Pilot Projects Program Information

Request for Pilot Project Applications

The NIEHS-funded UC Davis EHSC invites applications for pilot projects to be conducted in 2027-2028. Funding range is $20,000- $60,000. The program emphasizes research that is aligned with either one or both of the following: 

• EHSC Pilot Program Priority Areas (see below), which are developed by EHSC leadership based on current NIEHS funding priorities and our UCD EHSC priorities. 
• EHSC Community Research Priorities, which are developed each year in collaboration with our Community Stakeholder Advisory Committee. 

UC Davis Environmental Health Sciences Center (UCD EHSC) is one of 25 Core Centers funded by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS). Our goals are to advance understanding of the influence of environmental exposures on human health; to engage in multi-disciplinary, policy-relevant, translational research that improves population health; to promote community-engaged research, and to support early career investigators and investigators new to environmental health science. Please check our website to learn more about our members across UC Davis campuses, schools, and colleges. 

Program Overview

The Pilot Project Program supports one- or two-year projects to provide: 

• Preliminary data for extramural grant submissions of environmental health sciences (EHS) research, and/or 
• Develop new tools or resources that will either foster further NIEHS relevant grants or markedly advance the translation of research for improving environmental health 

Successful applications will be those that have a strong likelihood of leading to significant NIEHS funding in the short- term, and will also demonstrate one or more of the following: 

• A strong likelihood of leading to direct development/implementation of resources/tools/new approaches relevant to EHS 
• Alignment with the EHSC Pilot Program Priority Areas (see below) or EHSC Community Research Priorities.

Eligibility

• All UC Davis investigators who are eligible to apply as Principal Investigators or Principal Investigators by Exception for NIH grants. 
• Prior applicants to the EHSC Pilot Projects Program are encouraged to revise and resubmit, according to the reviews they received. 

Priority Areas for 2027-2028

This list provides some examples but is not exhaustive. We are interested in any project that links environmental factors to human health.

• Community Engagement, Intervention or Translational Research, and Public Policy 
• Basic, Clinical, Epidemiologic, and/or Extreme Weather Research 
• Local emissions/exposures such as pesticides and acute pulmonary health effects or AI data centers and environmental degradation. Note that the UC Davis Air Quality Research Center is a co-funder for this target topic. 
• Environmental influences on Cancer and Cancer Disparities. Note that the UC Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center (CCC) will be a co-funder of cancer-related applications 
• Environment and Health in Vulnerable Populations (e.g. child health and development,  pregnancy, older adults, certain occupations). Note that the Alzheimer’s Disease Center and the MIND Institute are potential co-funders of these topic areas. 
• New technology for monitoring the environment and/or human populations for human health impacts, including forever chemicals and micro- and nanoplastics. 

Community Research Priority Areas

• EHSC’s Community Engagement Core collaborates with the Center’s Community Advisory Committee to maintain a list of policy-relevant research priorities available on the Center’s website.  
• Cumulative impacts and cross-media exposures 
• Vulnerable populations: agricultural and other outdoor workers, unhoused populations, and incarcerated populations.

Award Types for 2027-2028

• Type 1 one-year project awards for $20,000 to $30,000 direct costs; a community engagement plan is encouraged butnot required. 
• Type 2 two-year awards for up to $30,000/year direct costs ($60,000 total) with community outreach and engagement throughout the research process including project design, data collection, interpretation of results and dissemination. A minimum of $5k per year must be allocated to a named community partner and a pre-submission consultation with the Community Engagement Core is highly encouraged.   
• Type 3 one-year awards for up to $50,000 direct costs; will compellingly lay the foundation for significantly expanding an established research program through major new extramural funding. These awards are targeted to mid-career or established investigators. A community engagement plan is encouraged but not required. 

Application Process

• Concept Letters are required and are due by 1 PM October 9, 2026 on InfoReady.
• Concept Letters are reviewed for relevance to the NIEHS mission including incorporation of a relevant environmental exposure. Researchers whose concept proposal meets the relevance criteria will be invited to submit a full application. 
• At the time of submitting the Concept Letters, applicants can request EHSC Core Consults scheduled during the weeks of Nov 2^nd and Nov 9^th, 2026. Applicants who obtain core assistance with their full proposals increase their likelihood of success. EHSC’s cores include: Exposure, Translational Research Support, and Community Engagement. 
• Full proposals from invited applicants are due by 1 PM on November 30, 2026 on InfoReady. 
• Each PI may submit only one proposal. Full Proposals undergo a full scientific review and a community review. 
• The most competitive proposals will be invited to give a brief 5-minute oral presentation of their concept and response to reviewer comments on January 25, 2027, 1:00-5:00pm to the Center Leadership. Please hold this time. 

Review Criteria

• The review process considers: (a) standard NIH review criteria; (b) EHSC Pilot Program Priority Areas; and (c) if applicable, EHSC Community Research Priorities.  

Questions?

• Contact Ruth Williams [email protected] for application upload questions. 
• Ameer Taha [email protected] (530-752-7096) or Judy Van de Water [email protected] (530-752-2154) for scientific content questions.