Seven research teams get Resilience Initiative seed funding

Editor’s Note: Several faculty who are CSWS faculty affiliate and / or whose research has been supported previously by CSWS are among those selected for Resiliance Initiative seed funding. They are Alai Reyes-Santos, Department of Indigenous, Race, and Ethnic Studies; Kari Norgaard, Department of Sociology; and Yizhao Yang, School of Planning, Public Policy and Management.

UO faculty members work together at a May 2019 symposium kicking off the Resilience Initiative, which supports interdisciplinary research addressing social and environmental challenges. Seven teams recently received seed funding grants.

From Around the O: https://around.uoregon.edu/content/seven-research-teams-get-resilience-initiative-seed-funding

Seven interdisciplinary research teams addressing major areas around sustainability, resilience and climate change have received seed grants through the Resilience Initiative seed funding program.

Sponsored by the Office of the Vice President of Research and Innovation, the Resilience Initiative supports existing collaborations and fosters the development of new, diverse interdisciplinary teams.

The seed funding program funds two types of convening grants of up to $10,000: one that will bring together new faculty research teams and one meant to inspire collaboration with outside partners.

A pilot grant will provide seed funds of up to $50,000 for faculty members to engage in more structured research and scholarship activities and is designed to position them to obtain grants and other external research funding. The seed funding program also includes a mechanism for one deeply interdisciplinary team to receive support for a two-year postdoctoral scholar position.

The project topics and grant recipients are:

Convening grants:

  • Oregon’s water future: Climate change, environmental disasters and community resilience. Alai Reyes-Santos, Department of Indigenous, Race, and Ethnic Studies.
  • An integrative collaborative research network focused on the human dimension of environmental change in Southeast Asia. Kathie Carpenter, Department of International Studies; Alison Carter, Department of Anthropology; Estelle Chaussard, Department of Earth Sciences; Krista McGuire, Department of Biology; Tuong Vu, Department of Political Science/Department of Asian Studies.

Piloting grants:

  • Co-producing restorative fire: A transdisciplinary approach to indigenous fire stewardship and the restoration of forest resilience. Michael Coughlan, Institute for a Sustainable Environment; Bart Johnson, Department of Landscape Architecture; Kari Norgaard, Department of Sociology; Dan Gavin, Department of Geography.
  • Moving Eugene more sustainably: What affects transportation choices in downtown Eugene. Rebecca Lewis and Yizhao Yang, School of Planning, Public Policy and Management.
  • Integrated social, environmental and economic justice framework to build resilient communities for vulnerable unhoused populations. Yekang Ko, Department of Landscape Architecture.
  • Grid enhancing resilient housing. Kevin Van Den Wymelenberg, Department of Architecture; Kory Russel, Department of Landscape Architecture; Heather Brinton, School of Law; Josh Skov, Lundquist College of Business.

Postdoctoral scholar:

  • Resilience, ice and society: Probing the timescales of human interactions with cryospheric change. Dave Sutherland, Department of Earth Sciences; Mark Carey, Clark Honors College.

“These collaborations span some of our greatest areas of strength and address some of our most urgent social and environmental challenges,” said Cass Moseley, senior associate vice president for research and innovation. “We congratulate these seven teams and we look forward to seeing what kinds of creative and innovative solutions will result from these inspired projects.”