Published: April 10, 2020 By

The 2020 Research & Innovation Seed Grants, announced by the CU Boulder Office of the Provost and Research & Innovation Office (RIO), are funding 25 proposals for up to $50,000 each, including a new CU Boulder Grand Challenge project.

The seed grant program stimulates new and exciting areas of research and creative work on campus, as reflected in the projects of the 2020 Research & Innovation Seed Grant Program winners.

About the 2020 program

The 2020 program attracted 109 proposals, which were evaluated by 42 faculty volunteers, including previous seed grant recipients.

The program and projects signify an investment in the future research and scholarly or artistic vitality of the university. Awardees come from disciplines across the university—including ventures involving interdisciplinary work that will foster collaborative interaction among faculty—as well as disciplines not traditionally connected to sponsored research.

A small selection of awardees illustrates the breadth of this year’s submissions:

  • Angela Bielefeldt—Building STEM Identity Among Undergraduate Student Mentors
  • Yifu Ding—Artificial Snakeskin via Solid Liquid Interfacial Polymerization (SLIP) Process
  • Sarah James—The Brač Island Project
  • Orit Peleg—Bee-honeycomb Formation Under Geometric Frustration
  • Ajume Wingo—A Virtual Reality Programming Language Based on African Philosophy

You can explore all of the 2020 projects here.

Long-term results

Since 2008, the program has provided more than $13 million to fund 304 innovative projects across campus. While 2018 and 2019 projects are still underway, results from previous years demonstrate the program’s impact.

Seed grant projects have resulted in measurable impacts including published manuscripts, artist residencies, inventions and millions of additional funding dollars for CU Boulder research. Outside of the measurable benefits, other seed grant impacts across campus are less quantifiable but equally powerful. New data, partnerships and research directions are often achieved, opening up opportunities that may otherwise not come to fruition. Additionally, funded projects provide undergraduate and graduate students, postdoctoral scholars and other investigators with critical research development and creative work experiences.

For more information on this program and other funding opportunities, visit the Research & Innovation Office Seed Grant webpage or subscribe to the bi-weekly RIO Bulletin.