The Sustainability Institute is pleased to announce funding awards for two separate research grant programs: the Sustainability Seed Grant and the Sustainability Proposal Development Grant. Through these programs, SI has awarded over $200,000 to nine projects developed by faculty members from across the university, with the aim of advancing new solutions to sustainability challenges through interdisciplinary collaboration.
“We are excited to support these research collaborations,” said Elena Irwin, Sustainability Institute faculty director. “No single discipline can solve the complex sustainability challenges we face across society, but by working together, researchers from different disciplines can unlock lasting solutions.”
SUSTAINABILITY SEED GRANT
This grant program is designed to facilitate novel interdisciplinary research in the sustainability field. Sustainability Seed Grants target new interdisciplinary teams with special consideration given to early career researchers. This year, SI selected eight projects, totaling nearly $180,000 in awarded funding:
Assessing and enhancing climate resilience of LGBTQIA+ populations in Ohio
This project aims to identify climate-related challenges and disaster resilience among LGBTQIA+ populations across Ohio and Franklin County through surveys, focus groups, and community outreach. The project will also explore how resilience intersects with housing and health outcomes among LGBTQIA+ communities. Results will inform LGBTQIA+ inclusive resilience and recovery planning and interventions in the region.
Researchers: Kelsea Best (PI), Sandy Wong, Smitha Rao
Cascading hazards of earthquake-induced land subsidence and coastal flooding
Permanent ground subsidence following past earthquakes has increased flood hazards of several low-lying coastal communities, including İskenderun in the 2023 Türkiye-Syria earthquakes. Subsidence in İskenderun has been primarily attributed to soil liquefaction. This work seeks to develop a multi-hazard framework for modeling liquefaction-induced subsidence and cascading post-earthquake flood inundation.
Researchers: Patrick Bassal (PI), Ethan Kubatko, Derek Sawyer
Just transition to electric vehicles: centering mobility, housing, and energy equity
This project aims to study the equity impacts and considerations of the transition to electric vehicles (EVs), focusing on the level of unmet mobility needs, housing unaffordability, and energy burden across socioeconomic groups. Using choice modeling and agent-based modeling, the research team will test different policy scenarios to improve equity outcomes for marginalized populations.
Researchers: Huyen Le (PI), Kelsea Best, Jeff Bielicki, Andre Carrel, Smitha Rao, Abdirashid Dahir
Multiscale sustainable management and chemical control of vegetable plant diseases
Plant diseases caused by bacteria limit crop production. Disease management depends on sustainable use of chemicals such as antibiotics. This project tests the impact of novel targeted antimicrobial small molecules and their impact on the plant microbiome. It also directly engages producer perceptions in small molecule use for disease management.
Researchers: Jonathan Jacobs (PI), Mary Rodriguez, Gireesh Rajashekara
Development of low-cost direct recycling process of lithium-ion battery cathodes based on technoeconomic analysis
This project aims to innovatively upcycle aged LiNixMnyCozO2 (NMC) cathode materials, sourced from spent electric vehicle cells, into advanced lithium (Li) and manganese (Mn) rich cathodes with higher energy and lower cost by using molten-salt synthesis method. Technoeconomic analysis will be conducted to compare the cost-effectiveness of this novel method with traditional recycling approaches.
Researchers: Jung-Hyun Kim (PI), Jay Sayre
Sunchoke: Developing a U.S. native ornamental edible enterprise for sustainable urban agricultural systems
This project’s goal is to develop sunchoke cultivar and outreach program for increasing food production diversity and sustainability in urban and peri-urban systems. The research team will evaluate phenotypic variation of U.S. sunchoke accessions, test urban cultivation practices of available sunchoke varieties, and assess stakeholders’ knowledge of sunchoke benefits, flavor profile, and cultivation.
Researchers: Florence Sessoms (PI), Fernanda Krupek, Yu Ma, Devin Peterson
Machine learning-enabled design of high entropy membrane materials for environmentally sustainable chemical processes
Oxygen permeable membranes have the potential to play a pivotal role in enabling various next-generation sustainable chemical processes such as CO2 conversion and clean hydrogen production. If successful, this project will discover new high-performance membrane materials for clean energy technology and demonstrate the importance of data-driven decision making.
Researchers: Joel Paulson (PI), Shang Zhai
CO2 sequestration and co-production of clean hydrogen and silica using steel slag and waste heat
This project proposes a process to sequester CO2 and co-produce high purity silica and clean hydrogen using iron/steel slags and waste heat. The high purity silica produced is a feedstock for polymer composites and semiconductor, while the clean hydrogen can decarbonize economic sectors currently giving Gigaton scale CO2 emissions.
Researchers: Shang Zhai (PI), Liang-Shih Fan
SUSTAINABILITY PROPOSAL DEVELOPMENT GRANT
Lorrayne Miralha, food agricultural and biological engineering, has been awarded a $25,000 sustainability proposal development grant to lead a research team pursuing an Agriculture and Food Research Initiative (AFRI) funding opportunity through the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Institute of Food and Agriculture.
In support of the research project titled “Under the Sustainable Radar: Tracking Tradeoffs between Water and Specialty Crop Production in the North Central Climate Vulnerable Regions,” the research team will utilize the awarded funding to complete site visits, hydrological monitoring, and data analysis in preparation of submitting the larger AFRI funding proposal.
Yu Ma and Logan Minter are the research collaborators on this project.
If you have questions about SI’s research funding opportunities contact Kathy Jackson, Sustainability Institute program assistant.