Shaping the Future Together: Announcing the 2025 Convene and Influence Awardees

Story by:

• Debra Bass- dbass@ucsd.edu

Share This:

Article Content

UC San Diego's 2025 Strategic Convene and Influence Awardshighlight seven groundbreaking initiatives aimed at fostering investigatory-led collaborations that advance area's identified in the university's strategic research themes. Awardees are also notable for addressing interdisciplinary thought leadership and their aims to produce high-impact dissemination tools, including white papers and policy briefs.

These small grants support faculty-led convenings that span disciplines, institutions, and communities, reaffirming UC San Diego's commitment to inclusive, socially engaged scholarship.

"This year's awardees are building bridges, reimagining possibilities and advancing UC San Diego's mission to lead with impact," said Corinne Peek-Asa, Vice Chancellor for Research and Innovation. "The awarded projects reflect some of the best of UC San Diego, which is bold interdisciplinary thinking grounded in real-world relevance."

This year's seven awardees are tackling urgent challenges, including AI ethics, climate careers and border health. The projects continue to fortify UC San Diego's role as a hub for dialogue, discovery and bringing compelling ideas to life.

The 2025 awardees:

Catalyzing Conversations, Incubating Global Collaborations

PI: Juan Pablo Pardo-Guerra, Professor, Sociology; Director, International Institute

Co-PI: Elana Zilberg, Associate Professor, Communications

Led by the International Institute, this initiative connects faculty members working on themes such as the borderlands, South Asia, and the Arab World. The goal is to build globally focused, interdisciplinary collaborations grounded in cultural and linguistic fluency. By identifying shared research and teaching priorities, the team is laying the foundation for UC San Diego's next generation of international scholarship.

Convene Community-Engaged Researchers to Establish Best Practices

PI: Rebecca Fielding-Miller, Associate Professor, Public Health

Co-PI : Abigail Andrews, Professor, Urban Studies and Planning; Director, Center for Comparative Immigration Studies

Through four faculty-community convenings, this project will establish best practices for community-engaged research at UC San Diego. The outcomes-a white paper, multilingual summary, and online resource hub-will help streamline collaboration and ensure that research partnerships are respectful, impactful, and accessible to all.

Co-Creating a Shared Vision for Cross-Border Translational Cancer Research

PI:Melody K. Schiaffino, Associate Professor in Residence, Radiation Medicine and Applied Sciences

Co-PI: Michael Hogarth, Professor, Medicine

Despite the health interconnectedness of the U.S.-Mexico border region, barriers persist in clinical research. This project, involving UC San Diego, San Diego State University - Imperial Valley and Universidad Autónoma de Baja California (UABC-Mexicali), aims to establish a shared framework for binational translational cancer research by harmonizing policies, co-creating health informatics capacity and setting common goals for translational science.

Good Tech for Good Jobs: Worker Voices in an AI Future

PI: Lilly Irani, Associate Professor, Communication

Co-PI: Satomi Rash-Zeigler, Executive Director, UC San Diego Labor Center

With AI reshaping the labor market, this convening places worker experiences at the center. Through a landmark gathering, surveys, and focus groups, the team will produce a white paper and policy roadmap to guide the newly launched UC San Diego Labor Center Good Tech for Good Jobs Initiative, focusing on ethical, inclusive AI in the workplace.

Working Group on Conversational AI for Wellness & Social Support

PI: Cinnamon Bloss, Director, Center for Empathy and Technology, Public Health

Co-PI: Melissa Karnaze, Assistant Project Scientist, Public Health

As large language and other conversational AI models become tools for mental health and social connection, this group will explore both their promise and their risks. Public workshops featuring experts on diverse aspects of AI, along with a white paper, will offer accessible guidance on how generative AI tools can promote, rather than undermine, mental health and wellness.

Convene the Climate Action Lab as a Hub for Climate Careers and Education

PI: Amy Lerner, Associate Teaching Professor, Urban Studies & Planning

Co-PI: Mike Ferry, Director of Energy Storage and Systems, Center for Energy Research

The Climate Action Lab will host events focused on climate justice, adaptation, and mitigation, while preparing students for careers in the climate field. This initiative centers social science perspectives and creates accessible pathways for students across disciplines to explore climate-related opportunities and impact.

Societal Impacts of Artificial Intelligence

PI: Benjamin Bergen, Professor, Cognitive Science

Co-PIs: Margaret Roberts, Professor, Political Science; Stuart Geiger, Assistant Professor, Communication and HDSI; Haijun Xia, Assistant Professor, Cognitive Science

This initiative will bring together UC San Diego experts and collaborators to address the social, economic, and ethical risks posed by AI. By combining technical innovation with social inquiry, the team will develop strategies and research questions that inform policy, guide public understanding, and ensure AI advances equity and human flourishing.