Videos of Michigan SARE grantees highlight sustainable farm innovation
Print
EmailMichigan hosts the North Central Region Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education administrative council and coordinators from 12 states for farm tours and video with grantees.
Videos highlight farmers, researchers and educators funded by SARE grants
A new video series from the North Central Region Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (NCR-SARE) features five SARE grants led by Michigan sustainable farming trailblazers.
- Michigan Sustainable Farm Mentors Program (4 minutes): Katie Brandt discusses her SARE Partnership grant that funded connecting 42 beginning and aspiring farmers with experienced farm mentors throughout Michigan.
- Youth Wholesale Market Experience with Herbal Teas (4 minutes): Kelsey Smith discusses a youth-led project to create and sell herbal tea blends at Allen Neighborhood Center in Lansing, Michigan. Her project was funded by a SARE Youth Educator grant.
- Plant Conservation Strips on Urban Farms (6 minutes): Jen Roedel and Nichole Keway Biber discuss growing native plants as part of the Three Sisters Garden at Nokomis Center. Roedel received a SARE Graduate Student grant to plant pollinator strips at nine urban farms in seven cities in Michigan and monitor the bees, pollinators and other beneficial insects attracted to the diversity of native plants.
- Use of Anti-Hail, Insect-Exclusion Netting as a Non-Chemical Thinning Method in Apples (6 minutes): Phil Shwallier of Shwallier Orchards and Todd Einhorn from Michigan State University discuss using plastic nets to exclude pollinators as a way to thin apples naturally. Their work was funded by a SARE Research and Education grant.
- Chestnut Burr Management with Carl and Art DeKleine (3 minutes): The DeKleine’s used a SARE Farmer Rancher grant to build a machine that would remove and collect the burrs from chestnuts.
Summer tour of Michigan SARE grants
Regional SARE leaders and state coordinators from 12 states travelled to Michigan in July 2024 for a summer tour of SARE grants. Each year, the group visits a different state in the North Central SARE region, which includes Michigan, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota and Wisconsin.
In 2025, Michigan SARE coordinator Sarah Fronczak, Tribal SARE coordinator Emily Proctor and educational programs manager Katie Brandt are planning to host a public tour of SARE grant sites. This will be a great opportunity to learn from sustainable farm innovators and to inspire new projects.
Full list of SARE grants in Michigan
SARE funding supports farm innovations that are sustainable in three ways: 1) environmentally, 2) socially and 3) financially. Farmers, ranchers, educators, farm advocacy organizations, Michigan State University Extension staff, researchers and agriculture professionals are welcome to apply. State SARE coordinator Sarah Fronczak, Tribal SARE coordinator Emily Proctor and educational programs manager Katie Brandt are happy to help you brainstorm and review a SARE proposal. Here is a full list of SARE grants available in Michigan:
- Youth Educator Grants – Up to $6,000 for projects that teach youth about sustainable agriculture and careers in sustainable agriculture. (Due Nov. 7, 2024)
- Farmer Rancher Grants – Up to $15,000 for one farm or $30,000 for two+ farms to design and lead research, demonstration and education projects in sustainable farm practices. (Due Dec. 5, 2024)
- Research & Education Grants – $10,000 to $250,000 for on-farm research, farmer education and other projects that explore and promote environmentally sound, profitable, and socially responsible food and/or fiber systems. (Pre-proposals due Oct. 10, 2024)
- Partnership Grants – Up to $50,000 for farm educators and agriculture professionals who partner with three or more farmers to research, demonstrate, educate or collaborate on issues important to sustainable farming. (Due Oct. 17, 2024)
- Michigan SARE Mini-Grant – Up to $1,500 to organize a conference or workshop addressing environmental, social and financial sustainability for Michigan or regional farmers and educators.
- Michigan SARE Travel scholarship – Up to $500 for agriculture professionals and sustainable farmers to attend a conference, workshop or event to gain sustainable agricultural skills or knowledge.
- Michigan SARE Farmer Forum – $6,000 to host and record an event featuring SARE grantees.
- SARE Tribal Mini-Grants for Michigan and Wisconsin – Up to $5,000 for Tribal agencies and Tribal farmers to organize 1) food sovereignty field days, farm tours, workshops or 2) on-farm research trials or demonstration plots with an outreach plan to share the project with the community.
- Tribal SARE Travel Grants – Up to $500 for Michigan and Wisconsin Tribal farm eductators, agriculture professional and tribal farmers to travel for professional development.
- Professional Development Grants – Up to $120,000 for training agricultural educators, using farmers as educators and addressing emerging issues in the farm community. (Due April)
- Graduate Student Grants – Up to $15,000 for masters’ and PhD students at accredited colleges and universities to address sustainable agriculture issues in the North Central region. (Due April)
SARE also shares numerous resources focused on innovative farming techniques for environmental sustainability, economic viability and farmer/community well-being. For more information about SARE grants and resources, visit https://misare.msu.edu/index.html or https://www.sare.org/.
SARE has distributed $11.5 million to fund 333 grant projects in Michigan since 1988. The program supports an inclusive mix of farmers and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, sex, gender identity (including gender expression), sexual orientation, disability, age, marital status, family/parental status, income derived from a public assistance program or political beliefs.
