beyond NRCS authorities? d) How can this project be scaled to other cities, suburbs, and towns?

Outputs from this process will include: a) Plan for addressing technical assistance needs - state/national b) Plan for addressing financial assistance needs - state/national c) Plan for addressing needs beyond NRCS authorities - state/national d) Plan for scaling projects from urban focal areas to other locations and statewide e) Plan for National NRCS supporting the states going forward.

The purpose of the Conservation and Urban Resources Extension (CURE) program is to support the hiring and administration of Urban Agriculture Extension Educators through Cooperative Extension programs at Land-grant Universities to deliver technical assistance and link producers to NRCS conservation planning and program opportunities.

AGRICULTURAL - AK Agricultural Resource Conservation and Development _These funding amounts do not reflect the award amounts that are displayed on USASpending. gov_ **This listing is funded for the current fiscal year.

** Applicants must (1): Have an active SAM registration prior to applying; (2) Provide a valid Unique Entity Identifier number in its application; and (3) Continue to maintain an active SAM registration with current information at all times during which it has an application under consideration or an active federal award. Applicants must furnish the information required in the Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO).

2 CFR 200, Subpart E - Cost Principles applies to this program. Nonprofit with 501C3 IRS Status (Other than Institution of Higher Education) This listing is directed to the Extension Foundation (ExF). Grant funds must be used for allowable costs necessary to conduct approved fundamental and applied research, extension and education objectives to address food and agricultural sciences.

Funds may not be used for any purposes other than those approved in the grant award documents. Funds shall not be used for tuition remission.

The annual Agriculture Appropriations Act limits indirect cost rates on cooperative agreements, such as used in the CURE program, to 10 percent of the total direct cost of the agreement when the purpose of such cooperative arrangements is to carry out programs of mutual interest between the two parties.

Therefore, when preparing budgets, applicants should limit their requests for recovery of indirect costs to the lesser of their institution’s official negotiated indirect cost rate or the equivalent of 10 percent of total direct costs of the agreement awarded.

Federal per diem rate: Given that the primary source of funding for the CURE program is Federal funds, ExF should contract with hotels for lodging at or below the Federal per diem rate for the Impact Collaborative, workshops, and any other meetings that require travel. NIFA retains the right to disallow use of NIFA funds for any travel that does not meet these requirements.

Contact the headquarters or regional location, as appropriate for application deadlines Preapplication coordination is not applicable. Environmental impact information is not required for this program. This program is excluded from coverage under E.

O. 12372. 2 CFR 200, Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards applies to this program.

Opportunity Posted Location: Grants. gov Application Procedures Location: NOFO Within the limit of funds authorized, the NIFA awarding official will make grants to eligible applicants whose applications are judged most meritorious under the procedures set forth in the NOFO.

After the award is finalized, a formal notification in the form of a Notice of Award (NoA), signed by the Authorized Departmental Officer, will be provided to the applicant organization for successful applications. The NoA is the authorizing document and will be sent via email to the recipient's Authorized Representative.

The NoA will provide pertinent instructions and information including, at a minimum, the information described in 2 CFR 200. 211 (see NIFA’s Terms and Conditions).

The following 2CFR policy requirements apply to this assistance listing: Subpart B, General provisions Subpart C, Pre-Federal Award Requirements and Contents of Federal Awards Subpart D, Post Federal; Award Requirements Subpart E, Cost Principles Subpart F, Audit Requirements The following 2CFR policy requirements are excluded from coverage under this assistance listing: **Progress/Performance Reports :**Progress reports are due annually covering the most recent one-year period and follows the format of the government-wide Research Performance Progress Report (RPPR) and includes a summary of participants, target audiences, products (outputs), accomplishments (outcomes/impacts), and changes/problems.

, Frequency: Annually Awardees must maintain separate records for each grant to ensure that funds are used for authorized purposes. Grant-related records are subject to inspection during the life of the grant and must be retained at least three (3) years as described at 2 CFR 200. 334.

Records must be retained beyond the three (3) year period if litigation is pending or audit findings have not been resolved. Retention Period: 3 Years **Additional Compliance Requirements:** **Guidelines and Information:** Domestic Assistance Program that uses Core-Based Statistical Area (CBSA): Conservation and Urban Resources Extension Conservation and Urban Resources Extension