UH: $2M Moore Foundation grant backs new postdoctoral science fellowship

Eleven emerging scientists will soon take on some of Hawaiʻi’s most urgent environmental and scientific challenges through a new University of Hawaiʻi systemwide postdoctoral fellowship program, funded by a $2 million grant from the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation.

From 2025 to 2028, the program will support 11 postdoctoral scholars working in astronomy, oceanography, life sciences, geophysics, atmospheric science and other fields vital to Hawaiʻi and the Pacific. Each fellow will receive up to two years of funding for salary and benefits, enabling them to focus on high-impact projects addressing critical scientific and environmental challenges.

“As federal support for research becomes increasingly constrained, philanthropy plays a crucial role in fueling innovation and discovery,” said Harvey V. Fineberg, MD, Ph.D., president of the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation. “At the Moore Foundation, we invest where science can make long-term, measurable change and in the talented people whose ideas will shape the future.”

The fellowship program was developed through a partnership among the University of Hawaiʻi Office of Strategic Philanthropic Partnerships, the UH Mānoa Office of the Vice Provost for Research and Scholarship and the University of Hawaiʻi Foundation.

“The Moore Foundation has been a steadfast partner to the University of Hawaiʻi for many years,” said Chad Walton, interim vice president for research and innovation. His office oversees research operations across the university’s 10 campuses. “Their sustained investment has strengthened UH research programs across disciplines—supporting scientists, seeding discovery and elevating Hawaiʻi’s role as a global leader in innovation.”

For more information about the fellowship program, visit the Office of Strategic Philanthropic Partnerships website.