Weekly News, February 10, 2025

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Kindly read the following message from Irma Elo, President of the Population Association of America (PAA), and Sarah Burgard, President of the Association of Population Centers (APC), requesting information from you as it pertains to awards and projects impacted by the implementation of Presidential Executive Orders (EOs). The information you provide will assist the PAA/APC Government and Public Affairs Committee inform their responses and communications. 

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We are in the midst of unprecedented times in which scientific freedoms are being challenged and even access to accurate, consistent federal data is not to be taken for granted.

As the presidents of the Population Association of America and Association of Population Centers, with support from fellow officers and members, we are navigating the current terrain. PAA and APC are working closely with each other, as well as in collaboration with our coalition partners in the scientific research community, to monitor and assess the impacts of Presidential Executive Orders (EOs) and related actions to respond as warranted.

To be most effective in our response, we need reliable, timely information, especially as it pertains to awards and projects impacted by the implementation of current EOs. PAA has created a data gathering form for individuals to share information about their terminated or suspended federal awards (including recent grant submissions that have been explicitly rejected due to the recent EOs). The information that one enters cannot be viewed by others and will only be accessed by PAA staff to inform our responses and communications. We would appreciate you using this platform to submit to us information regarding relevant changes to your federal awards.

Submit your information here.

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Our next Brownbag Seminar of the semester is Wednesday, February 12th, 2025, 12pm, 310 Social Sciences, with Avi Feller, Associate Professor of Public Policy and Statistics, UC Berkeley. The title of Dr. Feller’s talk is “The Impact of US Abortion Bans on Fertility and Infant Mortality.” The event will take place in Room 310 in the Social Sciences Building and will also be available via Zoom. Meeting ID: 985 2901 0198  Password: DEMOG_BB  

See the full event details here. Our YouTube channel is here.

Registrations are now open for the International Population Conference, a premier event bringing together demographers from around the globe to exchange insights on the latest research and advancements in population science. 

Join us in Brisbane, Australia, 13-18 July 2025, to elevate your professional expertise through targeted workshops, engage in pivotal research discussions, and expand your network in a vibrant city setting.

See further announcements and opportunities below.

EVENTS

February 11 | 12:30-2pm | UC Berkeley Health Policy Colloquium Series | with Amanda Brewster, Associate Professor of Health Policy and Management, UC Berkeley Public Health, and other panelists. “From Statistics to Stories: Studying Local Government Health Programs to Support People With Complex Needs.” 2121 Berkeley Way West Building, 1st Floor, Room 1102. Event details are here.

February 12 | 12-1pm |  UC Berkeley Demography Seminar | Avi Feller, Associate Professor of Public Policy and Statistics, UC Berkeley. “The Impact of US Abortion Bans on Fertility and Infant Mortality.” Room 310 in the Social Sciences Building, zoom option. Meeting ID: 985 2901 0198  Password: DEMOG_BB  See the full event details here.

February 14 | 12-2pm | Brilliance of Berkeley | with Leslie Kurke, Gladys Rehard Wood Chair, Professor of Ancient Greek & Roman Studies and Comparative Literature; Department Chair, AGRS, and Hany Farid, Professor at the UC Berkeley in the School of Information. He is also the Co-founder and Chief Science Officer at GetReal Labs.

Wheeler Hall Auditorium. On Friday, February 14, join to hear: 

12:10-1pm: Leslie Kurke “Sappho Old & New”

1:10-2pm: Hany Farid “Reality in the Era of Deep Fakes”

FUNDING

Call for Proposals:  2025-2026 Matrix Research Teams. We are now accepting proposals from faculty, students, and affiliated researchers for Matrix research teams for the 2025-2026 academic year. Matrix Research Teams are emerging research communities that gather regularly to explore or develop a novel question or growing field in the social sciences. Successful research teams integrate participants from several disciplines, address a compelling research question with real-world significance, and deploy or develop appropriate methodologies in innovative ways. Faculty-led Research Teams can receive funding up to $5000. They run for one to two semesters, meeting at least 8 times around a defined research problem. Student-led Research Teams will receive funding up to $1500; coordinated by one or more graduate students, they will meet regularly, around 5-10 times over the course of the academic year, and explore an emerging field — a new area or question of inquiry — and assess whether it has potential for further investigation. Application deadline:  March 14, 2025. Learn more here.

U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development New Funding Opportunity. Advancing HUD’s Learning Agenda through Cooperative Agreements with Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Hispanic Serving Institutions, Tribal Colleges and Universities, and Alaska Native/ Native Hawaiian-Serving Institutions. This NOFO provides $10 million to advance knowledge in the housing and community development field while strengthening research capacity within eligible minority-serving institutions. PD&R has identified a subset of research questions adapted from HUD’s Learning Agenda that are the focus of this NOFO. The research questions are grouped under seven broad topic areas:  (1) Community Development and Place-Based Initiatives, (2) Disaster Recovery, (3) Fair Housing, (4) Homelessness, (5) Homeownership, Asset Building, and Economic Opportunity, (6) Housing and Health, and (7) American Indian, Alaska Native, and/or Native Hawaiian Housing Needs. We are committed to involving a greater diversity of perspectives, methods, and researchers in HUD research and policy development, and believe that MSIs are uniquely positioned to address the selected research questions in a manner that could amplify the impact of the research findings at the state and local level. Interested institutions are encouraged to visit PD&R’s webpage for minority-serving institutions to access short papers that provide a high-level overview of the selected research questions included in the NOFO, and potential applicants should carefully review the NOFO for the application instructions.

Applications are due on April 9, 2025.  For more information on this funding opportunity and the eligible research questions, please visit Grants.gov and search for funding opportunity FR-6900-N-29F or access the opportunity directly at this link.   Any questions from potential applicants can be sent to MSIResearchFY24@hud.gov.

WEBINARS

Webinar Series: Analyzing 2020 Census and 2023 ACS Data using R by University of Michigan Population Studies Center, Multiple Dates The Social Science Data Analysis Network (www.SSDAN.net ) at the University of Michigan Population Studies Center is hosting a webinar series called Analyzing 2020 Census and 2023 ACS Data using R. These webinars will be led by Kyle Walker, Professor at Texas Christian University and author of Analyzing US Census Data: Methods, Maps and Models in R. 

Participants will learn how to use R to analyze census data for use in courses and research in sociology, economics, public policy, urban studies and related disciplines. Participants are welcome to attend just one webinar in the series or all three. 

  • Workshop: Working with 2020 Decennial US Census Data in R

Wednesday, February 12, 2025 12-3 PM EST

  • Workshop: Mapping and Spatial Analysis with US Census Data in R

Wednesday, Feb 26, 2025 12-3 PM EST

Please click here ​to register and to see detailed descriptions of each of the workshops offered. Each workshop will be held fully remotely. There is no cost for attending this virtual webinar and no prior experience with R is required.

CONFERENCES

UCLA RC28 Conference. The Research Committee 28 on Social Stratification and Mobility (RC28) of the International Sociological Association (ISA) invites all scholars working in the field of social stratification and social mobility to contribute to the 2025 RC28 Summer Conference. The conference will take place August 4-7, 2025, beginning with an evening welcome reception on August 4, hosted by UCLA. The theme of the conference is “Social Inequality and Labor Market Restructuring.” Paper or poster submissions that address this theme are particularly encouraged, but all empirical and theory-driven submissions related to social stratification are welcome. Abstracts must be submitted by February 17, 2025 (11:59 pm Pacific). Authors will be informed of the committee’s decision by April 2025. Please submit your extended abstract here.

The Pacific Conference for Development Economics (PacDev) is the West Coast’s largest annual conference on development. The event brings together researchers and practitioners to present and discuss work that enhances our understanding of economic development, advances theoretical and empirical methods, and improves development interventions and policy. PacDev 2025 will be hosted by the University of California, Los Angeles and the University of Southern California, at USC on Saturday, March 8. Registration ends February 19 and discounted hotel rates are available when registering. Register here.

CALL FOR PAPERS 

International Union for the Scientific Study of Population (IUSSP)

Berkeley Population Center

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