Due: June 5, 2024

I. Introduction

The 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26) saw Vietnam make a commitment to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050. However, without immediate action, Vietnam is projected to lose approximately 12 to 14.5 percent of its GDP annually, according to the World Bank, due to the impacts of environmental pollution and climate change. Environmental stewardship — encompassing adaptation to climate changes, mitigation of emissions, and fostering a sustainable culture — is quickly becoming a key prerequisite for Vietnam’s growth strategy.

Acknowledging the urgent need of this new era to be both technologically creative and environmentally responsible, the Center for Environmental Intelligence (CEI) focuses on understanding and addressing environmental and sustainability challenges through interdisciplinary approaches. These approaches integrate insights from fields such as environmental sciences, computer sciences, economics, and green technology. CEI strives to drive transformative solutions for a sustainable future and facilitate connections among experts from around the world to collectively solve sustainable development issues on a global scale.

The Center focuses its resources on four main pillars: (i) Environmental Monitoring; (ii) Living lab: smart cities, energy efficiency, and green technologies; (iii) Digital Materials Science; and (iv) Environmental Sustainability/Community Resilience.

We invite faculty from all Colleges of VinUniversity to submit five-page proposals by June 5, 2024, to initiate research efforts in the four themes in CEI. The proposal selection and reporting process will be managed by CEI leadership and staff, with guidance from the CEI Scientific Advisory Board:

• Konstantin Sergeevich Novoselov, NUS, Nobel Laureate in Physics
• Thục-Quyên Nguyễn, University of California, Santa Barbara
• David Reibstein, University of Pennsylvania
• Ozan Tonguz, Carnegie Mellon University
• Omar M. Yaghi, UC Berkeley, recipient of the VinFuture Prize
• Helen Nguyễn, University of Illinois Urbana–Champaign
• Nitesh V. Chawla, University of Notre Dame
• Khalid M. Mosalam, University of California, Berkeley.

II. Proposal Guidelines

1. Please find the proposal template here: Template_VinUni-Research-Proposal-CEI
2. The proposal should not exceed 05 pages, including references. Collaboration among faculty from different colleges is encouraged. All team members and collaborators must provide a link to their public profile (University website, Google Scholar, ORCID) in the member list.
3. The proposal should directly address unmet challenges or gaps in existing environmental and sustainability studies and propose pragmatic solutions to address these challenges or gaps.
4. Expected outcomes: Project success will be evaluated based on measurable outcomes such as patents, technology transfer activities, publications, and external funding proposals.
5. Any individual faculty member, including affiliated faculty, can serve as the Principal Investigator (PI) on multiple proposals to CEI if they can guarantee satisfactory performance on all responsibilities.
6. Incomplete applications will not be considered for review.

III. General Review Criteria

1. Innovative Solutions and Intellectual Property.
2. Expected impact on reducing negative impacts on the environment and combating climate change.
3. Potential for external funding and other important impacts.
4. Scholarly publications and other significant outputs (policy briefs, conference paper…)
5. Academic and corporate collaborations, including international partnerships.

IV. Funding and Budget Monitoring

The applicant needs to present the proposal to the CEI director and the selection committee. Each successful applicant will have access to $20,000 in project funding. A budget breakdown is required for all expenditures, including personnel, materials, equipment, travel, etc. This breakdown should proportionately correspond to the outcomes promised. The project duration should be up to 18 months, to be completed by December 2025. All projects are required to submit a detailed progress report every 6 months, outlining achievements, challenges, and any adjustments to the project timeline or outcomes/deliverables.

V. Submission and Contact Information

A single proposal file in PDF format should be submitted by June 5, 2024 to CEI email address at cei@vinuni.edu.vn.

For enquiries about the proposal submission process or information about Center for Environmental Intelligence, please contact Ms. Linh Nga (nga.nl@vinuni.edu.vn).