Every day, researchers at the George Washington University create new knowledge and deliver real-world impact through their relentless pursuit of new discoveries and a deeper understanding of our world. As at many leading research institutions, much of that work is made possible by federal funding—a longstanding partnership between government and academia that improves health, drives innovation and fuels economic growth.
GW’s new Research Impact site, launched this week, highlights the many ways the university’s federally funded research is changing lives for the better. GW’s faculty and students have made breakthroughs in preventing diabetes in at-risk populations, advancing new cancer treatments, developing next-generation computer chips and more.
“The new GW Research Impact website highlights the breadth and impact of federally-funded research underway across the university,” President Ellen M. Granberg said. “From the breakthrough discoveries to the real-world solutions it highlights, this platform is a powerful way to showcase how outstanding GW faculty, students and partners are advancing knowledge and driving change. It also plays a strategic role in strengthening our research reputation, deepening engagement with key stakeholders and reinforcing the value of continued federal investment in the university’s work.”
Federal investment in GW’s research enterprise comes from a wide-range of agencies and supports a diversity of areas. In health and medicine, for example, research led by the GW Biostatistics Center and funded by the National Institutes of Health has yielded powerful insights into how to prevent diabetes, resulting in longer, healthier lives. Government funding also enables critical innovations that help address national priorities. When a team led by the School of Engineering and Applied Science’s Xitong Liu invented a way to extract lithium—a high-demand ingredient in batteries—from geothermal wastewater without harming the environment, an award from the Department of Energy enabled them to explore ways of refining their technology and scaling up their prototypes.
Federally funded research also jumpstarts entrepreneurship, for example, the National Science Foundation (NSF) funds programs like GW’s I-Corps, which trains scientists and engineers in the U.S. to commercialize their research. Through I-Corps and other programming, GW has launched about 350 startup ventures, 60 of which are operating in the greater Washington, D.C., area, providing an estimated $165 million in added income to the local economy. Additionally, according to an economic impact study, GW’s research activities contribute about $273 million to the Washington metro area, and its clinical operations add $550 million.
Federally funded programs at GW not only inform the decisions made by governments and businesses —they also prepare the next generation of leaders in fast-evolving fields. GW’s Space Policy Institute (SPI), for instance, received early NSF funding to lead a series of science policy seminars and built a science policy community in the 1970s and 1980s. Today, SPI helps guide U.S. space policy and prepares a new generation of policymakers, industry leaders and scholars.
The GW CyberCorps program, funded by the Department of Defense and NSF, trains cybersecurity experts who go on to serve in the federal government, while the NSF-funded Designing Trustworthy AI Systems program supports graduate students conducting research at the intersection of artificial intelligence and human work systems.
All these steps toward the future, of course, rest on the necessity of understanding our present moment. Federal support of the social sciences, arts and humanities help us understand the world we live in, the history that shapes us and the other lives with whom we share that world and history.
“The decades-long compact between federal funders and academic institutions has catalyzed world-changing discovery and innovation here at GW and around the nation,” said Interim Vice Provost for Research Robert Miller. “Continued collaboration with federal partners is crucial for tackling complex challenges, making societal progress and growing the economy.”
