A group of UW-Madison researchers received approximately $4.7 million from the United States Department of Agriculture to educate regional K-16 students in energy and ecosystem concepts as well as oversee the students in leading their own bio-energy research.
The five-year grant, which is funded through the USDA's National Institute of Food and Agriculture, will target the development of sustainable bioenergy that will contribute to reducing the dependence on foreign oil.
The project, which would target underserved schools, will focus on sustainable energy and how it is attainable through the use of renewable biofuels such as wood or switchgrass.
The College of Menominee Nation and Michigan State University partnered in obtaining the grant.
The grant ""will help jumpstart the U.S. education system towards ensuring that we have enough workers with the multi-disciplinary and problem-solving skill sets to help America address its energy challenges,"" said Roger Beachy, director of the NIFA, in a statement.
