CSREES Ecosystems Program

[IN FOCUS] USDA joins Interior Department in adopting 2008-2012 National Invasive Species Management Plan, a federal

12 Aug 2008 19:26:08 GMT

[IN FOCUS] CSREES co-sponsors forum to share state-of-the-art methods, tools, and processes related to ecosystem services and their effective use in decision making.

11 Aug 2008 17:47:48 GMT

[IN FOCUS] CSREES participated in and helped fund National Academies' Roundtable on Science and Technology for Sustainability workshop on ecosystems services and biofuels

1 Aug 2008 19:55:35 GMT

Roundtable on Science and Technology for Sustainability

The National Academies' Roundtable on Science and Technology for Sustainability held a workshop on Transitioning to Sustainability Through Research and Development on Ecosystems Services and Biofuels on October 17-18, 2007.

Participants discussed research gaps, needed analytical tools, and opportunities for collaboration among federal research and development programs on selected high priority challenges to sustainability in the areas of biofuels and ecosystem services.

Many federal agencies are using sustainability to help focus their research and development activities and their natural resource management programs. CSREES is incorporating sustainability concepts across its research, education, and extension activities. CSREES is an active member of the USDA Council on Sustainable Development, which coordinates and guides USDA policies and programs supporting sustainable agriculture, sustainable forestry, and sustainable rural communities.

[IN FOCUS] USDA is the lead agency for U.S. Climate Change Science Program report on Effects of Climate Change on Agriculture, Land and Water Resources, and Biodiversity.

21 Jul 2008 15:58:48 GMT

U.S. Climate Change Science Program Report

The U.S. Climate Change Science Program (CCSP) report, “Synthesis and Assessment Product 4.3 (SAP 4.3): The Effects of Climate Change on Agriculture, Land Resources, Water Resources, and Biodiversity in the United States,” integrates the federal research efforts of 13 agencies on climate and global change. The report has 38 authors from universities, national laboratories, non-governmental organizations, and federal service. USDA was the lead agency for this report as part of its commitment to the CCSP. USDA is using the report’s findings in the development of a new Strategic Plan for Climate Change research. USDA is also providing guidance to landowners to enable them to estimate their carbon greenhouse gas footprints.

USDA Climate Change Activities Fact Sheets

[EVENT] 4th National Conference on Coastal and Estuarine Habitat Restoration, Providence, RI, October 11-15, 2008.

1 Jul 2008 14:56:43 GMT

[EVENT] Pathways to Success 2008 Conference: Increasing Human Capacity for Global Human-Wildlife Coexistence, Estes Park, CO, September 28-October 3, 2008.

1 Jul 2008 14:56:27 GMT

[IN FOCUS] Texas AgriLife Extension Service PDF report spotlights sources of increased atmospheric nitrogen deposition and impacts on native species and ecosystem balance.

2 May 2008 18:20:30 GMT

[IN FOCUS] CSREES awards $4.6 million to 13 universities and research labs to develop strategies for management, control, and elimination of weedy and invasive species.

2 May 2008 18:18:54 GMT

USDA Awards More Than $4 Million in Weedy and Invasive Species Grants

WASHINGTON, March 3, 2008 - Agriculture Secretary Ed Schafer announced today that USDA is awarding $4.6 million to 13 universities and research labs to develop ecologically and economically rational strategies for management, control and elimination of weedy and invasive species, which cause more than $100 billion is losses each year.

The awards are administered by USDA's Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service (CSREES) through the National Research Initiative (NRI) Biology of Weedy and Invasive Species in Agroecosystems competitive grants program. This grant program has awarded more than $20 million in grants over the past five years.

This year, projects support integrated and basic research projects, equipment purchases, conference symposia and network development. Funded projects include research at Pennsylvania State University to establish and demonstrate effective biological control of the Canada thistle. Research at Oregon State University will develop and implement ecologically-based cropping systems that suppress summer annual weed populations in vegetable row crops. University of Wisconsin researchers will work to predict invasion of exotic species and their impact on tree regeneration and native plant diversity in Wisconsin lowland forests.

The fiscal year 2007 grants were awarded to:

Recipient	State	Grant Amount
University of Arkansas	AR	$45,000
Chapman University	CA	$124,955
USDA Forest Service - Rocky Mountain Research Station	CO	$389,179
University of Florida	FL	$387,327
University of Illinois	IL	$124,655
Smithsonian Environmental Research Center	MD	$287,509
USDA Agricultural Research Service	MD	$10,000
Mississippi State University	MS	$100,300
New Mexico State University	NM	$223,351
Miami University	OH	$376,940
Ohio State University	OH	$499,959
Oregon State University	OR	$487,344
Pennsylvania State University	PA	$500,000
Pennsylvania State University	PA	$324,495
University of Tennessee	TN	$10,000
Utah State University	UT	$382,896
University of Wisconsin	WI	$326,100

CSREES' NRI program is the largest peer-reviewed, competitive grants program at USDA. NRI supports research, extension and education grants that address key problems of national, regional and multi-state importance in sustaining all components of agriculture.

Through federal funding and leadership for research, education and extension programs, CSREES focuses on investing in science and solving critical issues impacting people's daily lives and the nation's future. For more information, visit www.csrees.usda.gov.

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