The Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences (CIRES) transforms curiosity about our planet into discoveries that safeguard the future. The CIRES Environmental Challenge Fund enables high-risk/high-return research in areas of direct environmental importance and impact. It does so by supporting activities and ideas that may be revolutionary but are not yet sufficiently developed to be competitive in the standard conservative research proposal environment. Investments in these areas can greatly enhance and facilitate success in the face of environmental change in areas such as: improving human health, managing water resources, understanding and managing fire risk, and minimizing the adverse effects of extreme weather and climate events (such as heat, floods, air quality, etc.).
