Resilient Agriculture Finance and Insurance Research Collaborative – 2026 Request for Joint Proposals
Overview
The Cornell Atkinson Center for Sustainability, Environmental Defense Fund (EDF), and the Foundation for Food & Agriculture Research (FFAR) are excited to announce the launch of the Resilient Agriculture Finance and Insurance Research Collaborative, a research initiative to advance finance and insurance solutions that benefit U.S. farmers and ranchers. The Research Collaborative will solicit initial research proposals from researchers at U.S.-based land-grant universities and partners, beginning in early 2026. Interested applicants are strongly encouraged to register for an interactive webinar that will provide an opportunity for researchers to build new relationships with industry partners.
Stay tuned to this page for the Request for Proposals, launching January 2026.
Timeline
- December 11, 2025 – 2 p.m. EST: Informational webinar (Register)
- January 2026: Application portal opens
- March 2026: Letters of Intent due
- May 2026: Full applications due
Eligibility
- The research collaborative invites proposals led by academic institutions and encourages applications from land-grant universities or including land-grant institutions as a core partner.
- Co-PIs and collaborators may include universities, nonprofits, private-sector partners, or other organizations with the capacity to conduct applied research.
- Successful applications will involve engagement with one or multiple financial institutions or insurers.
- Projects must focus on U.S. agriculture.
Each proposal must designate a Lead Principal Investigator and clearly describe the roles of all co-PIs, collaborators, and partner organizations. Projects are expected to co-design research questions with at least one industry partner (e.g., lender, insurer, agribusiness) to ensure the findings are actionable. Interested researchers will be invited to virtual and in-person meetings designed to facilitate connections with private sector partners.