For projects linking community revitalization and commercial farming. Offered in partnership with the Northeast Regional Center for Rural Development .

For projects linking community revitalization and

commercial farming.

Offered in partnership with the Northeast Regional Center for

Rural Development

www.nesare.orgwww.nerced.psu.edu

Northeast SARE Sustainable Community Grants

Northeast SARESustainable Community Grants

Projects must:

• Have a SARE budget of $15,000 or less.

Address substantive farm issues like finance, marketing, land use, water use, enterprise development, value-added activities, and labor.

Explore new approaches to sustainable commercial agriculture.

Support improved farm profits, a better quality of life, a cleaner environment, or improved farm stewardship.

Northeast SARESustainable Community Grants

Excluded: •Food donation or food subsidy programs.•Public, student, or general awareness about agriculture.•Community gardening projects. •Projects with no clear benefit to commercial farmers.

Number of awards:•Ten to 20 each year, or about $150,000 total.•Awards are competitive, with roughly a quarter of all proposals funded.

Types of projects funded

Labor recruitment, retention, and regulations

Alternative financing and enterprise development

New marketing and labeling initiatives

Land use, zoning, and resource conservation

Processing and adding value to farm products

Marketing initiatives, research, and development

Licensing, food safety, and quality control

Who can apply?

Representatives from Cooperative Extension, the nonprofit sector, schools and universities, and from select, planning, or other governmental boards.

Applicants affiliated with state departments of agriculture, the Farm Bureau, community development corporations, or comparable agencies with experience in sustainable development.

Proposals must come from a individual within an organization who will lead the project and accept responsibility for its completion.

Funds can be used for:

Personnel costs

Project-specific materials and services

Project-specific travel, printing, and phone

Fees or rates charged by participating farmers,

advisors, or collaborators

Indirect costs of up to 10 percent for organizations

with a negotiated federal rate

Funds cannot be used for:

Capital expenses for barns, greenhouses, livestock, or

other major farm improvements

Costs of starting up a farm or the physical start-up of a

new organization

Subsidy or incentive payments

Computers, cameras, video equipment, copiers, or similar

items that have prolonged usefulness beyond the

boundaries of the project

Apparel, awards, giveaways, or prizes

Review criteria

1. Key issue: Proposal covers a topic of widespread interest2. Innovation and significance: Interesting, fresh approach3. Familiarity with related work: Builds on current

knowledge4. Clear objectives, sound methods, and measurable

results: Valid outcomes others can use5. Outreach: Multiple communication mechanisms 6. Capacity: Applicant experience in community development

 7. Farmer participation: In planning or implementing the

project8. Sensible budget: Transparent use of public money

Farm ownership and succession planning

Farmland conservationFarmers’ market

managementFarm-to-cafeteriaInstitutional purchasingAgritourismFarm co-op

developmentFair trade

Processing and adding value

Land-use planningMarket research and

developmentAlternative financingNew farmer educationFoodshed developmentLegal issuesShared and

community kitchens

Past projects include--

Examples of Sustainable Community projects

Adding value to the sustainable farm

The Collaboration for the 21st Century Appalachia, West Virginia

Nine farmers added value to products with imperfections to make pumpkin syrup, blackberry syrup, vodka sauce, hot sauce, Bloody Mary mix, sweet onion and garlic jam, pickled green beans, and corn meal and polenta mixes.

Focus: High product quality, measurable economic returns, marketing, and the re-use of products that might otherwise be plowed under or discarded.

Examples of Sustainable Community projects

Mobile poultry processing on Martha’s Vineyard

Island Grown Initiative, Massachusetts

On-island poultry processing addresses a key production barrier; farmers boost production from about 200 birds a year to 3,000. The project focused on food safety, training, and state certification.

Focus: New waste composting techniques, island-based production and marketing for freshness, new relationships with regulatory agencies, and improved protocols specific to mobile poultry processing.

Examples of Sustainable Community projects

Farm transfer planning: Tools for revitalizing rural life

Land for Good, New Hampshire

The loss of farmland in the Northeast presents a serious challenge to regional food production. This project developed planning tools, workshops, and professional networks to make succession planning accessible to farm families.

Focus: A new network of attorneys, financial planners, extension staff, mediators, family communications specialists, and land-use planners, along with a topical library of how-tos and interactive worksheets for farmers.

Application tips and time line

Calls for proposals released in the summer

Proposals submitted on line in the fall

Awards announced in March

A guide, “How to Write a Sustainable Community Grant,” is on the Northeast SARE website at www.nesare.org

Read brief descriptions of past awards on the Northeast SARE website

Search full reports by topic

SARE maintains a database of project reports from all four regions.

Go to www.sare.org

Select “project reports,” then “search the database”

Select “Sustainable Community Innovations Grant”

Enter a keyword or topic area

For projects in the region, select “Northeast”

Questions?

Call 802-656-0471

Visit the website at www.nesare.org

Send e-mail to [email protected]