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Minerva Research Initiative

 

The Minerva Research Initiative supports social science research aimed at improving our basic understanding of security, broadly defined. All supported projects are university-based and unclassified, with the intention that all work be shared widely to support thriving stable and safe communities. The goal is to improve DoD’s basic understanding of the social, cultural, behavioral, and political forces that shape regions of the world of strategic importance to the U.S.

Program & History

Launched by the Secretary of Defense in 2008, the Minerva Research Initiative is a DoD-sponsored, university-based social science research initiative that focuses on areas of strategic importance to the U.S. national security policy.

Administration

The Minerva Research Initiative has a unique relationship between Research and Policy within the DoD, being jointly administered by the Office of Basic Research and the Office of Policy at the US Department of Defense. As such, leadership across the department collaborate to identify and support basic social science research issues in need of attention and to integrate those research insights into the policy-making environment. In doing this, the leadership team closely works with the program managers within the Military Service Branches. 

Grants and Fellowships

The 2019 Minerva Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) for University Research Grants is open, The deadline for receiving White Papers has passed with invitations to submit full proposals having been sent. Full Proposals were due on September 26, 2019. Application and schedule guidance can be found within the Research Priorities page. We hope to announce awards on December 18.

The Defense Education and Civilian University Research (DECUR) Partnership 2019 FOA is open. The deadline for receiving White Papers has passed; Full Proposals were due November 19, 2019. The DECUR FOA follows different guidelines and deadlines than the Minerva University Grants FOA, though the Research Priorities are the same. We hope to announce awards on December 18.

 

Learn about our Programs

  • University Research Grants

    The Minerva Research Initiative primarily funds social science basic research by university-led research teams. Research teams range from single investigators to large multi-university consortia, and all awarded projects are expected to be funded for at least three years (and in some cases--pending availability of funding--eligible for an extension up to five years).

  • DECUR Partnership

    The Defense Education Institution and Civilian University Research (DECUR) Partnership mission is to increase DoD social science expertise by investing in the defense experts who teach our future military and national security leaders at professional military education (PME) institutions and military service academies. DECUR awards offer existing PME teaching faculty the resources and time to conduct scholarly research in collaboration with civilian university faculty on Minerva topics of interest. 

  • U.S. Institute of Peace Collaboration

    Security is an implicit aspect of peace. Recognizing an overlap of topical interests, Minerva has joined the United States Institute of Peace to offer non-residential fellowships to doctoral candidates enrolled in U.S. universities conducting research for or writing up their doctoral dissertations, and an early career scholar award for alumnae/alumni on topics related to peace, conflict, security, and stability. These awards compliment the success of USIP’s Jennings Randolph Program for International Peace to expand support for advanced graduate students and create opportunities for ongoing support and engagement.


The Owl in the Olive Tree is Minerva's blog, aimed at sharing social scientific contributions that advance our understanding of the social, cultural, political, economic, and environmental dynamics of security. Each post highlights a key insight from a Minerva-funded researcher's published work.

Minerva News

Mia Bloom's new article on "No Place to Hide, No Place to Post: Lessons from Recent Efforts at "De-Platforming" ISIS
By Mia Bloom | Dec. 9, 2019
The online media platforms of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) blend graphic audiovisual content with religious writings to sanction and justify violent terrorist attacks throughout the world. ISIS has utilized propaganda to its advantage, not only to bolster its expansion in Iraq and Syria but also to recruit followers and disseminate the group’s ideology worldwide.
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Owl in the Olive Tree post on "Beneath the "Crime-Terror Nexus": Local Power Struggles, Competition over Resources, and Corrupt State"
By Mariya Omelicheva and Lawrence Markowitz | Dec. 5, 2019
Minerva-funded researchers Mariya Omelicheva and Lawrence Markowitz's Owl in the Olive Tree blog post on "Beneath the "Crime-Terror Nexus": Local Power Struggles, Competition over Resources, and Corrupt State". The post-Cold War era has been marked by policy and academic debates about the cooperative links between criminal and terrorist actors. According to the prevailing view, the dissolution of the Soviet Union resulted in...
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