The Environmental Research & Education Foundation provides funding for scientific research on, and educational initiatives related to, waste management practices.
To that end, EREF invites applications for projects and research that address any areas of integrated solid waste management, with a focus on research that increases sustainable solid waste management practices. The following areas will be considered: waste minimization; recycling; waste conversion to energy biofuels, chemicals, or other useful products (including waste-to-energy, anaerobic digestion, composting, and other thermal or biological conversion technologies); strategies designed to promote diversion to higher and better uses (e.g., organics diversion, market analysis, optimized material management, logistics, etc.); and landfilling. Previously awarded grants have ranged from $15,000 to more than $500,000, with the average in recent years approximately $160,000 over two years.
EREF's definition of solid waste includes municipal solid waste (e.g., residential, commercial, institutional); construction and demolition debris; certain industrial wastes (e.g., exploration and production waste, coal ash); and other wastes typically managed by the solid waste industry or generated by the public not included in the above items (e.g., electronic waste, disaster debris, etc).
Eligible applicants include U.S. or non-U.S.-based institutions; proposals will be accepted from non-academic institutions provided the principal investigators are qualified to conduct the research. Principal investigators (PI) may include full-time faculty at academic institutions, postdoc employees, and principals or senior personnel at non-academic institutions.
Pre-proposals will be accepted starting fifteen days prior to the deadline date and up to the close of business (5:00 p.m. ET) on the deadline date. After review, selected applicants will be invited to submit a full proposal.
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