A couple of thoughts on the supposed "get rich quick" scheme that is climate change research. Let's look at the anatomy of a hypothetical $1 million federal grant to study climate change. 1/15 First, you need to know that approximately 50% goes straight to the principal investigator's (PI) institution in the form of overhead. Overhead is what universities use to fund everything from startup packages for new scientists to pay for research facilities. 2/15