Track 2 Menu

Track 2: Community Engagement and the Application of Public Health Research

Call Now Closed!

Track 2 Overview

Previous awardees interested in developing or expanding community engagement activities related to their initial Call 1, Call 2, or Call 3 projects should submit a Track 2 proposal. These projects will not include new data collection or analysis activities. Instead, they should aim to develop sustainable ways to share research findings with community partners or assist practitioners in adopting new practices based on those findings. Funded activities may include, but are not limited to:

  • Community-based interventions. Work with local organizations or agencies to develop new interventions that address the population health needs revealed by the initial research project.
  • Program or project evaluations. Work with local organizations or government agencies to evaluate how well their programs or services meet the population health needs identified in the initial research project.
  • Educational webinars or workshops. Disseminate research findings and train practitioners to apply them through educational events.
  • Websites, videos, podcasts, or other multimedia. Identify audience(s) of interest and share research findings using multimedia tools or other novel outreach activities.

In addition to identifying the key deliverable(s), all Track 2 proposals should emphasize one or more of the following areas for expanding community engagement:

  • Identify the audience and community partners. Proposals should clearly identify the primary audience(s) for sharing findings and the primary community partners which will participate in the project.
  • Facilitate dialogue. Project activities should include engaging community groups to facilitate a dialogue about questions, concerns, and education needs related to the initial project topic.
  • Identify outputs and outcomes. Proposals should identify the desired outputs and outcomes of project activities. These outputs and outcomes should be relevant to the targeted community partners or stakeholders.
  • Sustain partnerships and support coalition building. Project activities should facilitate the establishment of ongoing community partnerships and strengthen efforts to build coalitions that support the adoption of evidence-based findings.
  • Increase awareness and maximize reach. Projects should increase community awareness, interest, and understanding of the initial research findings and the broader field of public health disaster research and science. Further, teams are encouraged to include efforts to maximize reach to diverse audiences and use the most effective ways to achieve the desired impact.

Proposal Submission Process

Applicants will submit a full project proposal through the Natural Hazards Center’s online proposal submission form by no later than 5:00 p.m. MDT on Friday, September 29, 2023. To be fair to those who submit on time and as required, no exceptions will be made for late submissions. Emailed proposals will be returned without review.

Successful proposals will include the following:

  • Project Title: Limit 12 words. (Please use APA title case)

  • Investigator Name(s) and Affiliation(s)

  • Published Report Title and Link to the Public Health Report that this proposal will build on.

  • Full Abstract: Limit 500 words.

    • The abstract should describe how the project builds upon the initial award, the problem(s) or need(s) it addresses, the community partner(s) involved, an overview of project activities, and the expected outcomes of the proposed work.


  • Brief Abstract: Limit 100 words. To be posted on the Natural Hazards Center website. See examples of the format here.

  • 3-5 Keywords

  • Project Location: Proposals must describe engagement activities that will take place with organizations, agencies, or communities in at least one inhabited U.S. territory, tribal area, and/or rural community.

  • Disciplinary Focus: Provide a statement (maximum 250 words) that briefly describes the disciplinary composition of your project team, including whether the team is single discipline, multi-disciplinary, interdisciplinary, or transdisciplinary in nature. For further guidance on these distinctions, please see this paper.

  • Expansion of Previous Public Health Disaster Research Award: A 250-word statement describing how your project will expand engagement with community partners, disseminate findings, and/or enhance the public health applications of the initial research project.

  • Proposal Narrative and Appendices: The proposal narrative should be a maximum of 8 single-spaced pages, with additional pages allowed for budget, references, and appendices. Please download the Proposal Narrative Template below and follow the instructions. Once completed, please save the document as a single PDF, no larger than 4MB and upload to the online submission form, where indicated.

Download the Proposal Narrative and Appendices Template here.

Award announcements will be made by Wednesday, October 25, 2023.

Post-Award Requirements and Recommendations

In addition to the above proposal requirements, all award recipients—including the project lead and any other team members, student assistants, or collaborators—are required to do the following:

  • Project Consult: Schedule a meeting with public health and disaster specialist, Rachel Adams, at least once during the project implementation phase. Details will be provided with award notification.

  • Draft Community Engagement Brief: Submit a 3-page Community Engagement Brief summarizing the project activities, outcomes, and other achievements. The first draft of the brief is due by Friday, April 5, 2024.

    • Community Engagement Briefs must follow the Natural Hazard Center’s submission guidelines and formatting template. The Natural Hazards Center will provide two rounds of editing for each brief: one for content review, and another for copy editing.
    • If successfully reviewed and accepted, the brief will be included in an edited compilation of Community Engagement Briefs published on the Center’s website.


  • Internal Meeting: Present a description of your project activities and preliminary achievements during an internal meeting on Tuesday, May 7, 2024, from 1:00 to 2:30 p.m. MDT with representatives from the CDC and Natural Hazards Center and other award recipients to get feedback on the public health implications and other aspects of your project.

  • Final Community Engagement Brief: Submit a revised final brief, with editing recommendations integrated, no later than 5:00 p.m. MDT on Friday, June 28, 2024.

  • Public Webinar: Participate in a final public webinar on Thursday, August 1, 2024, from 11:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. MDT where all award recipients will share key findings and lessons learned.

In addition to the above proposal and post-award requirements, it is recommended that all award recipients—including the lead investigator and any collaborators—do the following:

Return to the Continuation Award 2 main page to learn more about how funding will be issued.

Questions?

Please contact the Natural Hazards Center at haz.research.awards@colorado.edu.

Acknowledgements

The Public Health Disaster Research Award Program is based on work supported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) through supplemental funding to the National Science Foundation (NSF Award #1635593). Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the CDC, NSF, or Natural Hazards Center.