Terry College of Business faculty collaborated on three research projects receiving funding from the 2023 round of Presidential Interdisciplinary Seed Grants at the University of Georgia.
Out of 70 applicants, the program awarded 10 grants totaling $1 million to faculty from across the university. The program launched in 2017 through a partnership between UGA Research and UGA Public Service and Outreach. Subsequent grants were awarded in 2019 and 2021.
A team from Management Information Systems — including MIS professors Gerald Kane and Maric Boudreau, assistant professor Jiyong Park and lecturer John Rios — will help tackle “Leading Georgia’s E-Mobility Innovation: Informing Research and Decision-Making.”
The project will establish UGA as a testbed for electric vehicle implementation and inform academic and applied research by establishing EV adoption and infrastructure on campus. The multifaceted project, led by Carl Vinson Institute of Government Associate Director Shana Jones, includes Don Leo, Fred Beyette, and Tianqi Hong of the UGA College of Engineering; Justine Ellis of the UGA Office of Sustainability; and Natalie Bock of the Carl Vinson Institute of Government. By partnering with researchers in the Terry College and College of Engineering, Jones and her team plan to create key data sources and establish foundational metrics to increase overall EV usage and accessibility across the state.
“Interdisciplinary research spurs creativity and innovation. Problems are multifaceted, requiring multiple methods, ideas, perspectives, and goals,” Jones said. “Leveraging expertise across disciplines multiplies impact.”
Park, who joined the Terry faculty in 2023, has also been tapped to work on the analytics portion of a project to reduce food waste in “Reimagining Sustainability: Pioneering Upcycled Foods in Circular Food Systems.” He’ll partner with researchers from the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences and the College of Pharmacy.
MIS assistant professors Akshat Lakhiwal and Aaron Schechter are part of the team launching the AI ethics project, “Developing Applied Institutional Ethics for the Age of AI: Interdisciplinary Approaches.” They will work with representatives from the UGA Department of Philosophy, the UGA School of Law, and the UGA School of Computing.