About Research South Florida

Linking Regional Research to Sustainable Regional Growth

Our Purpose
Research South Florida is one of the Center for Urban & Environmental Solutions at FAU (CUES) newest initiatives to promote “Regional Thinking…Regional Action.” It is a one-stop center for finding research expertise on important public policy issues in South Florida. Its activities will include:

• Facilitating collaborative research among South Florida’s higher-education institutions and promoting the development and dissemination of timely research on important regional issues
• Helping policy makers, community leaders, and residents access the region’s research expertise to find solutions for current community and regional issues
• Stimulating informed discussions and decisions on regional issues

Members
Research South Florida is composed of researchers from the area’s research-oriented organizations, including universities and colleges, and other regional organizations that engage in research. Members have expertise in a range of topics relating to South Florida’s growth and development., such as mobility, economy, land use, and coastal/ocean resources. Click here to view our researchers’ areas of expertise.

History
CUES is dedicated to promoting “Regional Thinking …..Regional Action” in South Florida. In 2003, we received generous funding from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation to undertake several regional initiatives, including development of a regional research collaborative. The goal was to create a central location for accessing research on important public policy issues in South Florida and to leverage the wealth of expertise within the region’s many research-oriented institutions through greater inter-institutional and interdisciplinary collaboration.

In 2002, CUES completed a report that documents the region’s research assets, Creating A Regional Research Collaborative for Southeast Florida: Linking Regional Research to Sustainable Regional Growth. The report contains an initial inventory and assessment of regional research expertise. It includes summaries of a survey of researchers within Florida Atlantic University, Florida International University, the University of Miami, and twelve other regional organizations that engage in research related to the region’s growth and development.

What Researchers are Saying About Research South Florida
The response of the researchers participating in the 2002 survey demonstrated overwhelming support for an organization that would facilitate greater collaboration among the region’s research institutions. Such a collaborative, they told us, is needed now. It will provide opportunities for:

• Researchers from many different disciplines and institutions to collaborate on projects, thereby enabling them to accomplish significantly more than they could working individually within their discipline and institution
• Community, civic, and governmental organizations to have easy access to the region’s substantial research expertise and apply that expertise to the host of complex growth and development issues now confronting the region and its communities
• Researchers and community, civic, and governmental organizations to address information gaps and develop a long-term research agenda

Current Actions
Currently, CUES is working in partnership with other regional research institutions to put in place an ongoing structure for Research South Florida. Our actions include:

• Expanding the 2002 survey to identify additional researchers who have relevant expertise
• Making the survey results available to those seeking research experts through our online database
• Encouraging and facilitating creation of research teams
• Creating a Research South Florida ListServ to better link researchers together
• Enhancing our website as a primary source of information on regional research expertise
• Establishing an ongoing monitoring system of the current growth and development issues
• Developing publications and community forums featuring member research

Staff
CUES serves as the host administrative organization for Research South Florida and provides staff support for its daily operations.