The Sustainability Institute (SI) is pleased to announce the FY2027 Sustainability Research Seed Grant Program for The Ohio State University research community. This funding aims to foster interdisciplinary research on sustainability and resilience topics at Ohio State laying a foundation for convergence research that generates solutions to pressing sustainability challenges. This research grant program aligns with the research growth priority of Ohio State’s Academic Excellence Plan.
The Principal Investigator (PI) must hold an Ohio State appointment as a faculty or has an Ohio State appointment with PI status and must be an SI faculty affiliate before any funds are received.
The proposed research must be conducted by a new team or by an existing team that has not yet received external funding for the proposed research. Team members’ roles must be described on the team roster (see Team Qualifications, under Proposal Narrative section), and each team member will be contacted to ensure their commitment. The size and structure of the team is open and should be determined by the proposed research question and scope. At a minimum, we seek interdisciplinary teams comprised of two or more Ohio State faculty or research staff with distinctly different research foci. While we recognize that interdisciplinary researchers may be from the same department, we also encourage diverse, interdisciplinary teams involving multiple departments or colleges.
Projects must clearly address a sustainability challenge that considers both natural (earth, environmental, ecological, or biophysical) and human (social, behavioral, economic, governance) or technological components. Grants will support teams who engage in scholarship activities that clearly build the capacity of interdisciplinary or transdisciplinary teams at Ohio State. We invite proposals that involve research in one or more of the Sustainability Institute’s following priority research areas:
Preference will be given to proposals that:
Prior awardees must have submitted all required reports prior to receiving another SI seed grant.
To streamline the experience for applicants the FY27 Sustainability Research Seed Grant Program will utilize a competitive pre-proposal process. Principal Investigators (PIs) interested in applying must first submit a pre-proposal for review. Pre-proposals will be evaluated by the Sustainability Institute research team and faculty reviewers based on program alignment, sustainability significance, interdisciplinarity, transdisciplinary engagement, novelty, and potential for future research impact and funding. Based on this review, a subset of applicants will be invited to submit full proposals. . Pre-proposals are limited to a provided submission form and it is recommended you prepare answers to all outlined questions on a separate document so they can be copied and pasted into the online submission form. Pre-proposals will briefly describe:
The maximum award size is expected to be $30,000. Proposals for funds greater than this amount may be considered in extreme circumstances, which must be well articulated and justified in the pre-proposal.
Pre-proposal submissions will be accepted via an online Microsoft Form and require the listing of 4 potential Full Proposal reviewers who understand the science behind, and the significance of the proposed project. Please note that reviewers with potential conflicts of interest will not be selected to review Full Proposals.
PIs are encouraged to contact the SI program team with questions regarding this solicitation and the application process. Contact Charlene Brenner (brenner.17@osu.edu) with any questions. Pre-proposal submissions are due by Friday, December 4, 2026, at 5 p.m.
This year, to reduce administrative burden and to streamline the application process, full proposals will be submitted through an online Microsoft Form. All components (detailed in Proposal Components and Attachments below) will be included in the Microsoft Form submission.
All information needed for the full proposal will be collected through the online submission form. Applicants should carefully review the requirements and be prepared to submit all required materials as described in this and the Proposal Narrative section below. It is recommended you prepare answers to all outlined questions on a separate document so they can be copied and pasted into the online submission form. Complete proposals will include:
Please provide concise responses to each of the following. Recommended word ranges are provided. The proposal narrative will be broken into the following questions on the online submission form:
Each proposal should include a short title detailing the project they intend to complete.
A brief description (100 words maximum) written for a general audience. Should your proposal be funded, this summary (though potentially edited) will be used in Sustainability Institute communications announcing the award.
From the Sustainability Institute’s sustainability research priorities area (more details available under Key Definitions), identify which of the research priorities your proposal addresses (this may be more than one). If the project falls outside this scope, then you will need to clearly articulate the area of sustainability scholarship being researched.
Document the significance of the compelling sustainability challenge and describe how the project will address this challenge, engage Ohio State people and partners, build on existing work or partnerships, leverage new resources and produce useful results. Clarify the system of study, including both the human and natural components and their key interactions. Recommended 500-word response.
Describe specifically the project objectives, how the team plans to accomplish those objectives, the expected tangible outputs, and the expected short- and long-term benefits or results, including identifying at least one viable potential source of funding for future related work (in narrative or logic model format). Recommended 500-word response.
Describe the qualifications of the key team members, the aspects in which this team is interdisciplinary or transdisciplinary, how the team will achieve effective interdisciplinary or transdisciplinary collaboration that integrates multiple disciplinary perspectives, the diversity of backgrounds or perspectives that are represented within the team and how this will inform the research. Recommended 300-word response.
Detail any aspects of the proposed project that include external stakeholder engagement and co-production of knowledge. Also describe any plan to share results of the research project with any non-academic partner(s). Recommended 250-word response.
Describe team plans to use grant funding as well as any matching resources to carry out the project. Recommended 250-word response.
Provide a reference list for any relevant sources cited in the answers provided for the Proposal Narrative.
Provide at least 1 (and up to 10) relevant and prominent visual that illustrates the project, such as a conceptual figure, system diagram, map, research framework, photograph, or data visualization. Please ensure that you have proper usage rights and permissions before sharing any visuals. The Sustainability Institute may use these in communications for announcing or promoting future awards. Please have any shared visuals be produced by a member of the project team rather than one generated using artificial intelligence. We will ask you to provide a short description for each image that could serve as alt text.
Following the review of pre-proposals, selected teams will be invited to advance to the full proposal stage. Full proposals must be submitted by 5:00 p.m. on January 20, 2027. Teams selected to move forward will receive additional information and instructions for preparing and submitting their full proposal. Questions may be directed to Charlene Brenner (brenner.17@osu.edu).
Applicants will be notified via email regarding proposal outcomes in April 2027. Successful projects will be published on the Sustainability Institute website and shared via various communications channels.
Any presentation or publications resulting from the proposed research should appropriately acknowledge the Sustainability Institute’s support. The acknowledgement should read as follows: “This work was supported in part by the Sustainability Institute at Ohio State.” For external proposals resulting from this work supported by this grant, the ePA-005 should list Sustainability Institute with at least a 0% allowance.
Projects will begin May 1, 2027, and conclude no later than August 31, 2028. Mid-project surveys are required to be completed by January 30, 2028. A final report must be completed and returned to SI no later than October 31, 2028.
Grant funds will be transferred to an account designated by the department of the named Principal Investigator (PI).
Grant funds will be issued for a maximum of sixteen months from the effective date of the award. Time extension requests will be considered on a case-by-case basis.
Grantees will receive 100% of the funds at the start of the award. Grantees are required to complete a mid-project progress survey and submit a final report for their awards. SI will provide templates and instructions for these reporting requirements. Final reports should be concise, written for a general audience, include appropriate graphics (e.g. photos, charts), and be suitable for publication via online or print media.
Funds may not be used for capital improvements or faculty time. Any unused funds at the time of the final report shall be returned to SI.
Cost sharing through matching funds, either cash or in-kind, is highly encouraged. Proposals should identify the potential for securing additional support to continue project funding beyond the 2027-2028 academic year.
During the grant period, awardees may elect to participate in up to two Team Science consultations designed to strengthen interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary collaboration, advance research project development, and position teams for future external funding opportunities. Consultations will be tailored to the needs and stage of each research team.
The Sustainability Institute will host two information sessions via Zoom to provide an overview and answer questions. Register via the links below for the desired session:
Combines or applies data, techniques, theories or approaches from two or more disciplines to advance fundamental understanding or solve problems.
Integrates experimental and non-academic knowledge alongside academic disciplines to create a holistic understanding of complex issues. This methodology transcends traditional academic boundaries by actively incorporating insights from practitioners, community members, and other stakeholders, facilitating collaborative problem-solving.
Both an interdisciplinary field of study and an applied area of practice1 that takes a broad, integrated approach to understanding interactions among human and natural systems. Similar to medicine, it is an interventionist science, meaning that sustainability scholars and practitioners use integrated systems knowledge to understand, design, and deliver interventions that lead to a better present and future for people and the planet.2 It requires transdisciplinary approaches that are interdisciplinary and integrate academic and non-academic knowledge through engagement with end-users, stakeholders, communities, and decision makers where solutions are implemented.3
1Clark, W. C., and Dickson, N. M. (2003). Sustainability Science: The Emerging Research Program. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 100, 8059–8061. doi: 10.1073/pnas.1231333100
2Visiting Committee Final Report, Advancing Sustainability at Ohio State, August 2023.
3Shi, L., & Moser, S. (2021). Transformative climate adaptation in the United States: Trends and prospects. Science, 372(6549).