Two consortia that Maarten Smulders is part of, have been awarded an Unusual Collaborations (UCo) Grant. Unusual Collaborations Grants are designed to take an idea or project further by enabling innovative, interdisciplinary science and scholarship that aims for societal impact.
The UCo grants are awarded by the Centre for Unusual Collaborations (CUCo), which is one of the core teams in the Strategic Alliance between Eindhoven University of Technology, Wageningen University & Research, Utrecht University and the University Medical Center Utrecht. The Centre has been set up by the Young Academies of the four institutions in the Strategic Alliance. The idea is that by joining forces, we will be able to address the societal challenges of today and of the future in a more sustainable way.
The two initiatives that have been awarded an UCo Grant are:
- All in the same boat: securing water from raindrop to tap. This initiative addresses the need for reliable access to clean water. The consortium will develop an open-access and integrative framework with indicators to evaluate and improve water security.
- Structures of Strength (SoS): Unusual Collaborations on Porous Materials; a solution for health, food and environmental challenges. This initiative aims to become a permanent platform that provides unique opportunities for interdisciplinary collaborations, becoming the go-to for all researchers with questions related to porous materials.
More information can be found on the CUCo website.