GRAINS: Grants for Research towards Agricultural Innovative Solutions

GRAINS will support the translational research and community knowledge transfer of technologies and products that will lead to diffusion or adoption through partnership with the players and actors in the agro-innovation ecosystem, such as scientists, inventors, technology business incubators and accelerators, funders and backers, universities, research institutions, as well as startups, small and medium enterprises, corporations, and non-government organizations that share the goal of SEARCA.

Why GRAINS?

• SEARCA GRAINS helps inventors, change makers, and agripreneurs turn their ideas into reality, bridging the gap between an idea and a prototype. GRAINS supports scaling up of a technology or innovation model, establishment of agri-technology startups, and community knowledge transfer projects.
• Specifically, GRAINS champions transformational innovation related to agriculture, forestry, fishery, and public health through:
  • Technical or customer validation of experimental proof of concept
  • Establishment of prototype of a technology or innovation model
  • Development of technology prototype or innovation model
  • Piloting or scaling up of a technology or innovation model
  • Development of a new approach or model to improve or expand use of technology
  • Establishment of technology start-up or business venture
  • Community knowledge transfer activities such as:
    • Technology and technical assistance projects
    • Developing/implementing emerging models of innovation
    • Protection and promotion of traditional community knowledge
    • Open agroecology projects.

Funding Information

• Institutional grantees                               
  • USD 10,000 – USD 15,000
  • (PHP 500,000 – PHP 750,000)
• Individual grantees
  • USD 5,000 – USD 10,000
  • (PHP 250,000 – PHP 500,000)

Eligible Projects

• Criteria for proposal evaluation:
  • Significance of output to beneficiary and to industry need; good project rationale
  • Alignment of the project with one or more of SEARCA’s outcomes or impacts
  • Clear scope of work, activities, and timeline
  • Capability of the project team to undertake the project
  • Collaborative in nature
  • Project duration: 6-12 months.

Criteria

• SEARCA GRAINS is open to the following applicants interested in implementing on-the-ground innovation projects in Southeast Asia:
  • Institutions:
    • Academic/research, private, government or non-government institutions, farmer groups and cooperatives
    • Must have a legal entity based in Southeast Asia
    • Must own or support startup/research groups with own invention, acquired technology or innovation at Technology Readiness Level (TRL) 3 or above (experimental proof of concept to bench scale level)
    • The lead proponent must be a citizen of a Southeast Asian country
    • The institution or its supported startup/research group must be committed to transferring or exploiting the innovation
  • Individual:
    • Researcher aiming to spinout a company from academic or research institutions
      • Southeast Asian country citizenship
      • Student, faculty member, or researcher affiliated with academic or research institution
      • Inventor or principal investigator with technology/innovation at TRL 3 or above (experimental proof of concept to bench scale level)
      • The affiliated academic or research institution committed to transferring and exploiting the technology/innovation via a spin-off, licensing, and other knowledge transfer mechanism
    • Entrepreneur or startup founders who want to test, validate, and prototype their experimental proof of concept
      • Southeast Asian country citizenship
      • Founder or co-founder with invention, technology or innovation at TRL 3 or above: from experimental proof of concept to bench scale level
      • Applicant’s startup venture with equity funding of less than USD 20,000

For more information, visit SEARCA.