In Spring 2004, we issued 3 Requests for Proposals(RFPs). One was for University of Minnesota faculty, one was for departments/programs/centers, and one was for graduate and professional students. We made 10 awards in 2003-04, for a total of $62,550.

Faculty

The RFP for faculty invited proposals to fund research, projects, or curricular innovation on the societal implications of problems in health, environment, or the life sciences. The Consortium made 4 awards:

1. Building a Community of Scholars in Conservation Medicine--Prof. Jonathan Sellman (Medicine), $5000 awarded; [ View Report ]
2. Environmental Factors Influencing Bacterial Evolution: A Multi-Disciplinary Program in International Public Health--Prof. Randy Singer (Epidemiology), $9800 awarded; [ View Report ]
3. The Science and Politics of Genetics and Reproduction--Prof. Murray Jensen (General College), $10,000 awarded; [ View Report ] and
4. End of Life Planning for Homeless Persons--Profs. John Song, Edward Ratner, Dianne Bartels (Center for Bioethics), $8000 awarded. [ View Report ]

Programs/Departments/Centers

The RFP for programs/departments/centers invited proposals seeking matching funds for colloquia addressing the societal implications of problems in health, environment, or the life sciences. We made 2 awards:

1. Minnesota Center for the Philosophy of Science, lectures in the 2004-05 Studies of Science and Technology Colloquium Series, Prof. C. Kenneth Waters, Director ($5000 awarded); [ View Report ] and
2. Center for Animal Health & Food Safety, colloquium on Geographic Information Systems (GIS): The Technical, Legal and Ethical Implications of the Integration of Information Systems for Animal and Human Health, Prof. Peter Davies, Leman Chair, and Shaun Kennedy, Associate Director ($2000 awarded). [ View Report ]

Graduate and Professional Students

The RFP to graduate and professional students was intended to provide a stipend for research and writing in the summer of 2004 or academic year 2004-05. We were delighted that the RFP stimulated 57 proposals from students in 33 programs around the University, including programs on the Duluth campus. Four awards were made (listed in no particular order):

1. The Sources of Environmental Empowerment: A Cross-Natural Statistical Analysis of Environmental Non-Governmental Organizations, 1990-2000--Wesley Longhofer, PhD student, Sociology ($5250 awarded); [ View Report ]
2. Re-Mapping Expertise and the "Nature" of Environmental Management--Understanding Indigenous Knowledges in Practice--Annette Watson, PhD student, Geography ($7000 awarded); [ View Report ]
3. International Regulation of Genetically Modified Fish: Navigating Biosafety and Trade Policy Water--Timothy Patronski, MS student, Science, Technology & Environmental Policy ($5377.50 awarded); [ View Report ] and
4. The Impact of Federal Intellectual Property Policies and Recent Federal Circuit Court Fiat on Biomedical Research at Non-Profit Research Institutions--Wendy Thai, JD student, Law School ($5100 awarded).