Organic Farming Research Foundation (OFRF), in partnership with the Foundation for Food and Agriculture (FFAR), is pleased to award a 2021-22 Organic Research grant to Alejandra Guzman-Luna, affiliated with Universidad Veracruzana and in collaboration with the Agroecology and Livelihoods Collaborative at the University of Vermont. Guzman-Luna has nearly 15 years of experience working with farmers and Indigenous communities in Mexico.
OFRF’s grant program funds research on organic production systems and the dissemination of these research results to organic farmers and agricultural research communities. The 2021/22 grant cycle prioritized early career researchers and Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC) applicants, and awarded on-farm projects focused on climate mitigation and resilience.
The awarded team will research climate change resilience with coffee smallholder producers by extending organic practices to staple crops in Mexico. They have three objectives to address the perceived lack of viable organic alternatives in staple crop production: conduct a participatory diagnosis of the challenges of growing staple crops organically; co-design and establish four experimental and educational plots; and systematize the results and widely disseminate them.
As a result of OFRF’s research, education, and outreach efforts, thousands of farmers have received pertinent research and training information. Results from all OFRF-funded projects are available to access for free in an online database.
Thank you to FFAR and our research partners for making the 2021/22 organic research grant program possible.
