2023 Seed Grant Recipients Announced

2023 Seed Grant Recipients Announced

The Center for Global Health and Social Responsibility (CGHSR) has awarded six UMN faculty members with Seed Grants, funding that will allow them to increase the scope and visibility of their global health research.

This year’s recipients are:

  • Mahsa Abassi | UMN Medical School 
  • Robin Austin | UMN School of Nursing
  • Sarah Hoffman | UMN School of Nursing
  • Peter Larsen | UMN College of Veterinary Medicine 
  • Sarah Lofgren | UMN Medical School
  • Kumi Smith | UMN School of Public Health 

The Seed Grant award supports faculty members who are leveraging interdisciplinary collaborations to advance global health research. 

The projects represent a broad spectrum of focus areas, from the effects of gender-based violence in Bolivia to zoonotic disease surveillance in Pakistan.

This year, as part of our Global Women’s Health Portfolio, CGHSR collaborated with the Building Interdisciplinary Research Careers in Women’s Health Program from the Center for Women’s Health Research to offer two seed grants focused on women's health in addition to our annual global health call. 

All six Seed Grant projects embody CGHSR’s mission of advancing equitable global health.

Global Health Call

Mahsa Abassi, DO | UMN Medical School

  • Project: Etiology and Management of Hyponatremia in Cryptococcal Meningitis
  • Co-investigators, Uganda: Laura Nsangi, MBChB, Infectious Diseases Institute, Kampala, Uganda

Peter Larsen, PhD | UMN College of Veterinary Medicine

  • Project: In Situ Zoonotic Disease Surveillance in Pakistan Using Portable and Accessible Molecular Technology
  • Co-investigators, UMN: Jonathan Oliver, PhD, UMN School of Public Health
  • Co-investigators, COMSATS University Islamabad: Haroon Ahmed, PhD 

Sarah Lofgren, MD | UMN Medical School

  • Project: Validating A Biomarker For Recent Alcohol Use In People With HIV And A Case-Control Study To Determine If Heavy Alcohol Use Is Linked With HIV Viral Non-Suppression
  • Co-investigators, UMN: David Boulware, MD/MPH, UMN Medical School; Mustafa al'Absi, PhD, UMN Medical School
  • Co-investigators, Makerere University: Raymond Odokonyero, MMed

Kumi Smith, PhD | UMN School of Public Health

  • Project: Reducing HIV-related Harms of Substance Use in Chinese Men who Have Sex with Men: From Research to Practice
  • Co-investigators: Danyang Luo, MA, The Zhitong LGBT Center, Guangzhou China; Shujie Huang, PhD, Guangdong Center for STD Control & Prevention

Special Interest Call — Women’s Health

Robin Austin, PhD, DNP, DC, RN-BC, FAMIA, FNAP | UMN School of Nursing 

  • Project: Examining Whole-Person Health and Resilience of Aging Women in the United States and Turkey
  • Co-investigators, UMN: Sripriya Rajamani, MBBS, PhD, MPH | UMN School of Nursing
  • Co-investigators, Istanbul University — Cerrahpasa: Selda Secginli, PhD, RN; Merve Altiner Yas, PhD, RN

Sarah Hoffman, PhD, MPH, MSN, RN | UMN School of Nursing

  • Project: Gender-Based Violence (GBV) & Barriers to Post-Physical Assault Care: An Exploratory Study in Montero, Bolivia
  • Co-investigators, UMN: Lucy Mkandawire-Valhmu, PhD, RN, FAAN, UMN School of Nursing; Christie Martin, PhD, MPH, RN, UMN School of Nursing; Vanessa Voller, MDP, BA, PhDc, UMN College of Education and Human Development and School of Public Health
  • Co-investigators, Etta Projects: Dino Maccari, MA, Etta Projects; Veronica Pellizzari, Masters in Law, Etta Projects; Caterine Senzano, Doctor of Family Medicine, Etta Projects

Thanks to everyone who submitted an award application this year. We’d also like to thank our program managers and application reviewers. We hope interested parties will consider preparing a proposal for our next round of funding, which will be announced in early 2024. 

Learn more about the Seed Grant program, including eligibility and how to apply.