Farm Foundation is sponsoring another one of its conversations on topics affecting agriculture. The next free forum, “Tools to Fund Agricultural Research,” will be held on Wednesday, Jan. 28, at the National Press Club in Washington D.C., with a live audiocast also available free of charge for those who can’t be there in person.
For more than a decade, constraints on state and federal budgets have resulted in reductions in public funding of agricultural research. Funding for basic research has declined, limiting the ability of scientists to explore new and interconnected areas of study. The decline in public funding has also changed the dynamic of private funding, as companies step in to fund work being done at public institutions. Cutbacks in research investments also slow the pipeline of new information and technologies needed to sustain and expand agricultural production and productivity.
Panel members for the Jan. 28 Forum are:
Keith Fuglie of USDA’s Economic Research Service, who will provide an overview of trends in public and private research funding, including the funding model used in Australia.
Dr. Harold Browning of the Citrus Research and Development Foundation, to discuss that industry-led research effort.
Steve Rhines of the Samuel Roberts Noble Foundation, who will discuss the potential role of agricultural research organizations in financing agricultural research.
Mark McKenna of the Foundation for Food and Agricultural Research, will discuss this non-profit corporation authorized by the 2014 Farm Bill to combine public funding and private donations in support of agriculture research
Registration information is available here.