Rice University and the Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur (IITK) have taken an important next step in their strategic research and education partnership with today’s announcement of the first recipients of the Rice-IITK Strategic Collaboration Award program.
In 2019, the two institutions developed the Rice-IITK Collaborative Center, which focuses on high-impact collaborative research in the areas of sustainable energy, water, materials, alternative fuels and other areas of common research interest. 
As part of an effort to expand upon this initial success and to foster deeper research collaboration, in November 2022 the two universities developed the Rice-IITK Strategic Collaboration Award program, which supports joint research initiatives in the fields of energy and environment, health care, biomedical sciences, biomedical engineering, data science, computer science and engineering, among other areas.
“We wanted to deepen and broaden our commitment to encouraging joint research and innovation across multiple disciplines,” said Caroline Levander, vice president for global at Rice. “This partnership helps to identify areas of shared research strength between the faculties of the two universities and to pinpoint ways in which we might support the research aspirations of faculty and also help grow our partnership.”
IITK is an important strategic partner for Rice, as the university grows its global presence and seeks to act internationally on a larger scale in order to increase its impact.
IITK was established in 1959 and has a sprawling campus spread over 1,055 acres. The large pool of academic and research resources span 19 departments, 22 centers and three interdisciplinary programs in engineering, science, design, humanities and management disciplines with 540 full-time faculty members and approximately 9,000 students. In addition to formal undergraduate and postgraduate courses, the institute has been active in research and development in areas of value to both industry and government.
Levander noted that the rigorous and thoughtful award review selection process was conducted by an international advisory committee of more than a dozen people from both institutions.
Each proposal required at least two principal investigators: one from Rice and one from IITK. Each successful proposal could receive up to $20,000 (USD) or 15 lakhs (INR) from their respective university for a combined total of approximately $38,000 (USD).
Each institution’s contributions will be used exclusively to fund its own researcher and expenses and will not be commingled. The award of any funds from either institution will be subject to the internal processes and procedures of each organization.
The list of award recipients and their research is as follows:
1. Rajdeep Dasgupta, the W. Maurice Ewing Professor of Earth Systems Science, and Debajyoti Paul, professor of earth sciences.
2. Eric Chi, associate professor, and Dootika Vats, assistant professor.
3. Pulickel Ajayan, Benjamin M. and Mary Greenwood Anderson Professor of Engineering, and Krishanu Biswas, professor of materials science and engineering.
4. Meng Li, Noah Harding Assistant Professor, and Arnab Hazra, assistant professor of mathematics and statistics.
5. Satish Nagarajaiah, professor of civil and environmental engineering, and Suparno Mukhopadhyay, assistant professor of civil engineering and structural health.
6. Ashutosh Sabharwal, Ernest Dell Butcher Professor of Engineering, and Amitangshu Pal, assistant professor of computer science and engineering.
7. Daniel J. Preston, assistant professor of mechanical engineering, and Yogesh Joshi, chair and professor of chemical engineering.
8. Behnaam Aazhang, J.S. Abercrombie Professor; John Seymour, adjunct associate professor of electrical and computer engineering; and Arjun Ramakrishnan, assistant professor of biological sciences and bioengineering.
The Rice-IITK Strategic Collaboration Awards are part of Rice Global’s overall mission to foster innovative international collaborations. Rice Global aims to amplify the impact of research, accelerate solutions to global challenges and extend the global reach and reputation of Rice University.
Learn more about Rice Global at global.rice.edu.
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