UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — The Colombia – USA WEF (Water-Energy-Food) Nexus Alliance has announced the first Colombia – USA WEF Nexus Seed Grant Program, supported with funds from the founding alliance partners. It will provide support for WEF Nexus transdisciplinary projects to build long‐term collaboration including with external organizations in Colombia.
The program opened on Aug. 20 and all applications are due on Sept. 30. View the request for proposal (RFP) in PDF format here: WEF Colombia RFP.
The Colombia – USA WEF Nexus Alliance was established in the summer of 2022 to engage a variety of partners in implementation of Water-Energy-Food (WEF) Nexus projects and advancement of policy innovation for sustainable development and climate-resilient solutions.
The alliance addresses major challenges in Colombia and the U.S. through partnerships in research, education and sustainable development. It serves as a platform to build and sustain a community of researchers, provide technical infrastructure, coordinate policy engagement, and integrate education at different levels. The five founding members of the alliance are Penn State, Fundación Universidad de Bogotá Jorge Tadeo Lozano, Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Pontificia Universidad Javeriana, and Stockholm Environment Institute (Latin America Center).
“This joint seed-grant program represents a major milestone for the alliance and a major commitment by all partners. It will provide initial support for the new relationships that started during the Partnership Week in Bogota in July 2022. We are off to a great start,” said Siela Maximova, research professor of plant biotechnology and director, Strategy for Latin America and the Caribbean, Penn State Global.
The seed grant program announcement follows the successful completion of the first Colombia – USA WEF Nexus Alliance Partnership Week that took place July 14-19 in Bogotá, Colombia. Twelve Penn State faculty and students traveled to Colombia to meet with new partners that included more that 40 representatives from academic institutions, civil society, public and private institutions, and communities across the country.
The Partnership Week activities were designed to promote capacity building, networking, and new collaborations. The week-long program included: interactive WEF Nexus and transdisciplinary research training sessions conducted by international experts; a discussion on policy challenges and opportunities in the Colombia context; visits to WEF Nexus sites; meeting strategic industry and community partners to discuss potential joint projects with high impact; and a brainstorming session to generate new ideas for collaborative work and potential applications for the seed grant program.
For more information about the seed grants, please contact Christopher Scott, Goddard Chair and Professor of Ecosystem Science and Management and director, Americas WEF Nexus Alliance (cascott@psu.edu) and Julian Prieto, Department of Education Theory & Policy and coordinator, Americas WEF Nexus Alliance (jjp6534@psu.edu).