The Research Collaboration Project is the result of and the continuation of activities initiated under the EPSCoR Project's Leadership Development Conferences. Conference topics were chosen based upon the interests of researchers in the EPSCoR community. In the event, five of nine conferences were devoted to aspects of collaborative research. Through the experience of developing these workshops to meet the need of science and engineering researchers, RCP learned that researchers in all disciplines, in institutions in all states, need and appreciate help in pursuing inter-disciplinary and inter-institutional research. The need is especially acute among junior faculty members who may lack a broad network of potential collaborators. A survey of 412 persons attending one or more of the five collaboration conferences found that 89 respondents had participated in 92 collaborative research teams as a result of their participation. The survey found that 76 respondents had participated in a collaborative research proposal resulting from their participation (27 won, 32 lost and 17 pending as of January 2000). This project will work to provide further support to promote and facilitate collaborative research on the individual and institutional level. A pilot project for a web-based collaboration brokerage is under consideration. Other projects are in planning stage. Further information will be posted here as it becomes available. Return to top.