Santa Clara University

Sustainability Research Initiative

Overview. Santa Clara University is committed to fostering a more humane, just, faith-filled, and sustainable world.  Strategically, the University will develop a distinctive and substantial research focus on justice and sustainability by increasing faculty research and enhancing research collaborations in these areas.  To advance these goals, we are launching the Sustainability Research Initiative.  Components of the Initiative were developed from a series of focused discussions with faculty scholars in June of 2009 and include grants, a research retreat and on-going discussions.  We anticipate that the Initiative will establish a vibrant, productive, collaborative research community focused projects related to justice and sustainability.

Specifically, the Sustainability Research Initiative will have an annual budget, provided by the President’s Office, of $115,000 for three years.  The Initiative includes research grants ($90,000), professional development grants ($5,000), and a research retreat ($20,000).

Detailed Description of Initiative Components.

1. Sustainability Research Initiative Competitive Grants (up to $90,000).  

We request proposals to support current faculty research and creative activity and foster new scholarly projects in the areas of sustainability and environmental justice. We anticipate awarding up to thee grants for a one or two year project. At least one grant will be specifically in support of environmental justice work. Projects may involve an individual faculty member or a team of faculty.  Individual faculty grants will be up to $20,000 and team awards will be up to $30,000. Funds may be used for summer salary, graduate and undergraduate assistants, postdoctoral fellows, project-related travel, supplies, or equipment.  At the end of each project period, a two-page project summary (white paper) accessible to a non-specialist is required and will be publicly available on the web.  Full-time faculty are invited to apply. Proposals are due February 22, 2013 with awards announced in late March or early April, and project start dates of June 1, 2013. 

Proposals must be submitted electronically to grants@scu.edu with "Sustainability Research Initiative Grants" as the subject and must include:

a. Project Title, List of Participating Faculty, and Project Summary (1 page)
b. Project Description (5 pages)
c. References (1 page)
d. Budget with budget justification (2 pages)
e. Future funding plan (1 page)
f. Patent development plan (1 page; only required if potentially patentable inventions are anticipated)

2. Professional Development Grants for Faculty and Staff ($5,000).  

We request proposals up to $2,000 for professional development activities in sustainability and environmental justice.  Full-time faculty and staff are invited to apply.  Activities could include traveling to a professional conference or workshop for an individual or group, bringing an expert to campus to conduct a workshop for a department or office, hosting a departmental retreat focused on sustainability and/or environmental justice, or convening a meeting or series of meetings to develop Bay area partnerships and collaborations.  Funds may be used for travel, speakers, facilitators, facility rental, and refreshments.  At the end of each project period, a one-page summary (white paper) accessible to a non-specialist is required and will be publically available on the web.  Proposals are due February 22, 2013 with awards announced in late March or early April. Activities should take place between June 1, 2013 and June 30, 2014. 

Proposals must be submitted electronically to grants@scu.edu with "SRI Professional Development Grants" as the subject and must include:

a. Project Title, List of Participating Staff and/or Faculty, and Project Summary (1 page)
b. Project Description including timeline, specific goals and expected outcomes (2 pages)
c. Anticipated impact of project
d. Budget with budget justification (2 pages)

3. Research Retreat ($20,000). 

The primary goal of the retreat is to foster the development of a collaborative research community focused on projects related to sustainability and justice.  Faculty will share current and future research projects in an informal “chalk talk” setting.  Each faculty member will be asked to prepare a 1-2 page summary of current projects and ideas for future work. 

Proposals must be submitted electronically to grants@scu.edu with "SRI Retreat Grant" as the subject line.