GORGAS MEMORIAL INSTITUTE RESEARCH AWARD

Applications due by August 1, 2007

Objective: To enhance and facilitate the development of scientific linkages between Panama, nations of Central America, tropical and sub-tropical South America and the Caribbean Islands, Mexico and the United States and Canada through support of short-term travel for young
research investigators from these regions for the purposes of: (1) establishing collaborative biomedical research projects focusing on tropical diseases of health importance to people living in these areas, and (2) learning new techniques and approaches applicable to the study of such
diseases.

Background: The Gorgas Memorial Institute of Tropical and Preventive Medicine (GMI) was named for General William Crawford Gorgas, the U.S. Army physician (later Surgeon General) who managed control efforts of yellow fever, malaria and other diseases during the building of
the Panama Canal. The GMI has a long history of fostering research and disease control in Panama and Central America. Since moving to new headquarters at the William Gorgas Center for Geographic Medicine in the University of Alabama at Birmingham, GMI is continuing to
pursue its goal of fostering research and training in tropical disease problems through support of collaborations between investigators working within this region and in the United States. To this end, the GMI will sponsor and manage awards, to be awarded by the American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, to fund collaborative investigations, as well as short-term visits of young investigators between research institutions within the Americas and the United States.

The Gorgas Memorial Institute Research Award program is intended to allow young scientists within this region the opportunity to acquire new techniques or develop new approaches for the study and control of tropical diseases, and to establish new scientific linkages for the purpose of initiating cooperative studies and programs.

Eligibility: Applicants should have Ph.D. or M.D. level training in a relevant field. Exceptions may be made for outstanding candidates with demonstrated equivalent expertise. They should be citizens or permanent residents of the Americas, and hold a position at a research, medical, public health or teaching institution in that country. The applicant must have the endorsement of the home institution in order to participate in this program. Award applicants are investigators in training or junior investigators (and not established senior scientists), although exceptional cases may be considered.

Financial Arrangements: Awards will generally not exceed $25,000 to cover the total costs of round-trip travel, housing and supplies required for a project. The number of awards made annually will be contingent on availability of funds, but it is the intention of the program to make at least two awards each year. Awards will be made directly to the applicant’s institution, and will be monitored through the Secretariat and the GMI Research Award Committee of the American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene.

Application Procedure: Applications should be submitted by August 1, 2007. Please send five copies of your application that includes the following:

1. A proposal of no more than three (3) typewritten pages in length, in English, describing the research goals of the project, the methods or plan of action, and the relevance to the health problems of Central and tropical South America and/or the Carribbean. The first page should list name of applicant, collaborator, title of project, and a short budget.
2. A curriculum vitae of the applicant, and copies of no more than three (3) of the applicant's recent publications chosen on the basis of relevance to the project and/or significance to the field.
3. A letter from an appropriate administrative official of the applicant's home institution endorsing the project and verifying that the travel period will be considered as official duty by the institution.
4. A letter from the collaborating investigator at the host institution indicating his/her willingness to participate in the project, specifying his/her role and any special facilities to be provided, and including a curriculum vitae.
5. Documentation that the project has been reviewed and approved by the appropriate
   institutional committees if the project to be funded deals directly with human or animal
   subjects.

Important Note: Incomplete applications (lacking any one or more of the aforementioned items) will not be considered:

Send five copies of your application to:

Gorgas Memorial Institute Research Award
American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene
111 Deer Lake Road, Suite 100
Deerfield, IL 60015 USA
847-480-9592
Fax 847-480-9282
info@astmh.org

Evaluation Process: Award applications will be evaluated by the GMI Research Award Committee of the American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, which will meet annually for the selection process. Award considerations will include the qualifications of the award applicant and the host institution, the relevance of the proposed research plan to health problems of the Americas, and the maintenance of an equitable geographic distribution.

Reporting Requirements: Following completion of the travel period, the recipient will send to the GMI Research Award Committee (at the address given above) a report of no more than five (5) typewritten pages, describing his/her accomplishments under the award and detailing all expenditures made using award funds. The report must include receipts for round-trip travel; no other receipts will be required. This report must be submitted to the committee no later than three (3) months after travel has been completed.

Posted: February 22, 2008