Faculty at 10 Colleges and Schools Receive Grants from Texas Global

Texas Global supports faculty at The University of Texas at Austin by providing funding for international research, teaching, publishing and event collaborations that advance the University’s mission of global engagement. During the Spring 2024 funding cycle, Texas Global awarded $81,645 to 12 faculty members across 10 colleges and schools. 

To date, faculty across 17 colleges and schools have received a total of more than $1.3 million in awards for global engagement initiatives. The Texas Global Funding Opportunities page offers complete information on the many grants and forms of financial support available.  

Faculty Research Seed Grant 

Texas Global’s Faculty Research Seed Grant provides financial support across all disciplines to UT Austin faculty and the international counterparts with whom they work and research to address some of the world’s most pressing challenges.  

The grant helps develop new partnerships and strengthen existing collaborations between UT Austin and higher education institutions and organizations around the world. Texas Global awards Faculty Research Seed Grants on a semiannual basis, once in the fall semester and once in the spring semester. 

Sergio Castellanos  

Assistant Professor, Department of Civil, Architectural, and Environmental Engineering, Cockrell School of Engineering  
“Nearshoring and Sustainable Manufacturing: Techno-Economic Analysis and Its Impact in the United States and Mexico”  
In partnership with Instituto Tecnológico y de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey, Mexico 

Jonathan Yan Chen  

Professor, School of Human Ecology/ Texas Materials Institute, College of Natural Sciences  
“Improving Circularity and Functionality of Fashion Products Through a UT-TEC Partnership” 
In partnership with Instituto Tecnológico y de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey, Mexico 

Kelly Gettig  

Assistant Professor, Department of Pediatric Neurosciences, Dell Medical School  
“Exploring the Burden of Traumatic Brain Injury in Young Children in Northern Tanzania”  
In partnership with Kilimanjaro Christian Medical University College, Tanzania 

Kenneth Greene  

Associate Professor, Department of Government, College of Liberal Arts  
“Political Polarization and the Health of Mexico's Democracy”  
In partnership with Instituto Tecnológico y de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey, Mexico 

Manish Kumar  

Assistant Professor, Department of Civil, Architectural, and Environmental Engineering, Cockrell School of Engineering  
“Flexible, Ultrathin Laser-induced Carbon Gas Separation Membranes”  
In partnership with Ben Gurion University, Israel 

Aaron Sandel  

Assistant Professor, Department of Anthropology, College of Liberal Arts  
“Friend and Foe: Predicting Primate Behavior to Improve Human and Wildlife Coexistence”  
In partnership with Makerere University, Uganda 

Global Virtual Exchange 

The Global Virtual Exchange (GVE) initiative contributes to the University’s mission of integrating global perspectives and innovative teaching practices into the curriculum. GVE funds support faculty in co-creating Collaborative Online International Learning courses with peers at universities around the world.  

These courses foster meaningful, sustainable and accessible international experiences for UT Austin students and those at partnering institutions, deepening students’ understanding of subject matter and expanding their global perspectives while they engage in project-based learning.  

Minette Drumwright  

Professor, School of Advertising and Public Relations, Moody College of Communication 
“Storytelling for Social Causes in India and the U.S.”  
In partnership with Mudra Institute of Communications, Ahmedabad, India 

Shanti Kumar  

Associate Professor, Department of Radio-TV-Film, Moody College of Communication  
“Streaming Media in Asia: UT-BRAC University Virtual Exchange”  
In partnership with BRAC University, Bangladesh 

Publication Fund Award 

The Texas Global Publication Fund encourages the development and dissemination of linguistically diverse knowledge to a global audience. By broadening exposure to international politics and histories, languages, literature, global arts and culture, we aim to equip the UT community with the skills and intercultural understanding needed to make a positive impact and address the world’s most pressing challenges. 

Bjørn Sletto  

Professor, Department of Community and Regional Planning, School of Architecture 
“Radical Cartographies: Participatory Mapmaking from Latin America” 
Portuguese translation of original English work 

Faculty Travel Planning Grant 

Texas Global’s Faculty Travel Planning Grants can benefit UT Austin faculty members working to establish connections abroad to satisfy eligibility requirements for other Texas Global funding opportunities. These grants afford faculty the unique opportunity to explore possibilities, develop connections and seek potential initiatives within their international networks in order to produce other high-quality Texas Global funding proposals.  

Marina Peterson  

Professor, Department of Anthropology, College of Liberal Arts 
“Digital Curatorial Collective: Anthropology and Ethnographic Experimentation” 
In partnership with Open University of Catalonia, Spain 

Hirofumi Tanaka 

Professor, Department of Kinesiology and Health Education, College of Education 
“Global Research Collaboration with Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul” 
In partnership with Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil 

Amy Wright 

Assistant Professor, Department of Human Dimensions of Organizations, College of Liberal Arts 
“Putting the Liberal Arts to Work through Transnational Connections: Planning HDO’s Global Career Launch and Global Virtual Exchange” 
In partnership with Vrije Universiteit, Netherlands, and Turku University, Finland