This IRG focuses on both scientific challenges and technological opportunities that arise from controlling how much or how fast a soft interface forms or deforms, with systems ranging from nanoscale colloids to macroscopic field-activated suspensions.  By examining how stress variations at an interface can alter properties in the bulk and, conversely, how tailoring bulk paprameters can guide the interface dynamics, the research endeavors to establish the link between interface dynamics and the properties of the material as a whole.  Establishing such a link will open up opportunities for designing specific material responses and will provide a pathway towards innovative applications.