Ohio University
AC-10: Support for Research

Every year, the Voinovich Scholar Program matches students with faculty and projects that directly provide students the opportunity to do research in sustainability. While the program is not focused exclusively on sustainability, sustainability has been an impactful topic for participants. The AEP Watershed grant awarded to the Voinovich School for the past several years has provided support for undergraduate students and graduate students conducting watershed research with the interdisciplinary Appalachian Watershed Research Group. This support provides Graduate Assistantship funding during the academic year in addition to research money to be utilized during the summer. These students are commonly co-authors on reports to outside funders such as Ohio EPA and ODNR and on occasion are co- authors on peer reviewed work. Sustainable Ohio University Leaders (SOUL) is a group on campus made up of students, faculty, and staff working to further sustainability implementation efforts at Ohio University. Students can take a SOUL class for credit in which they are given an internship-like project to complete by the end of the semester. The purpose of each project is to further the implementation of some aspect of the Ohio University Sustainability Plan. Ohio University's Office of Sustainability staff members frequently guest lecture in classrooms across campus. During these lectures, staff provide students with information and resources available in aiding them to sustainability-focused research. As a direct result of these guest lectures, students have gone on to perform LEED EBOM checklists, evaluate energy usage, and perform waste audits in dining facilities.

The Kanawha Project is an multi-year program that is intended to train faculty from across disciplines on sustainability and climate change topics. The overall intention of the project is that faculty will integrate these topics into their courses and research. It has been done multiple times with different sources of funding. The program is housed in the Voinovich School of Leadership and Public Affairs and is funded by the 1804 grant, which is an Ohio University fund that supports faculty research and scholarly activities. Currently a faculty member from Political Science and a staff member from Environmental Studies are the key program organizers.

Each department at Ohio University has different requirements regarding tenure and promotions; however, in general the process requires faculty to submit documentation regarding interdisciplinary contributions.

The Ohio University Library system employs 19 subject librarians, one of which is specifically dedicated to Environmental Studies. This librarian is available to help students and/or faculty with research regarding all topics relating to environmental studies, including sustainability. The University Libraries website (linked below) has links to resources specific to research in environmental science and sustainability.