Kenan “Creative Collaboratory” seeks project proposals

A new endeavor funded by the four William R. Kenan, Jr. Funds is looking to capitalize on the strengths of North Carolina’s leading institutions of higher education with collaborative projects that emphasize the state’s role as a nexus for innovative research, teaching, and problem-solving. The “Kenan Creative Collaboratory” is part incubator, part collaboration, and part laboratory. It is currently seeking proposals for projects that will draw participants from at least two of the four universities that house Kenan institutes, including Duke University, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, North Carolina State University, and the University of North Carolina School of the Arts.

The “collaboratory” will fund and support projects that will work to address challenges that exist in North Carolina, the nation, and the world. The long-term impact of the projects will come from sharing resulting findings and policy recommendations as well as problem-solving models for how the projects could be replicated or adapted in other places or spheres.

The support will not only foster and expand existing partnership networks and collaborations among the universities, but also find new points of contact and a way of envisioning how to take those collaborations further. Projects must relate to at least two of the institute themes: private enterprise; engineering and technology science; ethics; and the arts. Projects may last 1-3 years with support ranging from $5,000 to $50,000 with flexibility.

Project proposals are due April 1, 2015 at 5:00pm. See the Request for Proposals (PDF) for full information.