ACS Launches Grant Program to Catalyze Research Programs Addressing Sustainability

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By Christiana Briddell, Portfolio Manager, ACS Green Chemistry Institute

The American Chemical Society announces the launch of a new grant program as part of the ACS Campaign for a Sustainable Future. The campaign, initiated by the ACS Board of Directors, aims to advance chemistry innovations to address the challenges articulated in the U.N. Sustainable Development Goals.

By Christiana Briddell, Portfolio Manager, ACS Green Chemistry Institute

The American Chemical Society announces the launch of a new grant program as part of the ACS Campaign for a Sustainable Future. The campaign, initiated by the ACS Board of Directors, aims to advance chemistry innovations to address the challenges articulated in the U.N. Sustainable Development Goals.

The grant program will provide catalytic funding for U.S.-based early and mid-career faculty interested in developing research and teaching portfolios that contribute directly to the U.N. Sustainable Development Goals through green chemistry and engineering. The program will complement other campaign initiatives aimed at engaging the chemistry community in designing solutions to the grand challenges of sustainability, reimagining how we teach and practice chemistry with a sustainability focus, and raising public awareness about chemistry’s critical role in a sustainable future.

Early Career Postdoctoral-Faculty Bridge Grant

This award will provide funds to help launch a new Chemistry faculty’s sustainability-focused research group at a Ph.D.-granting institution by supporting a postdoctoral scholar for two years. The grant will not only assist the new faculty member but also give invaluable experience to the supported postdoctoral scholar in the process. Mentorship training will be provided to the PI to promote a productive partnership with the postdoctoral scholar. The award also stipulates that the faculty member will commit to teaching a green chemistry course and becoming part of the green chemistry teaching community of the ACS Green Chemistry Institute.

“This innovative bridge award is strategically designed to achieve two critical goals,” says Adelina Voutchkova-Kostal, Director of Sustainable Development at ACS. “First, boost the number of early-career Chemistry faculty engaged in research applicable to sustainable development, and second, vastly increase the course offering in green chemistry across Ph.D.-granting institutions in the U.S.”

Submissions for the Early Career Postdoctoral-Faculty Bridge Award will open in spring 2023 and be accepted through September 15, 2023. Current postdoctoral scholars applying for U.S.-based faculty positions are eligible. The ACS anticipates awarding multiple grants of up to $125,000 each by December 2023.

Principal Investigator Development in Sustainability Grant

The second award as part of this Campaign supports early or mid-career faculty looking to spend an upcoming planned sabbatical gaining cross-disciplinary laboratory experience to stimulate research collaborations that can be readily applied to sustainability challenges. The grant intends to foster connections between academia and industry, National Labs, or other institutions that can provide interdisciplinary research opportunities directly related to green and sustainable chemistry. Awardees will also participate in a teacher training workshop in green chemistry and commit to teaching a green chemistry course or material.

“Gaining experience outside of one’s field of expertise stimulates the cross-disciplinary collaborations that spark innovative applications for their research to sustainability challenges,” says Dr. Jitesh Soares, Sr. Director of Scientific Advancement at the American Chemical Society. “Taking a sabbatical or leave-of-absence to gain experience in an industrial setting is especially critical to foster connect innovation gaps with research advances, aiding in the translation to commercial application. This award de-risks these outside-the-box training experiences, and we hope this kind of collaboration will lead to transformative results.”

Submissions for the award will open in spring 2023 and will be due November 15, 2023. The ACS plans to provide multiple awards of $50,000 by January 2024.  

To find out more about the grant program and the ACS Campaign for a Sustainable Future, visit: www.acs.org/sustainability Additionally, GCI will present more information about the Campaign and grant program at the ACS Spring 2023 in Indianapolis on March 27 at 11 a.m. in the ACS Theatre, which is part of the ACS Booth in the Indiana Convention Center's Expo Hall CDE. You can also come by the ACS Green Chemistry booth #718 during Expo hours to ask questions and learn more.