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Sustainable Development Research

SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT RESEARCH AWARDS
ROUND #3 - CALL FOR PROPOSALS

Click Here to Access the Application Form
Proposals Due by June 1, 2024

Sustainable Development Research Awards Programs - Overview

In Spring 2023, the University of Louisiana at Lafayette awarded $40,800 in faculty research grants related to Sustainable Development - that is, research related to Social Inclusion, Environmental Protection or Economic Growth - and to the 17 United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals. This initiative was a collaboration between 6 campus entities: Faculty Affairs (Dianne Olivier), the Graduate School (Mary Farmer-Kaiser and Philip de Mahy), the Office of Campus Diversity (Kiwana McClung) the Office of Sustainability (Gretchen Vanicor), Brian Bolton, Professor of Finance and the Dwight W. Andrus, Jr. / BORSF Eminent Scholar Endowed Chair in Finance and the Office for Research, Innovation & Economic Development.

This program has several key goals: (1) to celebrate the amazing research being done across the UL Lafayette campus, (2) to show how vital research on sustainable development is for Southern Louisiana and the Gulf Coast Region, and (3) to create a platform to share research and to encourage collaborations where faculty can help solve some of society's greatest challenges. This Program is expected to have at least 4 rounds of research and awards.

In Round #1 in Spring 2023, we rewarded 19 faculty projects. We identified 4 "Ambassadors," senior faculty who will take on additional responsibilities of leading this work going forward and 15 "Fellows." All 19 faculty presented their research at the 2024 Faculty Sustainable Development Research Summit on March 8, 2024. The full list of faculty award recipients and their research projects is provided below; links to the Summit Program and Slide Deck are also posted below.

In Round #2 in Spring 2024, we rewarded 22 graduate student projects with $2,000 each, for a total of $44,000 in awards. These 22 graduate students represent both Doctoral and Master programs from 13 different graduate programs across campus. All 22 students presented their research at the 2024 Graduate Student Sustainable Development Research Summit on April 12, 2024. The full list of graduate student recipients and their research projects is provided below; links to the Summit Program and Slide Deck are also posted below.

Round #3 launched in April 2024 and is open to all researchers at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette - faculty, graduate students, undergraduate students, professional staff, post-docs, leadership, anyone. Round #4 will be similar and will launch in April 2025. The Key Dates and Timeline for Round #3 is below:

  • April 2024 - Call for Proposals launched
  • June 1, 2024 - Proposals due, application window closes
  • July 1, 2024 - Award decisions announced
  • October 1, 2024 - Draft projects due
  • Spring 2025 - Presentations at the 2025 Sustainable Development Research Summit

The 2024 Graduate Student Sustainable Development Research Award Recipients:

DOWNLOAD THE FULL SCHEDULE OF THE APRIL 12, 2024 GRADUATE STUDENT RESEARCH SUMMIT

Jahidul Alam     English (Ph.D.)

     Francis Bacon and Early Modern Environment: Exploring How Salomon’s House Refutes His Anthropocene
     SDGs 6, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16
    Faculty Reference: Clancy Ratliff

Leticia Andrus     Educational Leadership (Ed.D.)
     Diversity Beyond Borders: A Literature Review of the Representation of International Students in Diversity Discourses in American Universities
     SDGs 4, 8, 16, 17  
     Faculty Reference: Sebnem Cilesiz

Bipin Bastakoti     Environmental Resource Science (M.S.)
     Soil Health Degradation in the Vermilion-Teche Basin of Louisiana
     SDGs 2, 8, 13, 15  
     Faculty Reference: Durga Poudel

Presious Batubo    Earth and Energy Science (Ph.D.)
     Analyzing Sedimentary Deposits to Reconstruct Medium-sized Paleo-Tsunami Using Deep Neural Networks
     SDGs 9, 11   
     Faculty Reference: Gabriele Morra

Katarina Brankovic    Francophone Studies (Ph.D.)
     Building a Culture of Inclusivity, Diversity, and Accessibility: Advancing Sustainability at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette
     SDGs 4, 11, 16   
     Faculty Reference: Carol Landry

Markashia Brown    Educational Leadership (Ed.D.)
     What do we already know about the Financial Literacy of Women & First-Generation African-American Women Students
     SDGs 4, 5, 8, 10   
     Faculty Reference: Amanda Mayeaux

Redeemer Buatsi    Communication (M.S.)
     Reporting Rape in the United States-A Content Analysis of Media Coverage of Rape in the State of Louisiana 
     SDGs 3, 5, 16   
     Faculty Reference: Patricia Holmes

Kirsten Cases     Architecture (M.Arch)
     Reacclimating Neglected Infrastructure Through Stabilizing Carbon Dynamics
     SDGs 7, 8, 9, 11, 12, 13, 15, 17
     Faculty References: Corey Saft & Olivia Pontiff
     Link to Kirsten Cases' project on Adaptive Reuse

Allison Comeaux    Educational Leadership (Ed.D.)
     How Do Post-Secondary Disability Service Accommodations in the U.S. Impact Educational Attainment
     SDGs 4, 16   
     Faculty Reference: Amanda Mayeaux

Anamika Das     English (M.A.)
     Application of Natural Semantic Metalanguage in Cross-Cultural Meaning Analysis: Comparing the Usage of Bangla Happy Greetings with American English
     SDGs 4, 10, 16, 17  
     Faculty Reference: Mark Honegger

Shayan Ebrahimi    Systems Engineering (Ph.D.)
     Accelerating Decarbonization through Digital Twinning
     SDGs 7, 9, 12   
     Faculty Reference: Farzad Ferdowsi

Kubiat George     Engineering: Chemical (M.S.)
     Synergistic effect of UV and Condensation on the Degradation of Carbon Black Reinforced EPON-IPD Thermosets with With Enthalpy Storage of Shape Memory
     SDGs 2, 6, 9, 11   
     Faculty Reference: William Chirdon

Holly Heafner     Environmental Resource Science (M.S.)
     Environmental Inequities and Lead Toxicity: A Geospatial and Demographic Evaluation of Soil Contamination in Lafayette, LA
     SDGs 3, 4, 10, 11, 16  
     Faculty Reference: Anna Paltseva

Atif Khan     Engineering: Civil (M.S.)
     Utilization of Sugarcane Bagasse Ash and Rice Husk Ash in Sustainable Construction Bricks
     SDGs 7, 8, 9, 11, 12  
     Faculty Reference: Md. Jamal Khattak

Farooq Azam Khanzada    Systems Engineering (Ph.D.)
     Does Automated Enforcement at Signalized Intersections Truly Enhance Safety?
     SDGs 11    
     Faculty Reference: Xiaoduan Sun

Deepak Jain Veerendra Kumar    Systems Engineering (Ph.D.)
     Advancing Soiling Loss Predictions in PV Systems with Enhanced Models
     SDGs 7, 13   
     Faculty Reference: Terry Chambers

Tyrell Lassair     Earth and Energy Science (Ph.D.)
     Urban Agriculture as a Strategy to Increase Food Access and Alleviate Food Insecurity
     SDGs 2, 3, 4   
     Faculty Reference: Anna Paltseva

Lillian Mambiri     Systems Engineering (Ph.D.)
     Bio-fabrication via Stereolithography of 4D Polycaprolactone-based Scaffolds for Osteogenesis, Angiogenesis and Tumor Mechanobiology
     SDGs 1, 3, 10, 12   
     Faculty Reference: Dilip Depan

Mahpara Mashiyat    Earth and Energy Science (Ph.D.)
     Observations of Structural and Functional Changes in Mineral and Organic Soil Wetlands Caused by Saltwater Intrusion Events in Louisiana
     SDGs 13, 14, 15   
     Faculty Reference: Jorge Villa

Tasnima Supty     Biology (M.S.)
     Impact of Childhood Adversity on Neuroinflammation: Exploring the Connections & Implications
     SDGs 3, 4, 8, 11, 16  
     Faculty Reference: Karen Smith

Jon-Patric Veal     Psychology (M.S.)
     How Variations in Perspective Taking Can Mediate the Effects of Empathy on Implicit Racial Bias
     SDGs 10, 16   
     Faculty Reference: Emily Sandoz

Renee Vincent     English (Ph.D.)
     When DNR Means 'Do Not Rescue': Hurricane Katrina and Medical Inequity within Disaster
     SDGs 9, 11, 13, 15, 16, 17 
     Faculty Reference: David Squires

The 2023 Faculty Sustainable Development Research Award Recipients:

DOWNLOAD THE FULL SCHEDULE OF THE MARCH 8, 2024 FACULTY RESEARCH SUMMIT

DOWNLOAD THE FULL SLIDE-DECK OF THE MARCH 8, 2024 FACULTY RESEARCH SUMMIT (in PDF)

Faculty Ambassadors:

James Albert - Professor - Biology, Ray P. Authement College of Sciences
    Documenting Body-Shape in Riverine Fishes
    Sustainable Development Goals: 6, 15

Emad Habib - Professor - Civil Engineering, College of Engineering
    Fostering Flood-Resilient Communities: Integrating Hydrodynamic Modeling, Socio-Economic Risk Assessment, and Inclusive Communication
    SDGs: 6, 9, 10, 11, 13, 16

Liz Skilton - Associate Professor - History, College of Liberal Arts
    The Sustainability of Coastal Restoration: Tracking Community Understandings of Restoration Projects at 5 or More Years
    SDGs: 8, 11, 13, 14, 15

Heather Stone - Associate Professor - Educational Curriculum & Instruction, College of Education & Human Development
    Isle of Memories: Stories of the Biloxi-Chitimacha-Choctaw
    SDGs: 4, 10, 16"
    Link to Dr. Stone's film on this topic

Faculty Fellows:

Stephanie Arceneaux - Senior Instructor - LHC Group - Myers School of Nursing
    Education of Nursing Students on Human Trafficking Improves Knowledge
    SDGs: 5, 11

Emily Blosser - Assistant Professor - Sociology, College of Liberal Arts
    Food for Thought: Exploring the Impact of Food on the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals Using a Podcast
    SDGs: 2, 3, 5, 10, 12, 13, 15

Ling Fei - Assistant Professor - Chemical Engineering, College of Engineering
    A 3D-Printed, Freestanding Si/Carbon Composite Lattice for Li-Ion Batteries
    SDGs: 7, 11

Tori Flint - Associate Professor - Educational Curriculum & Instruction, College of Education & Human Development
    Literacies Beyond Bars: (Re)claiming and (Re)imagining Identities Through Multimodal Family Literacy Practices
   SDGs: 4, 16

Randy Gonzales - Associate Professor - English, College of Liberal Arts
    Filipino Food, Louisiana Ingredients
    SDGs: 2, 12

Liane Hancock - Associate Professor - Architecture, College of the Arts
    Serving the Under-served: Building Resiliency for Manufactured Homes across the Coastal South
    SDGs: 1, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 17

Emily Kane - Assistant Professor - Biology, Ray P. Authement College of Sciences
     You’ll Never Look at a Roadside Ditch the Same After This! Small, Boring Fish Make a Big Impact on Pest Control
     SDGs: 3, 5, 6, 11
     Link to Dr. Kane's video on this research

Do Kyun David Kim - Professor - Communication, College of Liberal Arts
   Measuring the Duration of Flood Risk Perception and Recommendations for Sustainable Development: Climate Change, Natural Disaster, and Community Education for Preparation
   SDGs: 4, 10, 11, 13

Manyu Li - Assistant Professor - Psychology, College of Liberal Arts
    Cultivating a Sense of Belonging for Inclusive and Equitable Education: From Research to Application
   SDGs: 4, 10, 16

Nathan Roberts - Professor - Educational Foundations & Leadership, Education & Human Development
(with Marietta Adams, Aimee Barber & Amanda Mayeaux)
   Lactation Policies and the K-12 Teacher Workforce:  A Law and Policy Analysis to Determine a Model Policy to Encourage and Support the Recruitment and Retention of Female Teachers
   SDGs: 3, 4, 5, 8

Emily Sandoz - Professor - Psychology, College of Liberal Arts
    Promoting Appetitive Learning of Consensual, Empowered Vulnerability: A Contextual Behavioral Conceptualization of Intimacy
    SDGs: 3, 4, 5, 10, 11, 16, 17

David Squires - Assistant Professor - English, College of Liberal Arts
   ‘Proof That We Ever Was’: Exhibiting the Ernest J. Gaines Center Collections
   SDGs: 4, 10, 16

Yu Wang - Assistant Professor - Chemistry, Ray P. Authement College of Sciences
   Development of Novel Water Purification Materials for the Removal of Perfluoroalkyl Substances (PFASs)
   SDGs: 6, 11

Christine Weill - Associate Professor - Communicative Disorders, College of Liberal Arts)
(With Ryan Nelson & Holly Damico)
   Investigating Our Legacy: Twenty Years of Language and Literacy Projects in Southwest Louisiana
   SDGs: 1, 4, 10

Yung-Hsing Wu - Professor - English, College of Liberal Arts
   ‘Reading Race with Oprah’: A Conference Panel
   SDGs: 4, 5, 8, 16

Contacts:

Office of Academic Affairs

  • Dr. Dianne Olivier
    • Associate Vice President for Academic Affairs, Office of Faculty Affairs
    • Professor of Educational Foundations and Leadership
    • dianne.olivier@louisiana.edu

The Graduate School

Office for Campus Diversity

  • Kiwana McClung
    • Chief Diversity Officer
    • Professor of Architecture, SLEMCO / LEQSF Regents Professor in Art & Architecture II
    • kiwana.mcclung@louisiana.edu

Office of Sustainability

Brian Bolton (brian.bolton@louisiana.edu)

This page is maintained by Brian Bolton, Professor of Finance and the Dwight W. Andrus, Jr. / BORSF Eminent Scholar Endowed Chair in Finance at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. 

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