Appalachian State University
AC-10: Support for Research

Every year, the Appalachian Energy Summit hosts a Student Poster Competition. Students can submit their energy-related research or community or campus oriented project to be considered for the Student Poster Competition. This is an excellent opportunity for students to showcase their work, develop business skills, and network with students and professionals. $2,400 in cash prizes will be awarded.

Topics can include: efficiency, renewables, technology, education, policy, and environmental impacts.

The 2018 Grand Prize is $500 and the Honorable Mention is $100 for each of the four categories: Undergraduate Research, Undergraduate Project, Graduate / PhD Research, and Graduate / PhD Project.

College and University students are invited to complete and submit the Student Poster Submission Form by June 1, 2018. Students whose posters are accepted will receive free access to the Summit which includes lodging and meals

The Appalachian State University Renewable Energy Initiative also rolled out Student Engagement Grants in Spring of 2018. These "mini grants" give up to $1,500 to student sustainability projects.

For a project to proceed forward, prospective grantees must demonstrate how the project strives to reduce the environmental impact of Appalachian State University in at least one of the following ways:

1. By implementing renewable energy technologies
2. Investing in energy efficiency projects
3. Promoting campus engagement

** Projects must incorporate direct student involvement and/or professional development for student participants and are required to take place on ASU property. Careful consideration should be paid to how the students of Appalachian benefit from this project. **

All applicants are strongly encouraged to review Appalachian State’s sustainability mission and/or strategic plan to align their project goals and outcomes.

Applicants are also encouraged to demonstrate how their project or focus area has a local connection to Watauga County, Western NC, Appalachian Region. Any projects that are able to make a “Local to Global” sustainability connection will be given special consideration in awarding grants.

CONducting ComplEx Research Together (CONCERT) Grants

Due to its unique location in the mountains of North Carolina, Appalachian State
University has traditionally been committed to promoting scholarly work in the area of
Sustainability. In 2008, the Research Institute for Environment, Energy, and Economics (RIEEE) was established to underscore the University's dedication to sustainability by fostering interdisciplinary research that crosses the core research areas described broadly as:

1. Environmental Systems;
2. Human Energy Systems; and
3. Economic Systems.

In order to support this mission, the RIEEE aims to assist faculty, students, academic departments, related centers, and other university units by providing (a) opportunities to participate in joint, disciplinary and/or education research, (b) opportunities to network with potential collaborators, (c) opportunities for professional development, and (d) financial administration for research projects. It is our hope that the work supported by the RIEEE will be integrated into academic programs at Appalachian State University, used to facilitate discovery among K-12 student students and teachers, and employed in the economic development of the region.

Purpose of CONCERT Program: Funding will support new, existing, or developing research projects that involve more than one of the RIEEE core research areas and are performed by collaborative, interdisciplinary teams. These research clusters may be composed of faculty members, graduate and undergraduate students, EHRA staff, and others such as research professors and external collaborators. Proposals should correspond to the missions of the Southern Appalachian Environmental Research and Education Center (SAEREC), the Center for Economic Research and Policy Analysis (CERPA), and the Appalachian Energy Center (AEC).

Standard Awards will support new and existing projects that contribute to more than one of the RIEEE core research areas. Up to $5,000.

Planning Awards will support the development of new projects that contribute to more than one of the RIEEE core research areas. Up to $1,000.

RIEEE/Office of Sustainability Awards will support new and existing projects that contribute to more than one of the RIEEE core research areas and have a strong emphasis on regional sustainable development. These projects will be supported jointly by the RIEEE and the Office of Sustainability. Up to $5,000.

Current Interdisciplinary Research Clusters funded through CONCERT Faculty Grant Program:

AppAqua - spatial relationships between land cover change and water quality, headwater locations, optimizing stream restoration
AppalAIR - air quality and climate research in southern Appalachian Mountains, atmospheric monitoring, air pollution formation and transport
AppalFRESH - Appalachian's Food Research for Equity, Sustainability and Health Collaborative
Aquatic Conservation Lab - southeastern US, freshwater habitat ecology, conservation genetics
Carbon Inventories, Accounting and Uncertainty - carbon accounting, uncertainty in carbon inventories, nature and distribution of CO2 emissions, implications for energy policy
Biomass and Bioenergy - biomass characterization, analysis and utilization, bioenergy production and processing techniques, anaerobic digestion, biochar, on-farm bioenergy production and utilization
Experimental & Environmental Economics - willingness to pay, cost-benefit analysis, economic impact analyses
Forest Carbon Market Project
Hemlock Decline Impact Assessment
Utilizing Food Processing Waste Water for Feedstock for Fuel Ethanol and Apiculture
Vulnerability and Resilience in the Southern Appalachian Mountain Region
Waste Not - Food Waste Reduction, Recovery and Diversion Initiative

Librarians do library instruction with classes in sustainability and do one-on-one research consultations with students doing sustainability projects. The library also offer a number of article indexes with full-text article database that directly support research in Sustainability.

The library also provides a number of online library guides to assist researchers in sustainability. Subject Guides include, to name a few, Appropriate Technology, Environmental Science, Sustainable Development, and Sustainable Technology. These guides can be found through the library's main webpage. An overview of the library guides offered can be found at http://guides.library.appstate.edu/index

The library actively seeks out materials in support of sustainability with a substantial budget line dedicated to acquiring new books and videos in the area. Since the beginning of the fiscal year, July of 2017, the library has purchased 62 titles under the sustainability fund line.