The Vice Chancellor for Research is pleased to announce the 2012/13 round of awards for the Innovation Seed Fund in Energy and Climate Research, a program funded by the Berkeley Energy & Climate Institute (BECI) that is based in the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research.

For 2012/13 the Innovation Seed Fund seeks proposals that will advance UC Berkeley research in the renewable energy and energy efficiency domain.  There is a special interest in multi-disciplinary projects that address current gaps in the scientific, technological and policy areas of Berkeley's renewable energy portfolio as well as projects that will further define the frontiers of energy science and policy and have strong potential for scalability and implementation.
The call for proposals encourages focus in the following areas:

• Adaptation to climate change and/or weather extremes, including strategies and/or public policy related to food supply, transportation systems, the urban environment, and grid security;
• Storage capabilities: particularly batteries and development of load-supply decoupling practices and technologies;
• Advanced/additive manufacturing techniques and processes that relate to sustainable energy solutions.

The application deadline is Monday, September 17, 2012. A multi-disciplinary team of faculty will evaluate the submissions and select proposals each of which will be awarded up to $100K--$150K per year with the possibilty of renewal for one more year. Please submit your application materials online here. Please contact energy@berkeley.edu with any questions you may have.