Planning Grant: Engineering Research Center for Integrating Native Solutions to Promote and Inform Resilient Engineering (INSPIRE)

PI：Karl Linden，科罗拉多博尔德大学联合PIS：Alden Yellowhorse，纳瓦霍技术大学；Erin Whitney，阿拉斯加费尔班克斯大学；Gwynn R.Johnson，波特兰州立大学；Jose Manuel Cerrato，新墨西哥大学；NSF提案#：欧洲经济共同体-2124356标题：规划拨款：整合原生解决方案以促进和告知复原力工程(INSPIRE)工程研究中心：这一规划赠款将支持利益攸关方参与创建整合原生解决方案以促进和告知复原力工程(INSPIRE)的工程研究中心的包容性愿景。ERC INSPIRE的愿景是创建一种新的工程方法，通过与土著人民合作，为工程挑战创造文化和社会知情的解决方案，从而设计具有复原力的系统。这一ERC将解决的基本问题集中在美洲印第安人和阿拉斯加原住民(AIAN)面临的系统性问题，他们在STEM劳动力中的代表性一直不足，由于系统性种族主义和定居者殖民主义，他们长期以来经历着低健康状况、低预期寿命和不成比例的疾病负担。这些问题因社区基础设施和基本服务不足而恶化，所有这些都面临气候变化引发的压力，这将需要创新的、文化包容的和与背景相关的解决方案。通过融入与文化和社会相关的设计，ERC将最终改变我们讨论、创建、测试和实施工程解决方案的方式，目标是更容易为广大受众所接受，同时提高STEM的公平性、参与度和包容性。它将通过改变工程教育和行业实践来帮助改变社会，系统地将土著知识融入工程课程、劳动力和文化，并将确保AIAN社区的生活质量提高。第2部分[技术]：ERC计划赠款提供了一个独特的机会，可以与我们期望与之合作的利益相关者社区和组织发展牢固的关系。这笔规划拨款将使我们能够共同设计一个强有力的ERC提案，全面融合研究、教育和技术翻译，使美国印第安人和阿拉斯加土著(AIAN)社区和工程实践发生系统性变化。我们的重点将是围绕新技术和集成过程的知识进步和发现，这些过程将更新AIAN社区的基础设施。ERC计划赠款将集中在我们打算工作的3个地理位置的每个地点举办3次研讨会：阿拉斯加土著社区、太平洋西北美洲原住民社区和西南/四角地区美洲原住民社区。每个研讨会都将由当地大学联合PI主办，并将邀请当地社区领导人、组织和5个大学团队参加。工作坊将包括团队建设活动、主要社区成员关于当地问题的全体演讲、文化交流和理解活动，以及研究主题的发展。每个研讨会都有一个目标，就是为一个强有力的ERC提案的组成部分做出贡献，以及在大学团队、受邀组织和当地社区领袖之间建立信任的目标。这一奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

PI: Karl Linden, University of Colorado Boulder Co-PIs: Alden Yellowhorse, Navajo Technical University; Erin Whitney, University of Alaska Fairbanks; Gwynn R. Johnson, Portland State University; Jose Manuel Cerrato, University of New MexicoNSF Proposal #: EEC - 2124356 Title: Planning Grant: Engineering Research Center for Integrating Native Solutions to Promote and Inform Resilient Engineering (INSPIRE) AbstractsPart 1 [non-technical]: This planning grant will support engagement of stakeholders to create an inclusive vision for an Engineering Research Center for Integrating Native Solutions to Promote and Inform Resilient Engineering (INSPIRE). The vision of the ERC INSPIRE is to create a new engineering approach for designing resilient systems by partnering with Indigenous peoples to create culturally and socially informed solutions to engineering challenges. The fundamental issues this ERC will address focus on systemic problems faced by American Indians and Alaska Natives (AIAN) who have been underrepresented in the STEM workforce, and have long experienced low health status, lower life expectancy, and disproportionate disease burden due to systemic racism and settler colonialism. These issues are worsened by inadequate community infrastructure and basic services, all in the face of climate change-induced stresses which will require innovative, culturally inclusive, and context-relevant solutions. This ERC will ultimately transform how we discuss, create, test, and implement engineered solutions through the incorporation of culturally and socially relevant design, with a goal to be more accessible to broad audiences, while improving equity, engagement, and inclusion in STEM. It will help transform society by shifting engineering education and industry practice to systematically integrate Indigenous knowledge into the engineering curriculum, workforce, and culture, and will ensure a quality-of-life improvement in AIAN communities. Part 2 [Technical]: An ERC planning grant offers a unique opportunity to work on developing strong relationships with the stakeholder communities and organizations with whom we expect to work. The planning grant will enable us to co-design a strong ERC proposal for comprehensive convergence of research, education, and technology translation that will enable systemic change in American Indians and Alaska Natives (AIAN) communities and in engineering practice. Our focus will be on knowledge advancement and discovery around new technology and integration processes that will renew infrastructure in AIAN communities. The ERC Planning grant will center around holding 3 workshops in each of the 3 geographical locations we intend to work in: Alaska Native communities, Pacific Northwest Native American communities, and Southwest/Four Corners area Native American communities. Each workshop will be hosted by the local university Co-PI and will engage local community leaders, organizations, and the 5 university teams. Workshops will consist of team building activities, plenary talks by key community constituents on local issues, cultural exchange and understanding activities, and development of research themes. Each workshop will have an objective of contributing to the components of a strong ERC proposal and a goal of creating trust between the university teams, the invited organizations, and the local community leadership.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.