Idaho State University
AC-7: Center for Sustainability Research

Center for Advanced Energy Studies: The Center for Advanced Energy Studies (CAES) is an academic-government-industry consortium comprised of the US Department of Energy’s Idaho National Laboratory, the public research universities of Idaho (Boise State University, Idaho State University, and the University of Idaho), and industry collaborators.

Vision: Through world-class collaborative research, CAES innovates to secure the nation’s energy future

CAES focus areas are:
Advanced Manufacturing
Critical Materials/Geoscience/Geothermal
Energy Storage & Energy Transfer

Other topics of interest include:

Sustainability and the Science and Technology Initiatives at Idaho National Laboratory: 
Reactor Sustainment & Expanded Deployment
Integrated Fuel Cycle Solutions
Integrated Energy Systems
Advanced Materials & Manufacturing
Secure & Resilient Cyber-Physical Systems

Stream Ecology Center: The Stream Ecology Center is dedicated to the study of streams, rivers, and their watersheds. Our research transcends the boundaries between land and water, and a focus of our work has been on linkages between streams, floodplains, and riparian zones. We conduct studies at organism, population, and ecosystem levels of ecological organization and do both descriptive and experimental research. Our efforts are set in the context of addressing human impacts on native organisms and ecosystems, and we study watersheds as social ecological systems, asking, for instance, how human perceptions and behaviors influence, but are also influenced by, rivers. We aim to contribute to better-informed conservation and stewardship through research, teaching and community involvement.

Center for Ecological Research and Education: The mission of CERE is to provide a framework and shared instrumentation for collaborative research and education that connects the life, earth, and social sciences within the broad nexus of ecological science and to facilitate partnerships that engage ISU scientists with stakeholder groups and our community to co-produce understanding and address complex problems; 

Measurement & Control Engineering Research Center (MCERC): The Measurement and Control Engineering Research Center (MCERC) at Idaho State University is an interdisciplinary state-approved research facility. The MCERC’s main mission is to foster and facilitate research endeavors related to controls engineering. As the field of controls and its association with measurement systems span a wide field of applications not only in engineering but also in related science, math, and technology, MCERC houses a number of interdisciplinary projects, with faculty from a wide range of fields and colleges at ISU and outside institutions. The center and its faculty actively seek collaborations with other units on campus but also with industry, other universities, and governmental agencies and institutions. 

The Center is structured by a series of focused laboratories, specializing in areas of aerospace, robotics, structures, biomedical, controls and measurement systems, energy systems, and embedded systems.

Institute of Rural Health: The mission of the Institute of Rural Health is to improve the health of communities through research, education, and service. Our programs increase access to healthcare; enhance quality of care and health outcomes; improve the professional quality of life for providers; and seek to close the gap in health disparities— particularly among rural populations— by enhancing access to technology, endorsing a diversity of ideas, and encouraging cultural competency.

• Encourage improved health among rural residents through politically neutral approaches without bias or prejudice.
• Empower racial, sexual, ethnic, and linguistic minorities and people with disabilities in a culturally sensitive manner to promote good health.
• Diminish healthcare inequalities among rural populations by addressing health disparities and provider shortages that negatively impact overall health.
• Improve the quality of life and health of rural populations through research in a variety of fields.
• Encourage attitudinal and behavioral change through educational programs that include implementing the latest scientific theories and evidence.
• Acknowledge that providing services and education and conducting research complement each other in enhancing healthcare delivery.