Washington, DC - The U.S. Civilian Research and Development Foundation (CRDF) and the Ministry of Education of the Russian Federation (RF Minobr) announced at a press conference in Moscow today the results of the third competition under their Basic Research and Higher Education (BRHE) program. The four universities that will each receive a grant award of $1 million under BRHE and their areas or specialization are, in alphabetical order:
- Moscow State Engineering Physics Institute, Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology (joint award): Basic Investigation of Matter Under Extreme Conditions
- Perm State University: Non-Equilibrium Transition in Continuous Media
- St. Petersburg State University: Molecular Biology for Human and Environmental Health in Northwest Russia
- Voronezh State University: Wave Processes in Inhomogeneous and Nonlinear Media
The BRHE program seeks to transform and invigorate the training of young Russian scientists by strengthening the basic research capabilities of Russian higher education institutions in the natural sciences (biology, chemistry, earth sciences, mathematics, physics). BRHE establishes Research and Education Centers (RECs) within selected Russian institutions. The RECs
- support innovative programs and approaches to combining high-quality research and education in universities and other higher education institutions;
- develop state-of-the-art equipment bases for research and teaching, which are available to both faculty and students;
- promote collaborative links with other research institutions, both Russian and foreign, and with industry; and
- provide special research opportunities for promising young investigators.
The 2001 BRHE competition was held in March - October 2001 and consisted of two rounds. Russian universities submitted 52 eligible proposals for evaluation by Russian and American scientific experts.
The BRHE Governing Council selected fifteen finalists to submit full proposals. Eight of these were chosen for site visits by a team of experts and CRDF and RF Ministry of Education representatives.
Based on the reviewers’ and site visit team’s recommendations, the BRHE Governing Council then selected the four universities listed above, bringing the number of established Research and Education Centers in Russia to twelve.
The BRHE Governing Council also announced a new BRHE competition. The new program announcement appeared in the November 30, 2001 issue of the Russian Academy of Science’s newsletter POISK.
In announcing the awards, the BRHE Governing Council, the CRDF, and the Ministry of Education of the Russian Federation expressed their gratitude to all the institutions that submitted Research and Education Center proposals to the 2001 BRHE competition.
BRHE receives fifty percent of its funding from American sources. The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation is contributing $18 million to the BRHE program over seven years. Carnegie Corporation of New York is contributing two million dollars over four years to support the program. The RF Minobr contributes twenty-five percent from its budget, and participating institutions, regional governments and other Russian sources provide the remaining twenty-five percent.
The U.S. Civilian Research and Development Foundation for the Independent States of the Former Soviet Union, founded in 1995, is a private, non-profit charitable organization created by the United States Government as an American response to the declining state of science and engineering in the former Soviet Union (FSU). The CRDF seeks to address this issue by fostering opportunities for collaborative projects between FSU and U.S. researchers.
The John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation is a private, independent grant making institution dedicated to helping groups and individuals foster lasting improvement in the human condition. The Foundation makes grants through two major integrated programs - Human and Community Development and Global Security and Sustainability - and through the General Program, which undertakes special initiatives and supports projects that promote excellence and diversity in the media, and the MacArthur Fellows Program, which awards fellowships to exceptionally creative individuals, regardless of field of endeavor. The MacArthur Foundation was one of the first international foundations to begin operations in the former Soviet Union where it has made more than $60 million in grants since 1992.
Founded in 1911 by Andrew Carnegie to promote "the advancement and diffusion of knowledge and understanding," Carnegie Corporation of New York has an endowment of $1.9 billion as of September 30, 2000. The Corporation expects to issue grants of $75 million in the next year in the areas of education, international peace and security, international development and strengthening U.S. democracy.
Further information on the Basic Research and Higher Education program is available upon request or by visiting the CRDF's BRHE (http://www.crdf.org/Centers/brhe.html) and BRHE Frequently Asked Questions (http://www.crdf.org/Centers/brhefaqnov01.html) pages.
CONTACT INFORMATION
CRDF HEADQUARTERS
Chantal Guess
Tel: 703-526-9720
e-mail: cguess@crdf.org
CRDF MOSCOW
Vladimir Koudriavtsev
Tel: 7-095-777-6560
e-mail: vkoudriavtsev@crdf.ru
THE JOHN D. AND CATHERINE T. MACARTHUR FOUNDATION
Ray Boyer
Tel: 312-726-8000
e-mail: rboyer@macfound.org