Membership of a well-reputed international environmental economics research and capacity building network such as the EfD initiative was among the criteria when the Chilean EfD Center, the Research Nucleus on Environmental and Natural Resource Economics (NENRE) was granted another 3 years round of funding (2015-2017) by the Millennium Social Sciences Initiative, from the Ministry of Economics, Promotion and Tourism, of the Government of Chile.
The renewal process started back in May 2014, in a very competitive environment. Only five new Social Science Nucleus had the support by ICM from 28 proposal and only two of four existing Nucleus were renewed, among them the Research Nucleus on Environmental and Natural Resource Economics (NENRE), Universidad de Concepción, which is the Chilean node of the EfD inititaive
Among several criteria considered by the international evaluators, in the field of networking they highlighted “to become a member of a well-reputed international environmental economics research and capacity building network” such as the EfD initiative.
The funding received should serve to develop high standard research, formation of new researchers and outreach.