Janus Award

Overview

Janus, the Roman god of doors and portals, is usually pictured with two opposite faces.   For this reason, several Rice alums, led by Rob Jackson '78, chose this name for an award that enables one Rice undergraduate each year to explore a complex environmental or scientific issue from all perspectives. Open to all Rice students through a competitive grant process, the Janus Award allots a stipend of $2,500 toward an independent summer research project in environmental studies or a natural science.

Selection process

Applicants will be judged on the originality of their proposed projects and the quality of their plans for implementing them. Successful applicants demonstrate the willingness and ability to evaluate multiple perspectives and the capacity to complete the work as planned. Applicants are encouraged to identify a mentor who does not hold preconceptions about the issue under examination and can therefore serve as a dispassionate sounding board.

2008 Application Deadline: February 15, 2008

Requirements and Expectations

Projects should be completed by the end of August in the year the Award is granted. A written summary of results must be submitted to Leadership Rice by the first week of September. The recipient is also expected to present findings to the Rice community during the fall semester.

Previous Janus Award projects

2007 Chris Kudron
Ecotourism in the Americas

2006 Olivia Bartlett
Pika and Policies: Tibetan Plateau Biodiversity

2005 Elizabeth Clark
Revitalizing Coral Reefs in Bocas del Toro, Panama

2004 Phillip Levine
Video Documentary: The Environment, Fossil Fuel Industry and Development in Bolivia

2003 Kevin Dudney
Examination of the TVA's Renewable Energy Program Green Power Switch

2002 Aaron Redman
College Conservation: Is it realistic?

2001 Casey Roberts
Job Security vs. Job Safety: Asbestos in South Africa

2000 Brian Pietruszewski
Sustainable Model for Flood Control in Clear Creek Watershed