CITRIS and the Banatao Institute at UC Santa Cruz invites all UCSC principal investigators to apply for project support through the UCSC Interdisciplinary Innovation Program (or I2P - formerly the Campus Seed Funding program). Due to the urgency of environmental challenges, the 2023 program will again fund innovative, multidisciplinary projects focused on the area of climate resilience. This includes the innovative use of existing technology, the development of new technology, or examinations of the impacts of specific technologies and applications related to climate resilience. Projects should address solutions to significant societal challenges in this area.
Unique to our campus, the UC Santa Cruz I2P focuses on strengthening interdisciplinary connections on the Santa Cruz campus and requires project teams to include at least two principal investigators from different UC Santa Cruz divisions. The program will fund early-stage research that furthers the CITRIS and the Banatao Institute’s mission of developing information technology solutions for society’s most pressing challenges and also exhibits strong promise of securing external funding. The I2P is separate from the CITRIS Core Seed Funding program, which requires projects to include PIs from more than one CITRIS campus.
Climate Resilience proposals may address projects utilizing technology or examining its uses and effects in, but not limited to, the following areas of research:
- Disaster monitoring, mitigation and recovery - including wildfires, impacts of sea level rise, drought and temperature increase;
- Greenhouse gas reduction;
- Renewable energy;
- Water supply and usage;
- Agriculture and food supply;
- Conservation and wildlife;
- Coastal science;
- Societal impacts of climate change.
The submission deadline is August 15, 2023.
View the RFP here. Applications can be submitted starting June 15, 2023. Two campus information sessions will be held via Zoom for all interested parties.
- June 21, 12:00-1:00 pm: Zoom Info Session 2 - click here to register.
- June 28, 12:00-1:00 pm: Zoom Info Session 3 - click here to register.
For more information, contact Michael Matkin, executive director of CITRIS and the Banatao Institute at UC Santa Cruz, at mmatkin@ucsc.edu.
Program timeline:
- RFP Opens for submissions: June 15, 2023
- Info Session 1: June 15, 2022 - 12-1 pm
- Info Session 2: June 21 - 12-1 pm
- Submission Deadline: August 15, 2023, 11:59 pm PDT
- Selected research teams informed: Early September, 2023
- Funds transferred: September 15, 2023
- Project performance period begins: September 23, 2023
- Project performance period ends: September 22, 2024
CITRIS and the Banatao Institute create information technology solutions for society’s most pressing challenges. Established in 2001, the Center for Information Technology Research in the Interest of Society (CITRIS) leverages the interdisciplinary research strengths of four UC campuses—Santa Cruz, Berkeley, Davis and Merced—to advance UC’s mission and the innovative spirit of California. The institute was created to shorten the pipeline between world-class laboratory research and the development of cutting-edge applications, platforms, companies, and even new industries.
