SUSTAINABILITY INNOVATION IN RESEARCH AND EDUCATION
Research Experience for Undergraduates (SIRE-REU) Program
Office of Sustainability
University of Wisconsin-Madison
www.sustainability.wisc.edu
The Office of Sustainability (OS) is charged with promoting sustainability research and
education on the UW-Madison campus and creating intersections between UW-Madison
campus operations and the research and education enterprises that promote sustainability. The
Sustainability Innovation in Research and Education (SIRE) awards program was created to
support the OS mission and to stimulate innovation in research and education related to
sustainability on the UW-Madison campus.
The SIRE Research Experience for Undergraduates (SIRE-REU) initiative is a supplement
program analogous to REU supplements offered by the National Science Foundation. SIREREU awards provide up to $5000 to support engagement of an undergraduate student in an
existing sustainability-oriented research grant at UW-Madison that is funded extramurally. The
intent is to enhance research expertise in undergraduate students and to develop recruiting
pipelines for undergraduates to pursue graduate degrees at UW-Madison in sustainabilityrelated fields. Students involved in the REU program are expected to provide a unique
contribution to the research effort and are required to present their work at an approved
undergraduate research venue (e.g. the undergraduate symposium, the sustainability lunch
HOUR) as well as submit a report on their research to the Office of Sustainability at the end of
their appointment.
APPLICATION INSTRUCTIONS
SIRE-REU proposals must be organized as follows:
 Cover Page – must include proposal title; name, title, campus address, UW email address,
and UW phone number for the managing PI, title, type and agency of the corresponding
extramural award, name and email address for the REU student, the proposed research
presentation venue, the department or administrative unit that will administer the award and
the name, email address, and phone number for awards administrator in that unit.
 Proposal narrative – maximum 2-page description of the proposed study by the
undergraduate student and how the student’s research adds a unique contribution to the
extramurally funded study (12 point Times New Roman or 11 point Arial font, single spaced,
25 mm margins, US letter size paper). The narrative should include an abstract of not more
than 100 words.
 Curriculum Vitae – include a 2-page NSF-style CV for the managing PI and for the REU
student.
 Budget – Budgets must be prepared using a SIRE Award budget template. Budgets must be
printed and included in the proposal and a completed budget template in EXCEL format must
be incorporated into the PDF as an attachment. Effort level should be described in numbers
of months, numbers of hours, or a percentage over the fiscal year (e.g., 1 summer month,
500 hours, or 20%-time). A modest budget for supplies may be included. The total budget,
including fringe benefits, may not exceed $5000. Most of the budget should be allocated to a
student stipend.
 Duration – The duration of SIRE-REU grants should be tailored to the research
initiative being undertaken. However, this solicitation aims at supporting summer
research.
 Eligibility – Any UW-Madison faculty or staff who is a PI on a sustainability-oriented
grant that is funded extramurally is eligible to apply for SIRE-REU grants. UWMadison students are the primary target of SIRE-REU grants. However, students
from elsewhere can be supported on SIRE-REU grants provided the students are at
UW-Madison when conducting research. Faculty or staff with other SIRE grants are
eligible to apply for SIRE-REU grants provided they are a PI on a sustainabilityoriented grant that is funded extramurally.
SUBMISSION DEADLINES
REU
proposals
are
due
5:00
PM
March
27.
Proposals
should
be
emailed
to
upload.SIRE_RE.wdjzt8xddb@u.box.com. Proposals will be reviewed and the outcome
determined within two weeks of submission.
QUESTIONS?
Questions regarding the SIRE-REU Program should be directed to Sabrina Bradshaw at
sbradshaw@sustainability.wisc.edu.
2