CoLab Grant
CoLab grants are awarded to novel interdisciplinary pan-University collaborations focused on climate change research with high potential for societal impact. Learn more about CoLab grants here. In this funding cycle, UVA’s Environmental Institute announces the award of the following CoLab grant:
Title: Low-Carbon Platform for Biomanufacturing of Nature-Inspired Building Materials
Team: Bryan Berger (Associate Professor, Chemical Engineering), Mike Timko (Professor of Biology, Professor of Public Health Science, Director of Human Biology), Mohamed Ismail (Assistant Professor, Architecture), Osman Osbulut (Professor, Engineering), Gauruv Giri (Assistant Professor, Engineering)
Description: There is no clear pathway toward curbing climate change without a fundamental shift in the building and construction industries. The built environment is responsible for over 37% of anthropogenic carbon emissions, requiring novel materials and practices to reduce both the embodied and operational carbon emissions of new and existing construction.
This project advances the decarbonization of building construction by adopting and processing hemp into a range of value-added building material inputs.
Learn more about this project here.
Spark Grant
Spark grants are awarded to provide seed funding for the creation of interdisciplinary teams that will go on to conduct solutions-focused research on specific climate issues. Learn more about Spark funding here. In this funding cycle, UVA’s Environmental Institute announces the award of the following Spark grant:
Title: Blueprints for AI Equity and Transparency in Climate Science
Team: Mona Sloane (Assistant Professor of Data Science, Assistant Professor of Media Studies), Charity Nyelele (Assistant Professor, Environmental Sciences), Antonios Mamalakis (Assistant Professor of Data Science, Assistant Professor of Environmental Sciences)
Description: Researchers are asking how to leverage the momentum gained in AI policy and in climate science to ensure equitable and sustainable AI climate innovations that serve the public interest.
The objective of this project is to develop equitable and inclusive engagement on AI transparency in climate science. Through a series of workshops the team will co-create relevant research questions that will support the formulation and implementation of equitable AI policies and build on local knowledge, community preferences, and scientific methods. The main output of this workshop will be a blueprint for creating pathways for community-based AI transparency in climate science.
Learn more about this project here.
Rapid Grants
Rapid grants are awarded to support time-sensitive research requiring bridge funding and/or immediate impact funding. This includes research on environmental disasters to both inform responses to the ongoing climate-based crises and anticipate future climate-based emergencies. It also includes time-sensitive funding needs for ongoing research aligned with the Institute's mission. Learn more about Rapid grants here. UVA’s Environmental Institute announces the award of the following three Rapid grants:
Title: River Sonification Lab for Imperiled Rivers
Researcher: Matthew Burtner (Professor of Music)
Description: This project addresses the characteristics of rivers through sound, a medium of time and resonance. In this project, rivers are turned into songs to address fundamental scientific questions about the geometry of flow and erosion. The researchers will build a database of approximately 100,000 river bends on Earth that span a range of geologic environments and scales, from 10 m to 1 km wide. The project is ideally suited to sonification, allowing a user to listen to large amounts of river data as a sonic sequence.
Learn more about this project here.
Title: Improving Irrigation: Water Conservation in Agricultural Use and Rebound Effects
Researcher: Molly Lipscomb (Associate Professor of Public Policy and Economics)
Description: Lipscomb is working with a team, including 4D Climate Solutions and their partner, the National University of Lesotho, to test a novel water irrigation solution (GrowSmart) that they will market to farmers across Lesotho. The irrigation system is powered by solar panels and has IoT (Internet of Things) sensors in the soil and other components, which limit water extraction to the amount necessary for optimal cultivation and help create a suitable environment for growing vegetables in a type of tunneled greenhouse.
Researchers expect the system to increase the number of farmers irrigating and to reduce the total water used by each irrigator. They are interested in the overall impact on yields and water security.
Learn more about this project here.
Title: Psychological Consequences of Environmental Change: A Longitudinal Study of Emotions Using Social Media Data
Researcher: Cynthia Tong (Associate Professor of Psychology)
Description: Environmental changes and natural disasters significantly impact humans in various ways, encompassing physical health, mental well-being, economic stability, and social equality. Although the psychological and social impacts of environmental changes share similarities and are well recognized, each disaster presents unique challenges due to various levels of access to resources and support, uncertain duration, and potential inequities. These factors make the short- and long-term psychological consequences of environmental changes challenging to predict.
In this study, Tong will promote the use of social media data to enable studies of social media posts across time. Social media has become a daily activity for people to express views, connect with and communicate with others, and enable the understanding of human behaviors and emotions.
Learn more about this project here.
A committee composed of select UVA faculty reviewed all applications and made final determinations on awards. For more information about grants for research, visit funding opportunities for UVA faculty.
