EAGER/Collaborative Research: Overcoming Barriers to Diffusion and Adoption of Sustainable and Resilient Building Materials in Coastal Areas of Southern Mexico

1321464（拜尔斯）和1321489（马塔）。这个EAGER研究项目的目标是：(1)了解在墨西哥Yucatán州沿海地区传播和采用当地开发的可持续和弹性建筑技术的社会、文化和经济障碍；(2)研究开展和传播研究的本地和跨国网络如何能够克服这些障碍。该研究区域是实施拟议的自下而上方法研究“本土”技术传播和采用障碍的理想选择，因为：它特别容易受到自然灾害（例如大风）和全球气候变化的影响和不断升级的风险；当地合作材料科学家研究并制作了两种候选建筑材料的原型，一种用于新建筑（木塑复合材料），另一种用于改造/修复（低成本水泥聚合物砂浆）；而且，当地的利益相关者还没有接受创新。该项目将通过最近的概念和分析社会科学视角，包括社会网络分析、科学、技术和社会（STS）研究，调查建筑技术传播和采用的障碍。从历史上看，最强大的技术、文化和抱负联系是从全球南方到全球北方。近年来，交通和通信创新使南南互动更加可行和充满活力。然而，社会科学研究还没有评估更密集、多尺度的南南网络对新建筑技术的传播和采用的影响。通过测试所提出的研究假设，将创造新的知识，以了解如何将影响技术扩散和采用的社会因素整合到构思、研究和开发新建筑技术的过程中，并将它们从实验室引导到现场。该项目将为一个多元化的研究团队（1名少数民族，2名女性，2名早期职业）和学生提供参与实质性国际研究的机会。在社会效益方面，研究将有助于减轻研究地区的灾害影响，并有可能应用于美国和其他地区的沿海地区。该项目还将促进自下而上的协作，作为提高生活质量的另一种手段，并成为在全球南方沿海地区传播知识的跨国网络的第一个组成部分。该奖项由美国国家科学基金会国际科学与工程办公室（OISE）的全球风险基金（GVF）和CBET/ENG环境可持续性项目共同资助。

1321464 (Biles) and 1321489 (Matta). The objective of this EAGER research project is to: (1) understand social, cultural and economic barriers to the diffusion and adoption of locally developed sustainable and resilient building technologies for residential dwellings in the coastal region of the State of Yucatán, Mexico; and (2) examine how local and transnational networks for the conduct and dissemination of research can enable overcoming those barriers. The study area is ideal to implement the proposed bottom-up approach study barriers to the diffusion and adoption of "indigenous" technologies since: it is especially prone to the effects and escalating risk of natural hazards (e.g., high winds) and global climate change; local collaborating materials scientists have studied and prototyped two candidate building materials to be evaluated, one for new construction (wood-plastic composites) and one for retrofit/repair (low-cost cement-polymer mortar); and, local stakeholders have yet to embrace innovations. The project will investigate barriers to the diffusion and adoption of building technologies through the lens of recent conceptual and analytical social science perspectives, including social network analysis and science, and technology and society (STS) studies. Historically, the strongest technological, cultural and aspirational connections have run from the Global South to the Global North. Recently, transportation and communication innovations have made South-South interaction more viable and vibrant. Social science research, however, has not assessed the impact of more intense, multi-scalar South-South networks on the diffusion and adoption of new building technologies. By testing the proposed research hypothesis, new knowledge will be created to understand how to integrate social considerations influencing technology diffusion and adoption into the process of conceiving, researching and developing new building technologies, and shepherding them from the laboratory to the field. The project will provide opportunities for a diverse team of researchers (1 minority, 2 women, and 2 early-career) and students to participate in substantive international research. With respect to societal benefits, research will contribute to the mitigation of the impacts of disasters in the study area, with potential application to coastal regions of the US and elsewhere. The project will also promote bottom-up collaboration as an alternative means of improving quality of life and represents the first building block for a transnational network for the dissemination of knowledge in coastal regions of the Global South. This award is co-funded by the Global Venture Fund (GVF) of NSF's Office of International Science and Engineering (OISE) and the CBET/ENG Environmental Sustainability program.