Overall Rating Gold - expired
Overall Score 66.07
Liaison Breeana Sylvas
Submission Date Feb. 25, 2016
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.0

University of California, Merced
AC-10: Support for Research

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 4.00 / 4.00
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Does the institution have a program to encourage student sustainability research that meets the criteria for this credit?:
Yes

A brief description of the institution’s program(s) to encourage student research in sustainability:
Funding opportunities are consistently sought for graduate students. In the last four years we have secured fellowships grants annually from Southern California Edison, and have managed funds to support research in sustainability of resources and energy. Sierra Nevada Research Institute (SNRI) currently has 12 Graduate Students. UC Solar Scholarships regularly receives grants to support graduate students. Here is a recent story about a fellowship program: http://www.ucmerced.edu/news/2015/four-students-win-dan-david-solar-fellowships

The website URL where information about the student research program is available:
Does the institution have a program to encourage faculty sustainability research that meets the criteria for this credit?:
Yes

A brief description of the institution’s program(s) to encourage faculty research in sustainability:
It is the mission of the institutes engaged in sustainability research—to encourage multidisciplinary research in sustainability. Faculty at institutes cooperate on collaborative research proposals and have access to research support that is not available to unaffiliated faculty members. This includes student support, as well as funds for equipment and materials to support research projects.

The website URL where information about the faculty research program is available:
Has the institution formally adopted policies and procedures that give positive recognition to interdisciplinary, transdisciplinary, and multidisciplinary research during faculty promotion and/or tenure decisions?:
Yes

A brief description or the text of the institution’s policy regarding interdisciplinary research:
Interdisciplinary, trans-disciplinary, and multidisciplinary research are implicitly recognized during faculty promotion and tenure decisions due to the very nature of the campus’ research infrastructure. Graduate groups and programs are strategically interdisciplinary in nature so that they support and reinforce the faculty’s cross-disciplinary scholarship. Additionally, most of UC Merced’s research institutes, centers, and laboratories were established to house multidisciplinary projects. As research productivity is a principal criterion for faculty promotion and advancement, the campus’ strong and practical support of interdisciplinary research effectively supports the advancement of faculty whose scholarship follows suit.

The website URL where information about the treatment of interdisciplinary research is available:
Does the institution provide ongoing library support for sustainability research and learning that meets the criteria for this credit?:
Yes

A brief description of the institution's library support for sustainability research and learning:
The UC Merced library supports sustainability research and learning. We provide instruction and reference support for those engaged in research around sustainability and the environment. More specifically, we have provided regular library research sessions instruction for Environmental Engineering 10 – Environment in Crisis, pointing students to resources that address sustainability topics. Along with the guide for this course, we have prepared a general Environmental Studies guide along with a guide for a research group focused on ecology. In addition, we have numerous databases that include sustainability literature including Compendex Plus, GreenFILE, and ENVIRONnetBASE along with individual journals and books focusing on this research area.

The website URL where information about the institution's library support for sustainability is available:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
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The information presented here is self-reported. While AASHE staff review portions of all STARS reports and institutions are welcome to seek additional forms of review, the data in STARS reports are not verified by AASHE. If you believe any of this information is erroneous or inconsistent with credit criteria, please review the process for inquiring about the information reported by an institution or simply email your inquiry to stars@aashe.org.