Carbondale Reporter

Carbondale Chamber of Commerce recently issued the following announcement.

Are you an innovator, entrepreneur, small business or startup with a novel idea to enhance agriculture, rural communities, or the environment? If so, SBIR may be for you!

University of Illinois Extension in conjunction with the Small Business Development Center at Southern Illinois University Carbondale is hosting a three (3) hour workshop on Thursday, June 28th to introduce innovators, entrepreneurs, small business owners, startups and others with novel ideas to the USDA Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Grant Program.

The USDA SBIR Program was developed to stimulate technological innovation, provide seed capital for early stage R&D with commercial potential, and increase private sector commercialization of innovations.

While a highly competitive proposal process, SBIR encourages U.S. small businesses to engage in federal research and development primed for commercialization. Small businesses participating in the SBIR receive many benefits including funding to conduct R&D without giving up equity in their company or the rights to their intellectual property. SBIR is not a loan, so applicants do not return the funding. Plus, they have the opportunity to apply for additional funding to continue the development of the technology. What is expected is good research that will lead to a commercial product and that will benefit the nation.

So, if you have a concept that needs to be proven and commercialized, make plans to join us on Thursday, June 28th from 9 am to 12 noon at the Dunn Richmond Center on the campus of Southern Illinois University Carbondale to see if your ideas match USDA’s SBIR opportunities.

Intrigued? Come to the workshop! Seating is limited, so please register online by Monday, June 25th at the following University of Illinois Extension Unit 24 website link:

https://web.extension.illinois.edu/registration/?RegistrationID=18760.

Original source can be found here.