Researchers awarded nearly $150,000 international research training grant

University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa
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Posted: Sep 14, 2011

Dr. Kenneth Hayes
Dr. Kenneth Hayes
The National Science Foundation’s International Research Experiences for Students (IRES) program has awarded a $149,952 grant to Drs. Kenneth Hayes and Robert Cowie of UH Mānoa’s Center for Conservation Research and Training, Dr. Romi Burks of Southwestern University, Georgetown, Texas, and an international team of researchers from Uruguay and Brazil.
 
The IRES program gives undergraduate and graduate students from U.S. institutions the opportunity to carry out international research projects in host countries with the goal of educating a globally engaged science workforce. Under the direction of Hayes and Burks, this IRES award will support 15 undergraduate students and one graduate student to conduct collaborative research in Brazil and Uruguay for three years.
 
The program is co-organized by Dr. Silvano Thiengo from the Instituto Oswaldo Cruz in Brazil and Dr. Mariana Meerhoff from the Universidad de la Republica in Uruguay.
The goal of the project is to develop a research-training model using a group of aquatic snails commonly called apple snails. These snails are native to Uruguay and Brazil, but are invasive in Hawai‘i, Texas and other locations throughout the world where they are an environmental and agricultural pest.
Using the snails as a focal system and integration across disciplines, students will develop independent research projects collaboratively with established experts from museums, government research agencies, research universities and undergraduate institutions. These training experiences will ensure that students are prepared to enter the world of international scientific research and education, and that the U.S. remains a leader in science and technology.
For more information, please contact Dr. Kenneth Hayes at (808) 956-0956 or khayes@hawaii.edu.