Tulane Looks to Crowdfunding to Fund Research

I am currently working on a story for our February issue on the various financial challenges facing academic medical centers. Not only is payment for the clinical care they provide under pressure, but they are also increasingly coming up short when it comes to funding the second and third parts of their three-part missions: education and research.
I was trying to find organizations that had done some truly creative things to help fund these areas. I came across a few, and you’ll have to wait until the article is published to see each of their stories. But, one of the efforts was so remarkable (and time-sensitive) that I felt compelled to write about it now.
A few days ago I was forwarded a press release from another reporter here at Becker’s about a new initiative by Tulane to fund several research projects through crowdfunding. Tulane partnered by Microryza, which describes itself as a “platform for discovering, funding, and experiencing new scientific discoveries,” and whose mission is “to fund science that moves us forward.”There are currently 13 School of Medicine-based research projects proposed by Tulane researchers open for funding on the site, and boy do they sounds promising. A sampling of the projects include “Can an app encourage regular HIV testing?” “Using a molecule derived from plants to slow lung cancer progression,” and “Bisphenol A and the brain: Are ‘safe’ BPA levels really safe?”Like most crowdfunding sites, each project has an “all or nothing” funding target, meaning backers are only charged for donations if scientists reach their funding goals. With increased pressure on research funding, what a great — and truly creative — idea. I applaud Tulane for trying such an out-of-the-box approach to keep their research engine churning.”These are 13 incredibly bright scientists with great ideas who just need the funding to make their innovations a reality,” said Mary Brown, vice dean and vice president of health sciences systems for Tulane. “This is an innovative way to try to get promising research funded in a new, extremely competitive environment for federal research dollars.”