Environmental Venture Projects (EVP) and Realizing Environmental Innovation Program awards

Environmental Venture Projects (EVP) and Realizing Environmental Innovation Program awards is sponsored by Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment. These awards fund novel, interdisciplinary research addressing sustainability challenges globally.

Environmental Venture Projects | Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment Fungi, mining waste, AI: the 2026 awardees Get to know the newest EVP grant recipients Environmental Venture Projects Promising research needs support to advance transformative environmental and sustainability solutions around the world.

The Stanford Woods Institute has awarded millions of dollars in Environmental Venture Projects (EVP) seed grants to interdisciplinary faculty research teams from all seven of Stanford’s schools and most of its departments. These innovative research projects focus on finding solutions to challenges ranging from the protection of endangered species in California to the delivery of clean drinking water in Africa.

EVPs have led to development of natural resources valuation software and biodegradable building materials. 2025-26 Mid-Cycle EVP Awardees 2026 EVP Awardees Funded Research News and Features 2026 applications are closed. Applications are expected to reopen in November.

Please consult the Priorities, Guidelines, Instructions and Budget Guide for insights into the program and what is required. Only Principal Investigators with AC or MCL status were eligible to apply. Contact Brian Sharbono, Director of Programs ( sharbono@stanford.

edu ) for more information. Collaboration Meets Innovation: Environmental Venture Projects and Realizing Environmental Innovation Program (white paper) SEED GRANTS FROM $10,000 to $250,000 The Stanford Woods Institute EVP program provides seed grants from $10,000 to $250,000, for up to two years, for interdisciplinary research projects that seek to identify solutions to pressing problems of the environment and sustainability.

Research projects are evaluated for their intellectual merit, potential to solve critical problems, the integration of the disciplinary strengths of the team and the project’s potential to secure additional funding. Additionally, invited proposals will be sent to Stanford's new Ethics and Society Review Board for any ideas and comments for applying PIs to consider regarding the research.

Requests for $60,000 or less, for more discrete research needs in line with the priorities and guidelines of the EVP program, are also encouraged. Funds up to this level may also be requested for preliminary activities to support the development of larger projects, for which PIs may apply for an EVP or REIP award in a future round. Each PI (Lead and Co-) must be a member of the Academic Council or Medical Center Line.

Please verify that both PI and co-PI are PI eligible. Faculty members may only be Lead PI on one EVP application at a time, either for one EVP Small Grant or one EVP Grant, and not both. Likewise a faculty member may not apply for a Woods Institute EVP grant and an REIP grant in the same application cycle.

Faculty members are also restricted from being the Lead PI on more than one active grant from the EVP Program or REIP Program. However, faculty may be the Lead PI on consecutive grants from the EVP program and/or REIP program.

In the case of a consecutive award, a Lead PI applying for a new award will need to have any existing, open grant award from either EVP or REIP set to close, and have the required financial and narrative reports of the current award submitted before the new award can begin.

The EVP program seeks projects that: Are high-risk, transformative projects that have the potential to produce solutions to major global environmental challenges; Represent new interdisciplinary collaborations among faculty who have not previously worked together, with a preference for scholarly communities that have not been active in the Stanford Woods Institute to date; and Address cross-cutting issues that are relevant to the environment in general and/or address challenges within one or more of the Stanford Woods’ seven focal areas.

Examples of cross-cutting issues include: environmental ethics, cultural and humanistic influences, effective economic and incentive systems, environmental justice, political ecology, stewardship, risk perception and analysis, communication, mitigation and adaptation, responses to global changes, valuation, and interdisciplinary modeling.

Stanford Woods focal areas include: oceans, ecosystem services and conservation, public health, freshwater, climate, food security, and sustainable development.

Proposed projects should: Represent one or more of the above program priorities; Contribute towards a solution to a major global environmental challenge; Demonstrate a clear strategy and pathway for connecting your research to an actual solution; Involve PIs at Stanford from at least two separate disciplines (For assistance identifying possible co-investigators, please visit the Stanford Woods Institute’s faculty and researchers directory ); Document how the collaborative effort will be stronger than the sum of disciplinary parts; and Have the potential for obtaining future support.

In Focus: Environmental Venture Projects More EVP spotlight stories Modeling the health impacts of air pollution 2026 | Public Health | North America Engineering yeast to sustainably recover rare earth elements 2026 | Sustainable Development | Global A synthetic biology approach to replacing nitrogen fertilizers in agriculture 2026 | Food Security | Global Capturing the full value of mangroves as a climate resilience tool 2026 | Conservation | Southeast Asia Mapping underground fungal networks from space to promote forest health 2026 | Conservation, Climate | North America Analyzing historical maps with AI to inform sustainable land use planning 2026 | Sustainable development, Conservation | Africa Testing a low-cost, fungi-based building material to combat extreme heat 2026 | Sustainable Development, Climate Adaptation | Southeast Asia Unlocking the value in mining waste to reduce its environmental harm 2026 | Freshwater, Public Health | North America Getting plastic out of compost 2026 | Public Health | North America, Asia Searching for the environmental triggers of Kawasaki disease 2026 | Public Health | North America Planning for flood impacts on human health in California 2025 | Public Health, Climate Adaptation | North America Forecasting the impact of losing whale protections 2025 | Oceans, Conservation, Climate Adaptation | North America Regenerative agriculture and the future of soil health 2025 | Conservation, Food Security | North America Climate impacts on migration and wellbeing in rural Guatemala 2025 | Climate Adaptation | North America Sociopolitical impacts of cancelled clean-energy projects 2025 | Climate | North America Tracking forest policy rollbacks in a sentinel forest 2025 | Conservation, Sustainability | North America Investigating the role of urban greenspaces in climate migration decisions 2025 | Climate | North America Merging citizen science and experiential learning to document threatened ecosystems Quantifying tradeoffs in approaches to carbon removal 2025 | Energy | North America Carbon Ranch 2: An ecosystem restoration experiment on a former cattle ranch in California 2025 | Climate | North America 2025 | Conservation, Oceans | Global Improving public health among outdoor workers in the San Joaquin Valley through community engagement 2025 | Public Health | North America Intelligent in-pipe robotic platform for water infrastructure sustainability 2025 | Sustainability | North America Building community and policymaker acceptance for wind energy infrastructure 2025 | Energy | North America Direct measurement of marine carbon sequestration 2025 | Oceans, Climate | North America Planting kelp to protect erosion-prone coastlines 2025 | Climate | North America Improving livestock health by conserving top predators 2025 | Conservation, Natural Climate Solutions | North America Removing ‘forever chemicals’ from contaminated drinking water supplies 2025 | Freshwater, Public Health | North America Developing an early warning system for wildfire smoke pollution 2024 | Climate, Public Health | North America Addressing climate-induced migration through infrastructure 2024 | Climate Adaptation, Public Health, Sustainability | Global Balancing conservation and fishing community needs 2024 | Oceans, Conservation, Sustainability | South America Investigating kidney stone disease in Sri Lanka 2024 | Public Health | Asia Improving nitrogen management in agriculture 2024 | Food Security, Climate, Freshwater | North America Developing a sustainability curriculum for underserved students 2024 | Sustainability | North America Assessing the impacts of beaver reintroduction 2024 | Climate, Freshwater, Conservation | North America Addressing hidden modern slavery in building materials 2024 | Sustainability, Public Health | Global Managing groundwater sustainably in California’s San Joaquin Valley 2024 | Freshwater | North America Developing low-cost sensors for ocean research 2024 | Oceans, Conservation | Global Designing resilient and sustainable infrastructure for communities 2024 | Climate, Sustainability, Public Health | Global Disrupting hospital waste streams: Redirecting used fabric from landfills 2023 | Sustainability | South America Self-fertilizing plants: Toward a new era in agriculture and ecosystem management 2023 | Food Security, Sustainability Harnessing plant-microbial partnerships to address major sustainability challenges Understanding ocean production of an important greenhouse gas 2023 | Oceans | Atlantic Ocean Investigating environmental connections to high levels of kidney disease in California's Central Valley 2023 | Public Health | North America Strengthening community advocacy for natural flood solutions 2023 | Climate Adaptation, Freshwater | North America (Texas) Adaptive drought management in a changing climate 2023 | Freshwater | South America (Chile) Empowering youth in frontline communities through climate data 2023 | Climate, Sustainability | North America Cost-effective methane monitoring Plastic to food: Converting polyethylene into palm oil 2023 | North America | Other, Sustainability Upgrading housing infrastructure to improve health and minimize emissions 2022 | Public Health, Climate, Sustainability | South Asia Understanding the threat of wildfire smoke-borne metals 2022 | Public Health | North America Monitoring urban neighborhoods to reduce spatial inequities in wellbeing Mitigating water pollution 2022 | Freshwater | North America Informing open ocean restoration through historical reconstruction 2022 | Oceans | Antarctica Developing new water purification technology 2022 | Freshwater | North America Capturing and sequestering carbon dioxide in soils Accounting for wetland greenhouse gas emissions Tracking and treating viruses in water Protecting women's health 2021 | Public Health | Asia Monitoring gas pollution in the Arctic Measuring soil moisture from space Improving plastic waste management Improving climate change messaging Strengthening Coral Reefs Safeguarding Ocean Ecosystems and Food Security 2020 | Food Security, Oceans | Pacific Ocean Optimizing Environmental Communication Incentivizing an End to Deforestation 2020 | Conservation | Africa, Asia Agriculture and Aquaculture Restoration 2020 | Food Security | Pacific Ocean 2019 | Freshwater | North America Investigating kidney disease Links 2019 | Public Health | Asia 2019 | Oceans | Pacific Ocean 2019 | Climate | North America 2019 | Public Health | Asia Capturing Glacier History 2019 | Climate | Arctic Ocean Tracking Parasite Hotspots 2018 | Public Health | Africa 2018 | Oceans | Atlantic Ocean, Pacific Ocean, Indian Ocean, Arctic Ocean Monitoring Drought with Forest Radar 2018 | Climate | North America Mapping Intersection of Water, Climate and Disease Transmission 2018 | Freshwater, Public Health | Africa 2018 | Freshwater | Australia Controlling Wildlife Disease 2018 | Natural Capital | North America Building Solar-Powered Water Treatment 2018 | Freshwater | North America Water and Energy Connections 2017 | Other, Sustainability | North America Tobacco Labeling Assessment 2017 | Public Health | North America Respiratory Disease Solution 2017 | Public Health | Asia 2017 | Other | North America 2017 | Natural Capital | Asia Menu Messaging to Reduce Meat Consumption 2017 | Food Security, Sustainability | North America Environmental Behavior Change App 2017 | Other | North America 2017 | Oceans, Public Health | North America Scenarios for Survival of a UNESCO World Heritage Site 2016 | Natural Capital | North America Predicting Dengue Transmission in a Changing Climate to Improve Mosquito Control 2016 | Public Health |Africa, South America Mealworm-Based Codigestion of Persistent Plastics and Food Wastes Developing and Deploying a Real-Time Laser Sensor for Quantifying Benzene Exposures 2016 | Climate, Public Health | North America Assessing Brick Kilns Number, Location and Use in Bangladesh 2016 | Climate, Public Health | Asia Using Large Marine Protected Areas to Recover Highly Productive Marine Ecosystems and the Services They Provide: the Case of the Adriatic Sea 2015 | Oceans | Africa, Europe Understanding the Effects of Chinas Mariculture Development on Coastal Fisheries with Hydrodynamics and Sediment Transport Modeling 2015 | Food Security, Oceans | Asia Remote Sensing of Turbidity with Unmanned Aerial Vehicles for Improved Management of Water Quality in San Francisco Bay 2015 | Oceans | North America Facilitating Collaborative Decision Making Processes for a Sustainable Groundwater Future 2015 | Freshwater | North America Climate Change, Nutrition, and Population Health 2015 | Climate, Food Security | North America Tracing Zoonotic Disease Risks and Immunological Adaptations in Bats, Humans and Human Commensals Across the Central American Countryside 2014 | Natural Capital, Public Health | North America Simultaneous Reduction of Energy Consumption and Contamination of Drinking Water Supplies From Amine-Based CO2 Capture Technologies 2014 | Other, Freshwater, Sustainability | North America Quantifying Ascaris: Changing the Game in Sustainable Agriculture and in the Fight Against Parasitic Intestinal Diseases 2014 | Food Security, Freshwater, Public Health | Asia, North America Natural and Virtual Realms: An Integrative Approach Towards Understanding Natural and Anthropogenic Drivers of Animal Behavior and Energetics in Marine Ecosystems 2014 | Climate, Other, Oceans | North America Unraveling the Great Ammonium Debate in the San Francisco Bay-Delta Using a Novel Underway Analytical System 2013 | Food Security, Oceans | North America New Solutions for Global Control of Parasitic Infections: The Case of Schistosomiasis 2013 | Food Security, Freshwater, Natural Capital, Public Health | Africa, Asia, South America Lead Contaminated Topsoil and Food in Rural Bangladesh 2013 | Food Security, Public Health | Asia High Throughput Precision Measurement Tools for Insect-Parasite Ecology in Field Settings 2013 | Public Health | No Continent eDNA for Quantitative Macroorganism Marine Animal Monitoring of Ocean Waves 2013 | Oceans | North America Connecting Aboriginal Land Use Management Strategies, Mammal Extinction Rates and Shifts in Fire Regimes in a Changing Climate: An Interdisciplinary Approach to Inform Conservation Strategies for Threatened Species in the Australian Western Desert 2013 | Natural Capital | Australia Assessing Climate Change Impact on Transportation Infrastructure Vulnerability and Sustainability 2013 | Climate, Sustainability | North America Trace Organics in Recycled Water: Analysis of Plant Uptake and Processing 2012 | Freshwater, Natural Capital, Sustainability | North America Recovery of Entropic Energy at Wastewater Treatment Plants Discharging to Saline Environments 2012 | Freshwater, Oceans, Sustainability | North America Rapid Detection of Water-borne Pathogens and Pathogen Indicators by Digitization and Concentration of Reporter Enzyme Fluorescence in Microfluidic Picoliter Droplets 2012 | Freshwater, Public Health | North America Is Corporate Environmentalism Profitable?

2012 | Sustainability | Asia Determining the Drivers and Consequences of Hypoxia in Nearshore Marine Ecosystems: an Integrative Engineering and Ecophysiological Approach 2012 | Oceans | North America Rural Health and Development at the Food-Water Nexus 2011 | Food Security, Freshwater, Public Health, Sustainability | Africa Rapid Assessment of Human Exposure to Airborne Persistent Organic Pollutants 2011 | Public Health, Sustainability | North America How Marine Species Affect Ocean Acidification 2011 | Oceans | North America Geography of Food Contamination by Coal Emissions in N.

W.

China 2011 | Food Security, Natural Capital, Sustainability | Asia Facilitating Pro-Environmental Behavior: Leveraging Nature-based Experiences into Everyday Stewardship 2011 | Natural Capital | South America Electrically Conducting Nanomaterials Filter for Point-of-Use Water Disinfection 2011 | Freshwater | North America Compromised Groundwater Quality Resulting from Large-Scale Damming Projects 2011 | Freshwater, Sustainability | Asia Understanding the Carbon Cycle in Terrestrial and Marine Ecosystems with Field-Based Measurements Using a Revolutionary Isotopic Technique 2010 | Climate | North America The Effects of Wildlife Loss and Land Use Change on Rodent-Borne Disease Risk in East Africa 2010 | Natural Capital | Africa Rethinking the Balance Between Future Obesity and Malnutrition with Climate Change 2010 | Climate, Public Health, Sustainability | Asia Can Better Management Raise Growth and Reduce Pollution?

2010 | Sustainability | Asia Northern California water supply: Meadow restoration for adaption to climate change 2009 | Climate, Freshwater, Natural Capital | North America High-rate microbial production of nitrous oxide for energy generation 2009 | Freshwater, Sustainability | North America Biophysical interactions in a near-shore kelp ecosystem: Observations and implications for monitoring and design of Marine Protected Areas 2009 | Oceans | North America An interdisciplinary approach to understanding the role of anthropogenic fire in the desert grasslands of Australia 2009 | Natural Capital | Australia Understanding the effects of fishing on coral reef ecosystems: An interdisciplinary approach 2008 | Oceans | Pacific Ocean Toward sustainable coastal tourism in Costa Rica 2008 | Natural Capital, Oceans | South America Social and environmental transformation in Chile's aquaculture industry, 1950-2000 2008 | Food Security, Oceans | South America Groundwater discharge of wastewater contaminants across the land-sea interface: Law, policy, and science research aimed to improve coastal management 2008 | Oceans, Public Health | North America Decision making in recycled water project implementation: Asymmetry in scientific knowledge and political economy 2008 | Food Security, Freshwater, Public Health | North America Wading through muddy waters: The policy, microbiology, and hydrodynamics of estuarine restoration 2007 | Oceans | North America Forest conversion and the changing epidemiological environment in southeast Asia 2007 | Natural Capital, Public Health | Asia Fertilizer use and the epidemiology and evolution of cholera in Bangladesh 2007 | Oceans, Public Health | Asia An alternative development model?

Assessing solar electrification for income generation in rural Benin 2007 | Food Security, Freshwater, Sustainability | Africa Water, health and environment: Childhood survival in Tanzania 2006 | Freshwater | Africa Quantitative natural resource ethics 2006 | Freshwater, Natural Capital | North America Pattern and process of coral-reef adaptation: Remote sensing, environmental genetics, and a laboratory model system for testing climate-change effects on coral 2006 | Climate, Oceans | Pacific Ocean Indoor air pollution and health in developing countries: An intervention study in Bangladesh 2006 | Public Health, Sustainability | Asia From Bangalore to the Bay Area: Comparative urban growth patterns across the pacific rim 2006 | Natural Capital | Asia, North America Mineral dust components in aerosols and their effect on ocean productivity 2005 | Climate, Oceans | Africa Land use practices, subterranean groundwater pollution, and coral reef sustainability 2005 | Freshwater, Oceans | North America Feasibility study: Reintroduction of the bay checkerspot butterfly to Stanford University lands 2005 | Natural Capital | North America Carbon dioxide sequestration by forests: The importance of cation and phosphorous limitation and its relationship to landscape evolution 2005 | Natural Capital | Asia, North America, South America An interdisciplinary assessment of an agricultural-urban water market in Southern India: physical impacts, welfare consequences, and policy implications 2005 | Freshwater, Sustainability | Asia An economic incentives model for California water markets 2005 | Freshwater | North America Smart chemical design: Integrating functional performance with environmental fate and toxicity : 2004 | Freshwater, Sustainability | North America Mitigating future arsenic catastrophes in Asia: An integrative study of processes controlling arsenic release induced by land use 2004 | Freshwater, Natural Capital, Public Health | Asia Membrane diffusion cells for in-situ monitoring of bacterial gene expression 2004 | Oceans | North America Mechanisms and dynamics of abiotic and biotic interactions at environmental interfaces 2004 | Oceans | North America Enhancing the conservation value of countryside: Hawaii and Costa Rica as test systems 2004 | Natural Capital | North America, South America Diagnosis of biological wastewater treatment instabilities using molecular methods 2004 | Freshwater, Public Health | North America Consequences of increased global meat consumption on the global environment -- trade in virtual water, energy & nutrients 2004 | Food Security, Natural Capital | Asia, Europe, North America Biomineralization and past climate change: The ion microprobe revolution 2004 | Climate, Oceans | South America Biodegradable composites for the building industry 2004 | Sustainability | North America