Weekly Newsletter

March 29, 2021

Dear colleagues-

Thank you to all who participated in the Environmental Justice Symposium. The talks will be available online, and in the meantime for those of you who may have missed it, the keynote lecture by Dr. Carlton Waterhouse on Unsustainable Environmentalism: The Social Dominance Problem is now available online. Please also consider taking part in the Spring 2021 Ecological Science and Engineering student-led symposium March 30-31. Our last lecture of the semester will take place on April 5th with the hosting of Dr. Diana Wall at 1:30 pm.

In addition, please consider answering a brief survey about where you conduct research. We are gathering this info to create a map on our website highlighting the international breadth of our affiliates' research. We also want to create some ‘buzz’ for Earth Day (and Day of Giving) in April. Last year we had several affiliates participate in our (abruptly cancelled) Earth Day celebration via twitter, and this year we want to do so via short videos (or tweets) as well.

Research shout-outs this week to affiliates Mesut Akdere (HRD) for a recent large grant on VR enabled cybersecurity training from FEMA, Tara Grillos (POLI SCI) for her recently awarded NSF grant, Haiyan Wang (ME) for recently recognized work on thin films and Marty Frisbee (EAPS) for his article on meltwater from glaciers.

Please also encourage your students to check out the second issue for the semester of Earth Today, our undergraduate newsletter, that highlights offerings in the School of Health and Human Sciences.

Featured Upcoming Events

Global Soil Biodiversity: Establishing Common Ground For Sustainability
Featuring Dr. Diana Wall, Colorado State University

April 5, 2021 | 1:30 - 2:30 PM

Soil biodiversity, estimated at 25% of all known species on earth, is crucial for life aboveground. There is growing scientific evidence indicating that soil biodiversity and the ecosystem functions and services they provide can optimize the successful implementation of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

In this talk, Dr. Diana Wall will discuss the state of knowledge on the emerging field of soil biodiversity science and implications for sustainability under current and future environmental change. More information here.

A couple of weeks ago, three Purdue researchers (Erika Foster, Becca Nixon, and Brooke McWherter) sat down virtually with Dr. Wall and spoke to her about everything from nematodes to science communication, to her perfect day in the field. Check out their conversation here and click here to register for the lecture on April 5.

Spring 2021 ESE Symposium

Tuesday & Wednesday March 30 & 31 | 12:00 PM

The ESE Symposium is an entirely student-run event and provides a forum for discussion of interdisciplinary environmental issues, while offering graduate and undergraduate students an opportunity to critically examine emerging environmental issues and interact with experts in various fields.

This year’s theme, “Hindsight 202One” seeks to understand how we move forward in governing the complexities or adapting as a society to mounting issues worldwide.

Some of the exciting events on this year's agenda include:

Art Exhibition - a virtual exhibition reflecting on the issues of 2020 and how society can move forward
Keynote Speaker Dr. Marcos Espinal of the Pan-American Health Organization (PAHO)
Local Panel featuring West Lafayette Mayor John Dennis along with local leaders and activists discussing the city’s efforts to foster sustainability in West Lafayette and adapt to the events of 2020.
Global Panel featuring Dr. Esteban Ramirez (Protect Purdue), Dr. Becca Nixon (FNR), and members of the Sunrise Movement and PAHO about cross-scalar efforts to address the intertwined issues of health, climate change, and social equity.

Click on any of the links above for information on how to rsvp for individual events.

Response Requested: Earth Day 2021

Earth Day is fast approaching and this year we want to highlight all the exciting places near and far where our affiliates are doing research.

We hope you'll please take a moment and complete this very brief questionnaire so that we can begin gathering locations and creating an interactive map on which to showcase them all.

Please submit your responses as soon as possible so that we can have the map ready in time for Earth Day on April 22.

Upcoming SRA Events

Building Sustainable Communities Environmental Grad Coffee Hour

Tuesday March 30 | 3:00 - 4:00 PM

The Environmental Grad Coffee Hour is student-led, BSC-sponsored interdisciplinary event providing a casual meeting opportunity for graduate students across BSC, C4E and campus who are interested in environmental humanities, environmental social sciences, environmental sciences, and environmental engineering to network, discuss their work, engage in a reading group, or meet visitors. Nothing needs to be done ahead of time – just show up with a mug of coffee or tea in hand and Zoom along!

Click here to join

Building Sustainable Communities OMG (Open Monthly Gathering)

Wednesday March 31 | 12:00 - 1:00 PM

All are invited to the first BSC Open Monthly Gathering (OMG). Dan Kelly from the Department of Philosophy and Becca Nixon from the Department of Forestry and Natural Resources and Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant will kick off the first OMG this coming Wednesday. Each of them will talk about a manuscript that they are currently working on. Following their presentations, there will be an open forum for constructive questions, idea-sharing, and lively discussion.

Pack a lunch and join the virtual event here!

Chemical Exposures SRA Collaborative Meeting

Thursday April 1 | 12:30 - 1:30 PM

In this second virtual collaborative meeting hosted by the Center for the Environment's Chemical Exposures Signature Research Area, the Shannahan and Whelton research groups will be presenting on their collaborative CIPP project in a session titled Chemical Emission Health Risks Related to the Cured-in-Place Pipe Procedure.

Click here to join the event.

Water Challenges SRA Open Meeting

Wednesday April 7 | 3:00 - 4:30 PM

The C4E Water Challenges Signature Research Area will be hosting an open meeting on research in the Great Lakes, taking place next Wednesday, April 7. All are welcome to attend. If you are interested in joining, please email Sara McMillan.

Other Events of Interest

Urban Transformations Seminar Series

Wednesday March 31 | 12:00 PM

Center affiliates and Civil Engineering professors Suresh Rao and Satish Ukkusuri have organized a virtual lecture series on the effects of rapid urbanization titled "Urban Transformations and Regional Resilience”.

The Series' next installment will feature Andrea Rinaldo, Professor of Hydrology and Water Resources and the Director of the Laboratory of Ecohydrology at Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne, Switzerland., speaking on decision-making as provided by the ecosystem services of the hydrologic cycle.

Job Search Strategies - Social Science Careers in Food & Agriculture

Wednesday April 7 | 1:00 - 2:00 PM

Join Purdue FNR Postdoc Anna Erwin, along with the Agriculture, Food, and Human Values Society, for an informational job search webinar for social scientists in ag and food fields. The webinar will feature presentations from speakers in academic, public, and nonprofit sector jobs. All are welcome to attend, register here.

Issue 5 of Earth Today, our monthly environmental newsletter for Purdue undergraduates, is out now. This month features a glance at the newly introduced Occupational and Environmental Health Sciences (OEHS) undergraduate program in the College of Health Science, undergrad research opportunities, and some upcoming events open to students.

Faculty are encouraged to forward the link to their students.

Affiliate News & Publications

The World’s First AI-Powered, Virtual Reality-Based Cybersecurity Training for First Responders is Being Developed
Purdue Polytechnic Institute | March 2021

Researchers from Purdue University, led by C4E affiliate Mesut Akdere (Purdue Polytechnic) and a team from the Texas A&M Engineering Extension Service (TEEX) are creating the world’s first Artificial Intelligence-powered, virtual reality-based cybersecurity training program for public safety officials. The joint three-year project began in September 2020 after receiving a $1.5M Homeland Security National Training Program/Continuing Training Grant from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. Read more about the project here.

Tara Grillos Awarded NSF Grant
Purdue Liberal Arts | February 2021

C4E affiliate Tara Grillos (Poli Sci) along with co-PI Michael Touchton of the University of Miami were awarded a $632,000 grant to conduct research in Kenya in partnership with Innovations for Poverty Action and the Elgeyo-Marakwet County Government. Their findings will inform the creation of a new participatory budgeting initiative in Elgeyo-Marakwet, and the research will be relevant to policymakers and practitioners implementing participatory processes around the world.

The project, “Collective Decision Making and Local Public Good Provision: Experimental Evidence,” builds upon Dr. Grillos' previous research that the College of Liberal Arts funded with an Exploratory Research in the Social Sciences Grant.

New approach developed to create thin films for electronics, acoustics
WebIndia123 | March 2021

During a recent study, C4E affiliate Haiyan Wang (ME) developed a new approach to creating popular thin films that are used for devices across a broad range of fields, including optics, acoustics, and electronics. Epitaxial lithium niobate (LNO) thin films are an attractive material for electronics and other devices, and tis new approach makes them easier and more efficient to produce. Read more.

Recharge from Glacial Meltwater is Critical for Alpine Springs and their Microbiomes
Environmental Research Letters | March 2021

The importance of glacier meltwater as a source of mountain-block recharge remains poorly quantified, yet it may be essential to the integrity of alpine aquatic ecosystems by maintaining baseflow in streams and perennial flow in springs. A new article from Jordyn Beth Miller and C4E affiliate Marty Frisbee (EAPS) tests the hypothesis that meltwater from alpine glaciers is a critical source of recharge for mountain groundwater systems using traditional stable isotopic source-identification techniques combined with a novel application of microbial DNA. Read the article here.

Funding Opportunities

COVID-19 Funding Opportunities – This list is updated frequently.

Limited Submission: USAID Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Current and Emerging Threats to Crops
The CETC Innovation Lab will design, lead, and implement an applied research program focused on the control of current and emerging biotic threats to food security crops that the poor depend on. The program will also strengthen local research partners through capacity development while benefiting smallholder farmers and other beneficiaries of USAID assistance. Only one submission is allowed as lead.
Sponsor deadlines: May 11

Limited Submission: DOE-SC Critical Minerals & Materials: Chemical and Materials Science Research on Rare Earth and Platinum Group Elements
This FOA is focused on gaining an understanding of the fundamental properties and mechanisms of critical minerals, elements, and materials to improve separation and extraction processes and to enable discovery and design of alternates to critical materials that reduce or eliminate the need for critical elements. Thus, this fundamental knowledge will support the DOE strategy to diversify supply, develop substitutes, and improve reuse and recycling of critical minerals and materials. Only two pre-applications are allowed per institution.
Sponsor deadlines: April 12 – Pre-application; June 9 – Application

Limited Submission: DOI-USGS National Climate Adaptation Science Center Program (NCASC)
This Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) seeks to identify applicant organizations that propose to host and, as applicable, serve as consortium partners for a U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Climate Adaptation Science Center (CASC) in the Midwest. Once selected, the recipient will be established as Host Institution. As a Host, an institution will be the sole entity eligible to receive funding to conduct follow-on research/science projects anticipated as a part of this NOFO. Host Institutions may engage with other institutions, including by subaward, as part of these projects. Only one submission is allowed as host.
Internal deadline: Preproposal due in InfoReady by April 5
Sponsor deadline: June 14

Corteva Agriscience Plant-derived Insulator Elements for Predictable Gene Expression ($50K)
Corteva is inviting researchers to submit proposals describing a research plan to identify plant-derived or novel-synthetic DNA sequences that protect gene expression from outside influence and improve predictability in plants.
Deadline: April 30

World Food Prize
The World Food Prize is the foremost international award recognizing the accomplishments of individuals who have advanced human development by improving the quality, quantity, or availability of food in the world. Nominations are sought of an individual or individuals having demonstrated exceptional achievement in any field involved in enhancing food production and distribution and increasing food availability and accessibility to those most in need.
Deadline: May 1

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