Traditional Funding Mechanisms Research Articles

213 Accelerating Translational Science Through Dissemination Grants with Community Impact

OBJECTIVES/GOALS: Promoting Academics and Community Engagement (PACE) Dissemination grants are funding opportunities via the Michigan Institute for Clinical and Health Research Community Engagement program designed to support the science of clinical and translational research demonstrating community impact. METHODS/STUDY POPULATION: Two statewide funding announcements over a 3-month period were issued to over 2,000 academic and community partners. Proposals were required to meet the following criteria: 1) data collection from an academic and community partnered research project completed; 2) research findings analyzed; and 3) a community-focused dissemination plan developed. Projects were funded up to $5000. RESULTS/ANTICIPATED RESULTS: Six PACE dissemination grants with community-focused plans were funded spanning Southeast, Western, and the Upper Peninsula regions of Michigan, as well as statewide. Examples of funded projects topics areas include the following: firearm safety; housing discrimination; opioid misuse; suicide prevention; and youth mental health. Community dissemination activities include: a) presenting at a community town hall; b) writing a pamphlet for community use; c) creating artwork installation showcase for community display; d) storytelling through community channels; and e) designing and implementing a local social media campaign. DISCUSSION/SIGNIFICANCE: Traditional funding mechanisms often do not provide resources to disseminate research findings with community benefit or impact back to communities. Funding dissemination awards through the PACE mechanism directly supports and accelerates translational science by sharing results directly back to the community in meaningful ways.

Solution techniques for Bi-level Knapsack Problems

Traditional funding mechanisms for healthcare projects involve ranking the projects and awarding funds based on their cost to benefit ratio. An alternative funding mechanism based on Bi-level programming was proposed in the literature. We refer to this as Donor-Recipient Bi-level Knapsack Problem (DR-BKP), which we explore further in this work. There are two participants, a leader (a donor agency) and a follower (recipient country) in this problem. Both the participants have their individual budgets. There is a set of projects, each having a certain cost and profit associated. The cost of projects are common to both the participants however the profits can be different for them. There is an external project that is of exclusive interest to the follower. The leader decides on cost subsidies to provide for the projects that is within her budget, while the follower solves a knapsack problem with the cost subsidised projects and the external project. Two enumerative algorithms were proposed in the literature for Bi-level problems with discrete upper level variables. We adapt them for DR-BKP that has continuous upper level variables having non-linear interaction with lower level variables. We first show the existence of a solution for DR-BKP and show the convergence of these algorithms. We provide evidence for Σ2P-hardness by showing that the problem is both NP-hard and Co-NP hard. Finally, we have implemented these two enumerative algorithms and shared the results and analyses of the computational experiments. A set of fifteen differing data sets each having randomly generated 10 instances have been solved to evaluate the performance of the proposed algorithms.

Financing mental health services at Child Advocacy Centers for victims of child sexual abuse and their families

Child sexual abuse (CSA) is a significant public health concern and is associated with a multitude of negative health outcomes. A substantial body of research has shown that experiences of CSA increase risk for short-term and long-term negative sequelae across psychological, behavioral, physical, and biological domains. Mental health treatments have been effective at decreasing children's mental health symptomology after CSA and preventing future negative outcomes. Child Advocacy Centers (CACs) are a common entry point for children following disclosure of CSA and are intended to streamline services, promote collaboration, and increase accessibility of mental health services. CACs rely on the blending and braiding of multiple funding sources to provide mental health services. Yet, traditional funding mechanisms are insufficient to meet the mental health needs of this population. Specific barriers related to the current funding system and the community context of mental health service provision are discussed. The CAC model provides a unique opportunity to increase access to mental health services through innovative funding mechanisms. Recommendations for strengthening the CAC model through policy research and advocacy are provided. • CACs are a common entry point for children after disclosure of child sexual abuse. • Existing funding mechanisms do not meet the mental health needs of this population. • Complexities and requirements of third-party billing are a barrier to services. • Community capacity for evidence-based trauma-informed services is limited. • CACs can increase access through innovative policy, research, and advocacy.

Exploring the efficacy of traditional and alternative funding mechanisms to provide transportation revenue during the COVID-19 pandemic

Steep reduction in motor vehicle travel during the COVID-19 pandemic has plummeted the fuel sales affecting the revenue streams of state Departments of Transportation (DOTs) across the US. The objective of this study is to investigate the effectiveness of a number of user-based and general revenue generation mechanisms in reducing the transportation revenue shortfall or providing more stable revenue during a pandemic. State policies and pilot programs as well as public perception studies are reviewed to develop reasonable scenarios of tax and fee schemes, and price elasticity estimates are used to account for the effect of higher travel cost on demand for travel. We specifically focus on the adverse impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on the transportation revenue in North Carolina (NC) using data from January to October 2020. The results indicate that monthly transportation revenue in NC could not have been sustained by increasing the state motor fuels tax up to 50% or motor vehicle fees up to 100%. On the other hand, increasing the highway use tax (state vehicle sales tax) from 3% to 8% would have eliminated the monthly shortfall in the state transportation revenue. Replacing the state fuels tax by mileage-based user fees could not bridge the gap between the monthly collected and projected state transportation revenue, even for high per-mile charges for passenger vehicles and trucks. Promising results are found for instituting an additional 0.75% state sales tax dedicated to general transportation use which could have provided adequate funding to eliminate the monthly shortfall in transportation revenue in NC during the COVID-19 pandemic. Dependence on state sale and use tax for transportation revenue is preferred and would lead to a lower shortfall compared to the motor fuels tax in a pandemic.

Payment for Results: Funding Non‐Profit Operations

Payment for results (PfR) funding approach, where donors reimburse the non‐profit organization (NPO) based on outcomes, is being increasingly adopted in the non‐profit sector. However, there is also concern expressed by many voluntary organizations that such a funding approach puts an undue financial burden on small NPOs and could actually be detrimental to social welfare. In this study, we build a theoretical framework to analyze PfR funding mechanisms. We use a sequential game to model the interaction between the donor and the NPO, with the donor as the first mover. This model captures how PfR funding is typically implemented in practice using social impact bonds (SIB), wherein social investors provide the upfront funding needed by the NPO to implement the project. The donor provides funding, based on the actual benefit delivered, at the end of the project and the investors are paid back using these funds. We find that higher targets set by the donor do not necessarily translate to higher expected utility or expected benefit delivered under PfR. When comparing the performance of PfR and traditional funding (TF) mechanisms, we find that the donor typically has a higher expected utility under the PfR mechanism when the probability of a negative outcome shock is either high or low, and is better off using the TF approach otherwise. When the donor’s opportunity cost of funding the project is high, the donor is better off using a PfR mechanism when her belief about the NPO having low efficiency is sufficiently high. Interestingly, we find that for a large range of parameter values there is a mismatch between the approach that gives a higher expected utility to the donor and the approach that maximizes the expected social benefit delivered. Our model and analysis suggest that the optimal funding approach, and the optimal target set under PfR, depend on the NPO’s financing cost from social investors and project outcome uncertainty.

Research on Backers’ Motivations in Reward-Based Crowdfunding with Analytic Network Process

Crowdfunding is an innovative conceptualized alternative to traditional funding mechanisms which bypasses bureaucracy and eliminates geographical barriers by more contributor with less contribution. The motivation criteria that mobilize backers for crowdfunding especially for those who don’t have a certain financial expectation are an important research topic. In this study, the factors that affect the motivation of the backers, especially in reward-based crowdfunding campaigns were researched, prioritized and their effects on funding decision were examined by using Analytic Network Process (ANP). As a matter of fact, it is seen that the most important motivation factor is reliability of platform instead of reward expectation for those who participate in reward-based crowdfunding campaigns. Considering crowdfunding is still quite new, crowdfunding platforms are the most prominent part of this process and the promised rewards have generally low monetary value or the high fraud rate, this result isn’t considered a surprise.

Crowdfunding scientific research: Descriptive insights and correlates of funding success.

Crowdfunding has gained traction as a mechanism to raise resources for entrepreneurial and artistic projects, yet there is little systematic evidence on the potential of crowdfunding for scientific research. We first briefly review prior research on crowdfunding and give an overview of dedicated platforms for crowdfunding research. We then analyze data from over 700 campaigns on the largest dedicated platform, Experiment.com. Our descriptive analysis provides insights regarding the creators seeking funding, the projects they are seeking funding for, and the campaigns themselves. We then examine how these characteristics relate to fundraising success. The findings highlight important differences between crowdfunding and traditional funding mechanisms for research, including high use by students and other junior investigators but also relatively small project size. Students and junior investigators are more likely to succeed than senior scientists, and women have higher success rates than men. Conventional signals of quality–including scientists’ prior publications–have little relationship with funding success, suggesting that the crowd may apply different decision criteria than traditional funding agencies. Our results highlight significant opportunities for crowdfunding in the context of science while also pointing towards unique challenges. We relate our findings to research on the economics of science and on crowdfunding, and we discuss connections with other emerging mechanisms to involve the public in scientific research.

A data-driven methodology for equitable value-capture financing of public transit operations and maintenance

Despite the importance of rail infrastructure to the effective and efficient functioning of dense urban areas and their commercial business districts, funding for operations and maintenance of transit systems is a common challenge for cities. Operational funds are derived from a range of sources, including fare and toll revenues, taxes, and fees. In cities with aging infrastructure, traditional funding mechanisms are falling short of actual need, even as many cities experience record ridership levels. Therefore, new funding streams are necessary to safely, efficiently, and equitably operate and maintain an aging rail infrastructure in the face of growing demand. This paper presents a socio-spatial model of rail transit ridership demand to develop a computational method for value-capture funding mechanisms that link existing commercial properties and transit infrastructure operations. Using a diverse range of large-scale data for New York City (NYC) and the surrounding region, our methodology provides a data-driven approach to address fundamental issues of horizontal and vertical equity in value-capture fees, including (1) the magnitude of the special assessment, (2) the property types to include, and (3) the boundaries of the special assessment district. We find that a marginal special assessment of $0.50 to $1.00 per square foot on commercial properties, proportionate to the lost wages and output associated with system delays, within 1/4-mile of a subway station in NYC's core commercial district could yield between $332 and $664 million annually to support the Metropolitan Transit Authority's operating budget. This is equivalent to the revenue generated by an average, system-wide per ride fare increase of $0.22, and significantly less than the estimated implicit transit subsidy for these buildings of $4.58 per square foot per year.

Collaborative development of an accelerated graduate entry nursing programme outside of traditional funding mechanisms.

Financial support for students entering nurse education programmes has typically been the responsibility of Governments who make a substantial contribution to tuition and/or living costs. However, where programmes are not funded by Government bodies, students must make alternative arrangements for financial support. This paper explores how a university worked with local employers to design, recruit and deliver an accelerated graduate entry nursing programme and how this philosophy of collaboration ultimately led to local health employers providing sponsorship for students. Therefore, we offer for debate the benefits of collaborative curriculum design and future considerations of attracting employer funding for graduate entry nursing programmes.

Community Engagement and Collective Evaluation in Crowdfunding

The emergence of crowdfunding could significantly ease the burden of raising funds for startup companies, and ultimately transform the nature of entrepreneurship and new firm creation. Under traditional funding mechanisms, entrepreneurs face considerable difficulties in obtaining external funding. Start-ups also struggle to increase their visibility and establish legitimacy to acquire necessary resources. In contrast to traditional funding, the role of crowdfunding platforms in connecting entrepreneurs and funders provides new avenues for entrepreneurs to acquire legitimacy and to engage with a pool of funders. Using the comprehensive theoretical lens of social network theory and electronic word-of-mouth, we examine the impact of crowds’ and entrepreneurs’ behaviors along with entrepreneur characteristics on crowdfunding success. We collect data about startup projects and funders from a reward-based crowdfunding platform in the U.S., as well as additional data from online social network sites and blogs. Our sample includes a total of 722 technology-related projects (March 2012 - January 2013) and more than 177,700 funders. The empirical results show that the networks of interactions among funders as well as the entrepreneurs’ social engagement with the crowdfunding community are key antecedents of funding success. Interestingly, these factors dominate the effects of the entrepreneurs’ characteristics. This study contributes to crowdfunding, crowdsourcing, and entrepreneurship literature by providing a comprehensive framework to understand the fundraising mechanisms in a novel funding. Implications for potential funders and entrepreneurs are discussed.

Abstract IA28: What advocates can do to accelerate your research and enhance patient care: The perspective of memorial foundation focusing on a specific disease

Abstract Origination QuadW (the What Would Willie Want Foundation) was formed in 2006 upon the death of Willie Tichenor from osteosarcoma. His parents, Mac and Lisa Tichenor, invited eight of Willie's friends, together with his brother, to constitute the board of directors. Based on Willie's wish that future victims of this terrible disease not run out of treatment options, like he did, the group determined that sarcoma research would be a significant focus of QuadW's grant making strategy. From early on, QuadW has relied on the field's leading experts to guide its approach. In April 2007, at QuadW's request, a panel of sarcoma experts led by Dr. Lee Helman was convened by Dr. Marge Foti and the AACR. It was at this personal and informative meeting that we conceived a way QuadW could generate significant impact with targeted, precise investment in areas that are chokepoints to progress but are sometimes overlooked by traditional funding mechanisms. Ultimately, the interaction put us on a path that we never expected to be on and that has turned out to be a source of significant impact in sarcoma research. Our Work The AACR Expert Panel identified two major impediments to progress in osteosarcoma research: 1) a lack of properly characterized and clinically-annotated osteosarcoma tissue samples on which to test new drug candidates and perform other experiments; and 2) inadequate resources within the Children's Oncology Group (COG) to conduct the biostatistical analysis of experiments to allow the results of those experiments to be published. As a result, we established collaboration with the Children's Oncology Group, now called the QuadW Childhood Sarcoma Biostatistics and Annotation Office (CSBAO), that has addressed these issues. This office has facilitated the publication of 10 articles so far, with a number more in progress. The effectiveness of the CSBAO in osteosarcoma has led to its expansion into other cancers including Ewing's Sarcoma and Soft Tissue Sarcoma. The success of the CSBAO has encouraged QuadW to continue to convene experts and seek ways to encourage and assist the sarcoma research community as a whole. Our board members attend scientific meetings such as ASCO, AACR, CTOS, SARC, and COG, and have developed a solid understanding of the field. We have integrated into the fabric of the sarcoma community and value the relationships we have built. Our focus on the field as a whole rather than allegiance to a particular researcher has established QuadW as a partner in building bridges and solving problems in the infrastructure of sarcoma research that are impeding progress in the field. We look for ways to “lower the activation energy” for all sarcoma researchers, making resources more easily available and less expensive. In addition to our focus on infrastructure, we move quickly to support areas in which we can make a difference for patients who have run out of treatment options like Willie did. We take advantage of opportunities to leverage existing initiatives. For instance, we recently stepped in to provide a relatively modest final leg of financial support for an NCI-sponsored Immunotherapy trial, allowing a highly innovative $2 million trial to move forward. We understand improved treatments for sarcoma patients are dependent on the efforts of top researchers and clinicians. So we invest in rising stars through young investigator awards and clinical fellowships to help ensure a continual influx of top talent to fuel the effort. In the past seven years we have supported eight young investigator awards in sarcoma research and four sarcoma-specific fellowships in major cancer centers. We have gained remarkable traction with what is, in the cancer world, a modest investment of money, coupled with a whole-hearted investment of time, energy, and enthusiasm. Encouraged by our successes and surveying the additional opportunities we see to make a positive difference, we have embarked on a program to increase our funding capacity as we see how we can make even greater headway. Citation Format: Lisa W. Tichenor, Mac T. Tichenor, Jr., Neil Moseley. What advocates can do to accelerate your research and enhance patient care: The perspective of memorial foundation focusing on a specific disease. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR Special Conference on Pediatric Cancer at the Crossroads: Translating Discovery into Improved Outcomes; Nov 3-6, 2013; San Diego, CA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2013;74(20 Suppl):Abstract nr IA28.

Abstract 3499: Funding innovative technologies for cancer research at the National Cancer Institute

Abstract In the fall of 2013, the National Cancer Institute re-launched the Innovative Molecular Analysis Technologies (IMAT) program, committing up to $10.5 million through unique funding mechanisms (3 year R21s and R33s) to better support investigators through both the early and advanced stages of technology development over traditional funding mechanisms for exploratory research. The IMAT program has supported the development of various analytical and sample processing platforms that have made substantial contributions across the cancer research continuum, and the process of winning an award remains highly competitive. A variety of IMAT-supported research projects will be highlighted to demonstrate the variety and high level of innovation evident in the IMAT portfolio of supported research. An emphasis will be placed on recently completed projects so that investigators interested in next generation tools may become aware of possible developments through NCI-funded projects for their research. In addition, trends from recently awarded projects will be described to provide insight for potential applicants on the nature of the program and the competition. Potential projects of interest and identified technology gaps will also be discussed. The IMAT program continues to represent a unique resource for highly innovative technology development. Citation Format: Anthony Dickherber. Funding innovative technologies for cancer research at the National Cancer Institute. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 105th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2014 Apr 5-9; San Diego, CA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2014;74(19 Suppl):Abstract nr 3499. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2014-3499

The RE(ACT) Initiative and the use of an online community to enhance research on rare diseases

There is a striking need for increased international cooperation in scientific research on rare diseases (RDs). Existing research efforts are in fact still scattered and fragmented research is being performed with little coordination between research laboratories. This lack of coordination is particularly detrimental to the increase of knowledge and to the delivery of new therapies for RDs because the resources are very limited and the patient population is small for each disease. Moreover, traditional funding mechanisms based on natural market conditions and access to public funds, do not fit the reality of research requirements on RDs. For these reasons the BLACKSWAN Foundation is proud to present the RE(ACT) Initiative with the aim of boosting research and facilitating the discovery of new molecules and therapies for millions of patients. The Initiative is structured on two main axes: the RE(ACT) Congress (react-congress.org) and the online RE(ACT) Community (react-community.org). Their mission is to strengthen the synergies between researchers and other stakeholders that are related to different extents with RDs. The RE(ACT) Congress is organized every two years and brings together world leaders and young scientists from different scientific fields to present state-of-the-art research, to discuss results and to exchange ideas. The RE(ACT) Community as an example of how the use of online communities and social media can address these challenges and facilitate the cooperation between researchers, patients and other important stakeholders in the RDs field. The RE(ACT) Community uses an innovative online platform that combines elements of scientific knowledge sharing with the access to new funding mechanisms to improve the implementation of research projects. This approach is conceived to empower researchers and patients and change the way science is communicated. The RE(ACT) Community is a place where everybody has an equal opportunity to seek, share and generate knowledge. Patients and patient organizations have the possibility to exchange their observations on a disease directly with researchers and researchers can be put in contact with patients who express the interest to take part in clinical trials, provide samples, or support. Moreover, crowdfunding is introduced as original financing method to support research in the field of RDs as it involves funding a project with relatively modest contributions from a large group of individuals. The promotion of a research project can be facilitated by social media through the integration of “social plugin” on platforms, which allow a user to sensitize his network and improve awareness on a specific research or disease. The RE(ACT) Community is a new kind of collaborative workspace where RD stakeholders help each other to develop research and increase awareness in the public opinion on the subject of RDs.

Abstract ED03-05: Innovative technology development to advance biospecimen science.

Abstract In 1998, the National Cancer Institute (NCI) established the groundwork for a highly successful program focused on innovative technology development to overcome persistent barriers for cancer researchers and clinicians. Unlike other initiatives of the time, the Innovative Molecular Analysis Technologies (IMAT) Program solicited only the most cutting-edge ideas, thus restricting its application pool to those projects that had the potential to be truly transformative. By doing so, the program filled a void that no other program at the NCI or NIH filled at the time. In 2005, the IMAT program introduced an additional focus on supporting innovative technology development that uniquely advanced the field of biospecimen science. Technologies supported by this mechanism have seen a disproportionately high level of success. The IMAT program continues to represent a unique resource for highly innovative technology development, but runs alongside several active programs at the NCI for supporting cancer-relevant technologies. The full reauthorization of the IMAT program in fall of 2011 by the NCI for 2012-2013 demonstrates a significant commitment, especially under ever tightening fiscal constraints, to supporting innovative technology development for cancer research and clinical care. The IMAT program utilizes unique funding mechanisms to better support investigators through both the early and advanced stages of technology development over traditional funding mechanisms for exploratory research. Moreover, receipt of an IMAT award offers membership to a truly unique community of investigators that meet annually to share progress and exchange ideas. A variety of IMAT-supported research projects will be highlighted to demonstrate the variety and level of innovation evident in the IMAT portfolio of supported research. Potential projects of interest and identified technology gaps specific to the field of biospecimen science and with relevance to cancer health disparities will also be discussed. Currently available funding opportunity announcements are active with three receipt dates open through September, 2013. Enthusiasm from the NCI Board of Scientific Advisors and NCI leadership for the IMAT program indicates that these solicitations are likely to be active beyond these dates. Technology developers from all fields of research are encouraged to apply. Citation Format: Anthony Dickherber. Innovative technology development to advance biospecimen science. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the Fifth AACR Conference on the Science of Cancer Health Disparities in Racial/Ethnic Minorities and the Medically Underserved; 2012 Oct 27-30; San Diego, CA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2012;21(10 Suppl):Abstract nr ED03-05.

Funding for teratology information services: Up, down, and all around

Funding for Teratology Information Services has been an ongoing struggle over the 25 years of its existence. Traditional and novel funding mechanisms have been explored with varying success. The importance of providing teratology risk assessment and counseling to all women of reproductive age is now an established health care objective. Sufficient and stable funding for these services is essential.

The Early-Stage Patient-Oriented Researcher in 2012: Challenges and Strategies

The Early-Stage Patient-Oriented Researcher in 2012: Challenges and Strategies

Mind the (biomedical funding) gap

Without a viable alternative to traditional funding mechanisms, promising early-stage startups are being left high and dry.

NASA–NCI collaboration

The National Cancer Institute (NCI) has announced a collaborative initiative with the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) for the joint support of biomedical and technology research. The NASA–NCI Fundamental Technologies for the Development of Biomolecular Sensors program aims to support innovative projects that fall outside the traditional funding mechanisms. The initiative, which will have $80 million to spend over the next four years, is motivated by the joint need to develop biomolecular sensors that will be useful for long duration space flight, as well as cancer detection, diagnosis and treatment. NCI hopes that such systems will lead to earlier, non-invasive cancer detection based on fundamental molecular changes associated with specific disease pathways. NASA expects the project will result in improved healthcare-monitoring for space missions beyond Earth orbit. The two agencies are confident that their shared vision ‘will revolutionize the practice of medicine on Earth and in space’. JW

Damming the Child of the Ocean: The Three Gorges Project

The Three Gorges Dam in China, when complete, will be the largest dam in the world. International criticism regarding the economic and environmental viability of the project has also made it one of the world's most controversial development projects. Critics cite human rights violations, ecological disaster, cultural erosion, and economic and financial risks as some of the problems with the project. Yet, despite international and domestic criticism, the Chinese government has pledged its determination to complete the project, claiming increased energy production capacity, improved navigational capabilities and greatly needed flood control as impetus. Although many of the traditional funding mechanisms for international development have refrained from providing financial support for the project, foreign direct investment has continued to flow in. This raises questions regarding the influence of private capital verses that of traditional funding mechanisms in controversial development schemes such as the Three Gorges Dam.

Agricultural Research: Benefits and Beneficiaries of Alternative Funding Mechanisms

AbstractThis article analyzes alternative funding mechanisms for agricultural research and the benefits and beneficiaries of these approaches. Although other mechanisms exist, the discussion focuses on public formula and competitive grants programs, private‐sector contracts and grants, and revenue from sale of intellectual property rights (IPRs) or new products embodying innovations. Over the past two decades, agricultural research has been criticized for the noncompetitive nature of research fund allocations. Considerable evidence exists that the system has performed well for society. We conclude that the private sector should be permitted to carry out research that it finds profitable to undertake with minimal competition from the public sector. The public research institutions should focus on general and pretechnology science programs that complement private research‐and‐development (R&D) activities and conduct applied research in areas in which innovations are socially beneficial but not privately profitable. The mechanism for channeling public funds to researchers (e.g., formula, competitive grants, or earmarks) can be expected to affect the types of benefits/impacts of agricultural research conducted and the efficiency of the research activity. Issues remain about the emphasis on process versus substance in the R&D funding debate. However, available evidence does not suggest the elimination of traditional funding mechanisms for public agricultural research.