SAFES’ Spring 2021 workshop series will take place on Thursdays at 3 p.m. The series supports faculty researchers and administrators in expanding their knowledge of external funding opportunities and internal Penn State programs that can support new interdisciplinary research collaborations. For questions, please email safes@psu.edu.

• Pre-registration is encouraged: http://tinyurl.com/SAFESSpringRegister
• Log in to the webinar here: http://tinyurl.com/SAFESSpring

Feb. 18, 3 p.m. 

USDA National Institute of Food and Agriculture Opportunities:
Hear from USDA NIFA Directors Megan O’Rourke, National Program Leader, Institute of Bioenergy, Climate, & Environment and Erica Kistner-Thomas, National Program Leader at the Institute of Food Production and Sustainability, about opportunities for interdisciplinary, collaborative research programs.

Feb. 25, 3 p.m.

An Introduction to the College of Agricultural Sciences Institute for Sustainable Agriculture, Food, and Environmental Science (SAFES):
Learn about the strategic directions for this new institute in the College; Director Karen Fisher-Vanden and Associate Directors Christina Grozinger, Matt Royer, and Rob Shannon will discuss ongoing and future plans for the institute, including educational and outreach programs, thematic research priorities, and how faculty across the University can get involved in SAFES.

March 4, 3 p.m.

The Federal Budget Process and Preview of Priorities Going Forward:
Gary Geernaert, Director of the Earth and Environmental Systems Sciences Division at the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Science will provide an overview of the science enterprise, the federal budget process for science, and clues on the Administration and Congressional priorities for research and development going forward. The talk will use DOE Office of Science to illustrate some of the key points.

April 8, 3 p.m.

Amplifying Your Impact:
Dan Azzara, Director of the Entrepreneurship and Innovation Program, and Maria Spencer, the John and Patty Warehime Entrepreneur-in-Residence in the College of Agricultural Sciences, will discuss how your intellectual property can be harnessed to help broader audience.

April 15, 3 p.m.

Research-to-Policy:
Taylor Scott, Asst. Research Professor in the Penn State Edna Bennett Pierce Prevention Research Center, will discuss the Research-to-Policy Collaboration, which aims to understand how research can inform decision makers at every level of government and has established models to help support scientists in understanding how policymakers use research.

April 22, 3 p.m.

NSF Program Opportunities:
Anne Sylvester, Program Director of the National Science Foundation, will provide an overview of programs at NSF that support cross-disciplinary collaborative research.  These programs include the Biology Integration Institutes, the Plant Genome Research, Innovations at the Nexus of Food, Energy and Water Systems, Dynamics of Integrative Socio-Economic Systems, the Convergence Accelerator, and the NRT (NSF Research Traineeship) program.