The Department of Defense continued its history of strong support for fundamental research by selecting 12 faculty investigators for awards through the FY2018 Minerva Research Initiative.
This initiative supports basic research that focuses on topics of particular relevance to U.S. national security. Through its network of faculty investigators, the Minerva Research Initiative also strengthens the department’s connections with the social science community and helps DOD better understand and prepare for future challenges, including National Defense Strategy priorities such as great power competition.
“We live in a dynamic world, and many of the challenges we face are social or have social elements to them,” said Dr. Bindu Nair, deputy director of the Basic Research Office. “The knowledge and methodologies generated from Minerva awardees are an important source of new ideas from the social science community to better understand the social aspects that are inherent to security and stability.”
The 12 faculty awardees were selected for the prestigious awards following a merit competition from approximately 175 applicants across eight categories. Research proposals were peer-reviewed and selected in conference between the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering and the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Policy to identify proposals that make foundational contributions to basic social science and align with the National Defense Strategy.
The Minerva Research Initiative is jointly administered by the Basic Research Office in the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering and the Strategy and Force Development Office in the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Policy. The projects are jointly supported by the Basic Research Office, the Air Force Office of Scientific Research and the Office of Naval Research.