Environmental Protection Agency: People, Prosperity, and the Planet Awards – Sustainable and Healthy Communities
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), as part of its People, Prosperity and the Planet (P3) Award Program, seeks applications proposing to research, develop, design, and demonstrate solutions to real world challenges. The P3 competition highlights the use of scientific principles in creating innovative technology-based projects that achieve the mutual goals of improved quality of life, economic prosperity, and protection of the planet – people, prosperity, and the planet. The EPA offers the P3 competition to respond to the needs of people in the United States (U.S.)—including those in small, rural, tribal, and/or disadvantaged communities.
Proposed projects must embody the P3 approach, which is that they have the intention and capability to simultaneously improve the quality of people’s lives, provide economic benefits, and protect the environment. Projects may involve human subjects research. The P3 Program is intended to address domestic U.S. needs. For this reason, P3 projects should primarily perform their research in the U.S. and the benefits of the research should primarily accrue to the U.S.
The P3 Program is composed of two phases. The first phase is a competition for grants to test, research, and develop innovative scientific projects or engineering designs that use the P3 approach. The Phase II grant awards are intended to support the further development and demonstration of the projects/designs created in Phase I. Additional instructions for completing the Phase II applications will be distributed to Phase I recipients.
EPA supports research for developing and demonstrating technologies to prevent contamination by toxic materials and to reduce solid waste that goes to landfills. EPA seeks projects that support research and demonstration of innovative and cost-effective solutions for the following topics:
- Development of replacements for polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and polyethylene (PE) water pipes which currently have a high probability of being discarded to landfills
- Remediation of Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS)-contaminated soil and sediment
- Development of construction materials that are less toxic, lighter, more compact, stronger, more durable, longer-lasting, more affordable, reusable, and recyclable than currently used materials
- Development of less toxic materials for use in floors, walls, and ceilings
- Solutions to reduce the amount of food waste including food waste prevention, recycling, and disposal technologies
- Electronic components that are less toxic and/or easier to reuse and recycle
- Management of disaster debris and waste: decision support tools that incorporate information and best practices that encourage post-disaster recycling; and reuse of waste materials to support sustainable materials management practices
Amount: Approximately $800,000 is available for all awards. Approximately 20 awards will be made for Phase I projects, and approximately three awards will be made for Phase II projects. Phase I grants will range up to $25,000 for a project duration of one year. Upon the successful completion of Phase I, grant recipients will have the opportunity to apply for a P3 Phase II grant of up to $100,000 total with a two-year duration.
Eligibility: Public and private institutions of higher education (limited to degree-granting institutions of higher education) located in the U.S. (includes eligible institutions of higher education located in U.S. territories and possessions) are eligible to apply to be the recipient of a grant to support teams of undergraduate and/or graduate students.
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