Houston Solutions Lab

Proposal timeline for the 2019-2020 academic year:

  • Announcement in late fall for next funding cycle.
  • RFP will be released in Spring 2019 for funding beginning in Fall 2019.

Information:

The Houston Solutions Lab is a vehicle to draw Rice researchers and City of Houston departments together for mutually beneficial research. This program is how Rice is participating in a national network of City-University research partnerships called the MetroLab Network. Each of these programs has the goal of leveraging academic expertise to help solve critical issues facing cities. The Kinder Institute for Urban Research is leading Rice’s MetroLab work, working closely with the Office of Research and the Ken Kennedy Institute. In June 2017, these three entities co-sponsored a pilot request for proposals that a small group of Rice faculty who had been engaged in a set of conversations with city leaders were invited to respond to. Three teams received funding of approximately $75,000 in the first round. A second round of funding was announced for three new projects for the 2018 RFP cycle with a focus on flooding and energy efficiency/air quality of city fleet. The third round of funding, open to all Rice faculty, will begin with an RFP in Spring 2019 for a funding cycle beginning in Fall 2019.