The Next Gen Farmers grants offer up to $50,000 to stage events that improve the leadership capacity of young people entering or involved in primary industries. Applications close on Friday 13 November 2009.

The Warren Centre for Advanced Engineering is calling for nominations for the Innovation Heroes Award. The award recognises innovations that were conceived and developed in Australia by Australian individuals and companies, and that have been profitably commercialised or delivered real value. All winners receive 12 months complimentary membership of The Warren Centre's Governors program.

The International Institute of Refrigeration and the Australian Institute of Refrigeration, Airconditioning and Heating's 9th IIR Gustav Lorentzen Conference focuses on the latest research results and advances related to the use of natural and environmentally sound refrigerants in refrigeration, air conditioning, heat pump systems and more.

The 2010 Australian International Design Awards recognise product design and innovation excellence. Manufacturers and designers of professionally designed products available for sale in Australia or products professionally designed by Australians for overseas market can enter. There are nine categories: consumer, business and technology, medical and scientific, automotive and transport, sport and leisure, housing and building, heavy machinery, architectural and interior products and student.

Australian businesses seeking assistance of up to $200,000 in export assistance should apply to the Export Market Development Grant scheme by November 30, 2009. For every dollar of EMDG, businesses achieve between $13.5 and $27 in additional exports according to the 2008 Review of Export Policy and Programs.

Applications for the first round of the Australian Space Research Program close on 4 December 2009. Grants of between $200,000 and $1 million are available in Stream A - Space Education Development grants. Grants of between $1 million and $5 million are available in Stream B - Space Science and Innovation Projects.

Recent AusIndustry announcements and project highlights

Fourteen innovative Australian projects have shared $985,600 in Commercialising Emerging Technologies (COMET) funding. The projects each received $70,400 and they included a new car seatbelt to reduce injuries, software that analyses telecom purchasing and a low-odour aerosol paint.

Greenhouse gas emissions will be cut by about 38,000 tonnes a year through 37 green building projects, worth $16.4 million, announced recently as part of the Green Building Fund. The next round for Streams A and B of the program will close on Tuesday 12 January 2010.

Tasmanian company Botanical Resources Australia has used the R&D Tax Concession program to pour well focused research dollars into major obstacles to its business. The tax concession helped the company find a way to sow pyrethrum from seed, gather quality seed stock, develop seed drilling, weed control and mechanical harvesting innovations.