Two interdisciplinary teams have been awarded seed funding through the Incubating Interdisciplinary Initiatives awards, known as I3 awards, which provide up to $50,000 to University of Oregon research teams.

SOCIOLOGY - UO graduate sociology student Mahindra Mohan Kumar has received a National Science Foundation grant to research CAHOOTS, a groundbreaking crisis intervention program in Eugene.

SOCIOLOGY - Shortly after AK Ikwuakor launched a fashion company in 2020—and just as he was preparing to leave to conduct an international motivational speaking tour—all US flights were grounded due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Ikwuakor, BS ’07 (sociology), a serial entrepreneur and three-time All-American Ducks hurdler, found himself grounded in more ways than one.

SOCIOLOGY - A UO professor has distilled 10 years of research on birth control and women’s experiences surrounding it into a new book that’s already sparking conversations across the country.

SOCIOLOGY - The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and shift to mostly remote instruction gave many students pause about starting, or returning, to college. Not Shawna Heurgue. The Springfield mother of three had been struggling to transition into a new career after leaving her longtime job as an emergency room nurse.

Twenty outstanding faculty members, the most since 2007, have been selected for the sought-after Fund for Faculty Excellence Awards for the 2021-22 academic year. The fund is designed to reward, recognize and retain world-class teaching and research at the UO.

ANTHROPOLOGY, LINGUISTICS, SOCIOLOGY - A new UO study, which was recently shared with the U.S. secretary of labor, shows that COVID-19 has caused long-term economic, social, physical and mental health challenges for farmworkers in Oregon.

SOCIOLOGY - If you go to a doctor for chest pain, you don’t want a prescription for a sore throat. That’s how Raoul Liévanos looks at government policies for disadvantaged groups: will the remedy solve the real problem? Or could it be misguided due to an incomplete diagnosis?

SOCIOLOGY - Eating poultry and fish to reduce the production of land-based meats that come with a higher energy cost is an environmentally friendly idea, but it’s not working, says University of Oregon sociologist Richard York. That conclusion comes from an analysis of 53 years of international data.

In a state known for its inspiring landscapes — its beauty, how its residents both embrace and rely on it for sustenance — University of Oregon faculty, staff and students bring that same passion and fervor toward studying our environment and tackling the biggest challenges facing it.