At Farm Science Review in September 2023, the Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company and The Ohio State University College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences announced the formation of an AgTech innovation Hub. The Hub is aimed at collaborating on research and innovation activity focused on developing new solutions to help the agriculture ecosystem understand, manage, and mitigate climate risk. Initiatives will focus on applied research, technology transfer, the exchange of knowledge and experience, and transdisciplinary innovation in support of agricultural technology.
One component of the AgTech Innovation Hub provides support for applied research; and proposals are invited, with a due date of March 10 for letters of intent. There is interest in a wide range of projects including the social sciences, economics, and policy. This is a unique opportunity in that projects will be of short duration (one year initially), well-funded (up to $150,000), have an accelerated timeline (anticipated May 1 start date), and a low likelihood that requests for no-cost extensions would be approved. These parameters will strongly influence the type of projects that can be proposed and that is intentional. View the RFP at research.cfaes.ohio-state.edu/sites/research/files/imce/Documents/AgTech%20Innov%20Hub%20RFP.pdf.