The Office of the Executive Vice President and Provost has awarded a new round of Phase I Planning and Development Destination Area 2.0 grants to transdisciplinary research teams working in focus areas where Virginia Tech is well positioned to have a heightened impact. 

“Destination Areas and our commitment to supporting innovative faculty research are built around the strength of transdisciplinary collaboration at Virginia Tech and the opportunity to create solutions to complex global problems," said Executive Vice Provost Don Taylor. "I congratulate these teams of faculty working across departments and disciplines for their partnership in elevating and advancing our research enterprise and for their leadership in our quest for global distinction.”

Grant awardees include the following projects: 

Ecological and Biocultural Restoration

Efforts to address the interrelated challenges of climate change, mass extinction, and declining human wellbeing must include restoration of degraded ecosystems. Virginia Tech’s Ecological and Biocultural Restoration project aims to make Virginia Tech an international destination for transdisciplinary approaches to research and training in restoring the world’s lands and waters through a research incubator, an interdisciplinary graduate program, and an expanded network of restoration scholars, students, and practitioners, all of which center the values of Indigenous people and local communities in just and equitable ways.

  • Principal investigator: J. Leighton Reid, assistant professor in the School of Plant and Environmental Sciences
  • Team members: Shannon Bell, Department of Sociology; Sally Entrekin, Department of Entomology; Carrie Fearer, Department of Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation; W. Cully Hession, Department of Biological Systems Engineering; Lisa M. Kennedy, Department of Geography; Rachel Reid, Department of Geosciences; Haldre Rogers, Department of Fish and Wildlife Conservation; Stella Schons, Department of Forest Resources and Environmental Conservation; Jessica Taylor, Department of History; Tess Wynn Thompson, Department of Biological Systems Engineering; Jeffrey Walters, Department of Biological Sciences

Learning Landscape Laboratory

Over the next 20 years, climate change will exacerbate periodic flooding and excessive stormwater runoff on Virginia Tech’s campus. The Learning Landscape Laboratory project proposes to plan and implement innovative green infrastructure systems that can also serve as sites for outdoor classrooms and student-centered research laboratories.

  • Principal investigator: Jenn Engelke, assistant professor of landscape architecture
  • Team members: Natasha Bell, Department of Biological Systems Engineering; W. Cully Hession, Department of Biological Systems Engineering; Tess Wynn Thompson, Department of Biological Systems Engineering; Matt Powers, School of Design; Megan Rippy, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering; Rajesh Bagchi, Pamplin College of Business; Melanie Kiechle, Department of History; Jack Rosenberger, campus landscape architect; Scott Douglas, Hahn Horticulture Garden director; and Katelyn Muldoon, MS4 administrator

Rural Environments

As global population shifts toward urban centers, rural residents must grapple with complex health, economic, and education disparities. The Rural Environments Destination Area project will capitalize on existing collaborations among affiliates of the Global Change Center, the Center for Rural Education, and the Center for Public Health Practice and Research to identify innovative intervention strategies in environmental health and education research to support rural residents in Central Appalachia.

  • Principal investigators: Julia Gohlke, associate professor of environmental health; Peter Vikesland, Pryor Professor of Engineering in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering; and Amy Price Azano, professor of education
  • Team members: Ryan Calder, Department of Population Health Sciences; Willandia Chaves, Department of Fish and Wildlife Conservation; Alasdair Cohen, Department of Population Health Sciences; William Hopkins, Department of Fish and Wildlife Conservation; Korine Kolivras, Department of Geography; Leigh-Anne Krometis, Department of Biological Systems Engineering; Steven Poelzing, Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine; Amy Pruden, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering; Scott Tate, Virginia Tech Center for Economic and Community Engagement; Sophie Wenzel, Department of Population Health Sciences

Whole Health Research

With an existing transdisciplinary Whole Health Consortium and robust partnerships with health care systems and community organizations, Virginia Tech can lead a national paradigm shift toward a whole-health approach to well-being. Through a comprehensive framework that addresses health across all levels – from molecular to societal – and prioritizes a proactive model of disease prevention and well-being of individuals and communities, the Whole Health Research project will offer scientific evidence for national health care reform and contribute to the global dialogue on well-being.

  • Principal investigator: J. Tina Savla, professor of human development and family science
  • Team members: Alexandra G. DiFeliceantonio, Fralin Biomedical Research Institute at VTC and Department of Human Nutrition, Foods, and Exercise; Matthew C. Fullen, School of Education; Julie M. Gerdes, Department of English; Kathy W. Hosig, Department of Population Health Sciences; Aubrey L. Knight, Department of Family and Community Medicine, Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine; Quinton Nottingham, Department of Business Information Technology; Elif Tural, School of Design

Materials in Medicine

Even in 2024, many of the materials used in medicine were never specifically designed for medical applications. The Materials in Medicine project aims to revolutionize the design and synthesis of medical materials through a transdisciplinary approach to producing effective biomedical materials, from implantable tissue-mimicking materials to nanoscale drug delivery vehicles.

  • Principal investigators: Michael Schulz, associate professor in the Department of Chemistry, and John Matson, professor in the Department of Chemistry and Dr. AC Lilly Jr. Faculty Fellow in Nanoscience
  • Team members: Irving Coy Allen, Department of Biomedical Sciences and Pathobiology; Christopher Arena, Department of Biomedical Engineering and Mechanics; Jordan Darden, Department of Surgery, Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine; Sanket Deshmukh, Department of Chemical Engineering; Kevin Edgar, Department of Sustainable Biomaterials; Elizabeth Nowak, Department of Infectious Diseases, Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine; Adeolu L. Olasunkanmi, Department of Surgery, Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine; A. David Salzberg, Department of Surgery, Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine; Michelle Theus, Department of Biomedical Sciences and Pathobiology; Rong Tong, Department of Chemical Engineering

In addition to these five new projects, two existing Destination Area 2.0 projects received additional phase 1 support:

  • Human-Systems Integration in Health Care, led by principal investigator Sarah Parker, associate professor and department chair of health systems and implementation science, Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine
  • Public Interest Technology Collaborative, led by principal investigator Shalini Misra, associate professor, School of Public and International Affairs

Along with support from the provost’s office and the Office of Research and Innovation, investigators will receive strategic guidance from Virginia Tech leaders with LINK + LICENSE + LAUNCH, information technology, the Graduate School, University Libraries, Undergraduate Academic Affairs, inclusion and diversity, and other divisions. As their projects progress, Destination Area 2.0 projects will be eligible to submit a proposal for a larger phase 2 grant.

"The Destination Areas are exemplars of collaborative support from institutes, colleges, departments, and other units that are working together to advance project teams," said Associate Vice Provost Catherine Amelink. "With initial funding from Virginia Tech, these programs are now positioned to explore ways to secure external, ongoing support that will allow the university to deploy our unique strengths at scale."

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