Trans-Institutional Programs

Program Overview Type: Vanderbilt Initiative Award (ViA) Climate change is an ideologically polarizing issue both domestically and internationally. Drawing on research in law, social psychology, economics and behavioral science, our interdisciplinary research team has developed a novel approach that bypasses the climate gridlock by focusing on non-government solutions. Read More

Program Overview Type: Vanderbilt Initiative Award (ViA) Asthma and sickle cell disease are common in African-American children with both contributing to significant childhood health disparity. The main problem in improving care for one of the most vulnerable pediatric populations is closing the gap between well-established evidence and practical… Read More

Program Overview Type: Vanderbilt Initiative Award (ViA) More than half of the drugs introduced in the last thirty years are either natural products or compounds based on natural products. Unfortunately, the discovery of biologically active natural products has slowed dramatically in recent years because of the limitation of… Read More

Program Overview Type: Vanderbilt Initiative Award (ViA) Annually, more than 100 million pregnancies experience a major complication. In the United States, Tennessee is one of the states most affected by this problem. Pregnancy complications not only contribute to poor health during infancy, but are recognized as risk factors… Read More

  Program Overview Type: Vanderbilt Initiative Award (ViA)Diagnostic methods for global health are critical. Existing methods fail to meet the need, either because they are not accessible to health care workers in the developing world or because they are not affordable. A major challenge is to translate research into affordable… Read More

Program Overview Type: Vanderbilt Reinvestment Award (VRA) Positron Emission Tomography (PET) is a powerful technology for imaging specific receptors in patients. Current technology requires direct access to large, expensive cyclotrons for the generation of the requisite radioisotopes. A team from Engineering, Arts and Science and Medicine is developing… Read More

Program Overview Type: Vanderbilt Initiative Award (ViA) Scientists, clinicians, musicians and leaders in the music industry are increasingly interested in understanding how music affects behaviors and perceptions. Emerging research shows that music perception, appreciation and practice can influence cognition, language, memory, emotional state and social cohesion. In addition,… Read More

Program Overview Type: Vanderbilt Initiative Award (ViA) Skills in computer programming are increasingly becoming an essential tool for solving global problems. Traditional approaches to computer programming are being enhanced by the development of visual programming languages, which are more easily taught to interested students. Although effective, such languages… Read More

Program Overview Type: Vanderbilt Initiative Award (ViA) Vanderbilt is a leader in the application of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to the neurosciences and the 7 Tesla human MRI instrument was one of the first installed in the United States. At Vanderbilt, this has been used by engineers, scientists… Read More

Program Overview Type: Vanderbilt Reinvestment Award (VRA) Over the past three decades, obesity has risen dramatically, just recently plateauing with two thirds of adults in the United States being overweight or obese. The United States spends approximately $147 billion annually on health issues directly related to obesity, accounting… Read More