Page 33 - Strategic Plan

Hemispheric and International Partnerships
Agriculture and agricultural research is a global enterprise. Consequently, working together with international agencies will enhance TREC’s capaci- ty, productivity, effectiveness, and impact through mutually beneficial international research activ- ities. Research at TREC and several institutions in the Americas often encompasses similar agendas and programs. Our strategy is to expand our col- laboration with these institutions to create great- er synergy and add much value mutually to our work. Similar institutions in the Americas include the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA), Tropical Agricultural Research and Higher Education Center (CATIE), Agricultur- al Research Corporation of Brazil (EMBRAPA), and Centre for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT). Beyond the Americas are institutions such as the Internation- al Centre for Tropical Agriculture (IITA in Nigeria), the Food and Agriculture Organization of the Unit- ed Nations (FAO), International Service for Nation- al Agricultural Research (ISNAR), the Indian Agri- cultural Research Institute (IARI), and the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences (CAAS) and its affiliates.
Working in concert with University of Florida Inter- national Center (UFIC) and UF/IFAS Global, we plan to forge these relationships through specific agree- ments (such as Memoranda of Understanding, Co- operative Agreements, etc.) with regional and in- ternational institutions and universities that work in tropical and subtropical agriculture, and natural resources. Exchange and joint actions in common programs, exchange of information, and mobiliza- tion of resources for research and innovation are a few of the major strategies we will pursue. Further- more, these linkages will contribute to boosting TREC’s capacity in research and innovation.
These international linkages have a critical role to play in boosting synergies contributing to our competitiveness; achieving a higher level of perfor- mance; and being a regional, national, and interna- tional leader in the Americas in tropical agriculture. Moreover, our international collaborative efforts
will make a strong contribution to supporting Flor- ida’s external dimension in food and agriculture, and natural resources as well as ensuring coordi- nation and leveraging linkages to address interna- tional challenges such as trans-boundary diseases. The alignment with other similar research agendas and programs will provide benefits of knowledge exchange between TREC and other institutions. In addition, our work in tropical agriculture has a lot in common with the many countries of Asia, Latin America, and the Caribbean (through cross-linkag- es to markets, information, innovation, etc. Stra- tegic alliances will strengthen geographic connec- tions.
Partnerships with Independent Foundations
Independent foundations have expanded rapid- ly in number and resources managed in the 21st century; their activities include funding of major research and development efforts. We propose to develop strategic partnerships with Foundations (such as Foundation for Food and Agricultural Re- search) that could contribute to sharing expertise, leveraging technical and financial resources to gain organizational capacity, increasing knowledge, ex- panding research, and enhancing our work and global reach.
Goals
• Enhance faculty collaboration across disci- plines, crop species, and ecosystems.
• Develop closer cooperation with other centers, departments, and colleges of the Universi- ty system.
• Strengthen and expand our state, regional, na- tional, and international collaborations to pro- mote TREC’s excellence in research and mobi- lize resources
Outcomes
TREC will continue to be widely recognized local- ly, nationally, and internationally for its innovative work in tropical/subtropical crops and natural re- sources. There will be more cross-disciplinary in- teractions and relationships, as well as wider adop- tion, application, and use of research outputs and outcomes.
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