Due to weather-related delays, the application deadline for a popular seed funding program for interdisciplinary initiatives has been moved back a week.
Applications for the Incubating Interdisciplinary Initiatives, or I 3, award program now will be due by Monday, March 11, at 5 p.m. The program is designed to make it easier for UO faculty members to launch multidisciplinary projects. The 2019 award program kicked off Feb. 4.
Supported by the Office of the Vice President for Research and Innovation, the I 3 initiative awards up to $50,000 to promising UO research teams. The program is open to faculty members from all academic disciplines and puts a priority on ideas with high potential to lead to future external funding. The award has been a catalyst for collaborative efforts tackling new research areas.
Past I 3 recipients have included faculty members from biology, computer science, chemistry, physics, geography and other disciplines, and teams have been funded by the National Science Foundation, the Keck Foundation, the Templeton Foundation and the National Security Agency.
The program empowers interdisciplinary teams and helps them to navigate the challenges they face, including leaving their familiar research territory, learning to communicate in new ways with colleagues in other fields and developing novel approaches.
Past I 3 recipients have successfully leveraged their awards to secure the foundations for long-term progress and new areas of research. Many were able to attract new scholars to the UO, file intellectual property and create new curriculum, demonstrating the broad impact of the award. In addition to fostering intrauniversity collaborations, past research teams developed partnerships with outside institutions, including international nongovernmental organizations and local companies.
I 3 proposals are evaluated by a faculty committee and final funding decisions are made by the vice president for research and innovation. The I 3 Award is administered by Research Development Services, which offers services for faculty members seeking support for research, performance, public service and scholarly projects.
Notification of awards will take place in spring. For questions, contact Research Development Services at rds@uoregon.edu.