University of Illinois Soybean Innovation Lab that supports Africa saved with $1 million anonymous donation. [View all]
URBANA, Ill. (WCIA) — University of Illinois’ Soybean Innovation Lab will keep its doors open for another year.
The Feed the Future Soybean Innovation Lab was scheduled to close on April 15. The Trump administration cut funding for all of the USAID foreign aid contracts in February, which is where the laboratory received its funding.
University officials announced Monday that an anonymous donor stepped up and pledged a $1.02 million donation to fund the lab and its core staff for 12 months.
“We will use the gift to restart our efforts with our partners and clients bringing soybean to the Lower Shire Valley of southern Malawi diversifying the Lower Shire economy and leveraging recent World Bank irrigation investments,” said Goldsmith, who also is an emeritus professor in the Department of Agricultural and Consumer Economics in the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences at Illinois.
https://www.wcia.com/news/champaign-county/u-of-i-soybean-innovation-lab-saved-with-1-million-anonymous-donation/