Introduction

Amazon Sustainability is dedicated to making Amazon one of the most environmentally and socially responsible companies. They conduct research to map, model, and measure the environmental and social impact of the company. They develop and test strategies that support revenue growth while reducing negative environmental and social impact. They collaborate with the external science community to drive their vision and mission.

Scope of Work

This call for proposals focuses on research related to sustainability data validation, life cycle assessment, sustainable product design and manufacturing, climate risk assessment, biodiversity, lower-carbon cement and concrete, responsible supply chain, CO2 mineralization, and more.

Budget and Duration

Selected Principal Investigators (PIs) may receive unrestricted funds, from $50,000 to $100,000, AWS Promotional Credits, up to $40,000 USD, and training resources. Awards are structured as one-year unrestricted gifts. The budget should include a list of expected costs specified in USD, and should not include administrative overhead costs. The final award amount will be determined by the awards panel.

Additional Information

Proposals should be prepared according to the proposal template. In addition, to submit a proposal for this CFP, please also include the following information:

• Description of the proposed solution and its innovative aspects

• Explanation of how the project addresses the specified challenges

• Plan for the development and implementation of the methodology or dataset

• Potential impact on sustainability in the targeted sectors

• Inclusion of Category Rules across Environmental Product Declarations and Product Environmental Footprints where applicable

• List of open-source tools, datasets, or methodologies you plan to contribute to.

• List of AWS ML tools you will use.

Key Dates

Submission period: September 25, 2024 - November 6, 2024 (11:59PM Pacific Time)

Decision letters will be sent out February 2025

Selection Process

Proposals will be reviewed by a panel of experts in machine learning, LCA, and sustainability. Proposals will be evaluated on the following:

• Immediate and sizeable impact on carbon abatements (i.e., reducing greenhouse gases)

• Practicality and scalability of the solutions that can support measurement validations

• Feasibility and clarity of the proposed approach

• Potential for widespread adoption and implementation

• Feasibility to open source

Reporting Requirements

To the extent deemed reasonable, Award recipients should acknowledge the support from ARA. Award recipients will inform ARA of publications, presentations, code and data releases, blogs/social media posts, and other speaking engagements referencing the results of the supported research or the Award. Award recipients are expected to provide updates and feedback to ARA via surveys or reports on the status of their research. Award recipients will have an opportunity to work with ARA on an informational statement about the awarded project that may be used to generate visibility for their institutions and ARA.

For More funding Opportunities, Visit Global Funding Opportunities.