The Iowa Agriculture Literacy Foundation is offering five grants of up to $1,000 to help more people understand the role of agriculture in everyday life.
The foundation’s executive director, Will Fett, says any organization that has agriculture education as part of its mission can apply.
“That might be local FFA chapters, local 4H clubs, county farm bureaus, soil and water conservation districts, anybody who really values agriculture and learning about agriculture,” Fett says. Less than two percent of the U.S. population is connected with production agriculture, yet it accounts for as much as 15 percent of the nation’s workforce.
“The agriculture literacy challenge grants are intended to help people connect the science behind agriculture, to understand the food production system, and how it has value in their daily lives,” Fett says. The grants can be used to fund innovative lessons, activities, speakers, and other projects. The deadline for the grant applications is April 9.
(Thanks to Iowa Public Radio’s Julie Englander)