Completed

Institutionally coordinated // Limit 1 // PI: J. M. Wang-Roveda (Electrical and Computer Engineering)
 

Institutionally coordinated submission. Contact RDS for more information.
Number of pre-proporsals allowed as lead institution: two

Artificial Intelligence (AI) has advanced tremendously and today promises personalized healthcare; enhanced national security; improved transportation; and more effective education, to name just a few benefits. Increased computing power, the availability of large datasets and streaming data, and algorithmic advances in machine learning (ML) have made it possible for AI research and development to create new sectors of the economy and revitalize industries. Continued advancement, enabled by sustained federal investment and channeled toward issues of national importance, holds the potential for further economic impact and quality-of-life improvements.

The 2023 update to the National Artificial Intelligence Research and Development Strategic Plan, informed by visioning activities in the scientific community as well as interaction with the public, identifies as its first strategic objective the need to make long-term investments in AI research in areas with the potential for long-term payoffs in AI. AI Institutes represent a cornerstone Federal Government commitment to fostering long-term, fundamental research in AI while also delivering significantly on each of the other eight objectives in that strategy. The National Security Commission on Artificial Intelligence (NSCAI) identifies AI Institutes as a key component of a bold, sustained federal push to scale and coordinate federal AI R&D funding and to reinforce the foundation of technical leadership in AI.

This program is a multisector effort led by the National Science Foundation (NSF), in partnership with the Simons Foundation (SF), the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), Department of Defense (DOD) Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering (OUSD (R&E)), Capital One Financial Corporation (Capital One), and Intel Corporation (Intel).

This program solicitation expands the nationwide network of AI Research Institutes with new funding opportunities over the next two years. In this round, the program invites proposals for institutes that have a principal focus in one of the following themes aimed at transformational advances in a range of economic sectors, and science and engineering fields:

• Group 1 - Awards anticipated in FY 2024:
  • Theme 1: AI for Astronomical Sciences
     
• Group 2 - Awards anticipated in FY 2025:
  • Theme 2: AI for Discovery in Materials Research
  • Theme 3: Strengthening AI

Institutionally Coordinated // Limit: 1 //  Contact RDS for more information

This Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) invites applications from eligible academic and research institutions to apply for funding to modernize existing or construct new biomedical research facilities. Applications will be accepted from public and private nonprofit institutions of higher education as well as from non-profit research organizations. Applications from both research-intensive institutions and Institutions of Emerging Excellence (IEE) in biomedical research, both highly resourced and low-resourced institutions, from all geographic regions in the nation are strongly encouraged.

NIH recognizes the importance of all institutions of higher learning in contributing to the nation’s research capacity. The goal of this NOFO is to modernize biomedical research infrastructure to strengthen biomedical research programs. Each project is expected to provide long-term improvements to the institutional research infrastructure. Intended projects are the construction or modernization of core facilities and the development of other shared research infrastructure serving an institution-wide research community with broad impact on biomedical research.

Institutions with C06 awards funded under the Biomedical Research Facility Program (NOFOs PAR-21-139, PAR-22-088 or PAR-23-045) are not eligible to apply to this NOFO, provided the awards are active on the receipt date for this NOFO. Thus, only one C06 Biomedical Research Facility active award per institution would be allowed at any given time.

Application budgets are not limited but need to reflect the actual needs of the proposed project. The maximum award budget from Federal funds is $8,000,000 direct cost. Applications with a budget less than $3,000,000 direct cost will not be considered. Since the scope of different projects will vary, it is anticipated that the size of the awards will vary.

Limit: Two applications per department*  // PIs: 
B. Wen (Child Health) 
M. Lee Frazure (Physiology)
A.Blythe C. (Asthma/Airway Disease Research Center)

*Each department may submit only two applications annually and is limited to a maximum of three active fellowships at any one time.

The Parker B. Francis Fellowship provides research support to clinical and basic scientists embarking on careers in clinical, laboratory or translational science related to Pulmonary, Critical Care and Sleep Medicine at a U.S. or Canadian university or research institution. The ideal candidate is one with evidence of strong aptitude in research and who is in transition from post-doctoral trainee to independent investigator. It is essential that there be evidence of accomplishment and proficiency in research. Few applicants who are just beginning research training and have only one or two research publications are funded. 

Applicants are eligible to apply for a PBF Fellowship if at the time of application they are:

1. Scientists holding a relevant doctoral degree (e.g., M.D., Ph.D., Sc.D., D.V.M., Dr. P.H.) who are embarking on a career in clinical, laboratory or translational science related to Pulmonary, Critical Care and Sleep Medicine at a U.S. or Canadian university or research institution.

2. A citizen or permanent resident of the U.S. or Canada or or holder of a Visa that spans the entire project period of the grant.

3. A Ph.D. or other non-M.D. scientist no more than seven years beyond completion of their doctoral degree or an M.D. scientist no more than seven years beyond clinical training (i.e., residency, internship, clinical fellowship) at the time of application. Candidates with greater than seven years since the doctoral degree require approval for continued training from the Scientific Director of the PBF Fellowship Program.

4. Applicants must be approved by their department to apply for the PBF Fellowship. Institutions may have no more than three Parker B. Francis Fellows in a single department at a given time, a department may submit nor more than two applications annually, and a mentor may sponsor only one application annually.

5. Individuals are not eligible for a PBF Fellowship if, at the time of application, they are or have been principal investigator on an NIH K or R series research award or other nationally competitive research award at the comparable level.

6. If a PBF Fellow receives an NIH K or Research Award or any nationally competitive grant at a similar level, at any point on or after the start date of the PBF award, the amount of the award will be changed per the Allowable Cost policy. Please contact PBF@thoracic.org for more information.

7. PBF Fellows are required to have at least 75 percent of their time available for research. Most successful candidates have two-to-five years of research experience and a minimum of two or three research publications at the time of fellowship application.

MENTORS
Mentorship of the fellow by an established investigator is required. Any established faculty scientist at a university or a not-for-profit research institution may mentor a candidate for fellowship. Mentors at government or corporate laboratories are not eligible. The mentor should be in a position to guarantee that 75 percent of a fellow's time is available for research. The mentor should be committed to fostering the candidate's career advancement and should be the primary scientific advisor. Secondary scientific mentors at the same or a different institution are encouraged but not required. Their roles should be described in the body of the application. Many fellows spend some portion of their fellowship years working with a secondary mentor, who is at another institution.

INSTITUTIONS
There are no restrictions regarding discipline or department. Clinical or basic science departments are suitable; however, it is expected that the proposed research will focus on lung biology or lung disease. Awards are limited to institutions located in the US and Canada, including medical schools, universities, major hospitals or other institutions affiliated with major universities. Each department may submit only two applications annually and is limited to a maximum of three active fellowships at any one time.

NOTES ABOUT OTHER GRANT SUPPORT
Individuals are not eligible for a PBF Fellowship if, at the time of application, they are or have been principal investigator on an NIH K or R series research award or other nationally competitive research award at a comparable level.

PBF Fellows in the second or third year of their Fellowship, who receive an NIH K or R series award or similar grant, may request approval to retain the Fellowship and to reallocate a portion of the Fellowship salary support to supplies or other research costs. In fact, obtaining research grants is an appropriate goal for PFB Fellows. Click here to learn more about the Allowable Cost Policy.

Awards will not be given if either the fellow or mentor currently holds funding from the tobacco industry, even if the tobacco monies will not be used to support the PBF sponsored research.

APPROPRIATE TOPICS
A broad array of approaches to pulmonary and critical care medicine, ranging from cell and molecular studies, to those involving epidemiologic and clinical aspects of human subjects are appropriate. We also encourage applications from pulmonary medicine specialists interested in pursuing research in bioethical aspects of pulmonary medicine or critical care. Potential topics include, but are not limited to, the ethics of clinical trials in critical care, end-of-life decisions and resource allocation. The context of all these topics should be pulmonary biology and lung disease. Applicants must meet all the eligibility standards. Mentors and/or applicants considering whether a particular area is appropriate are encouraged to discuss potential projects with the Scientific Director of the PBF Fellowship Program, Polly E. Parsons, M.D.

BUDGET

The Parker B. Francis Fellowship provides three years of funding. The budget year begins July 1 and ends June 30. The budget guidelines are included below.

The total budget for individuals starting a PBF Fellowship in 2022 is $225,000 over three years or $75,000 per year.

Allowable costs are restricted to the PBF Fellow’s salary plus fringe benefits and may include travel to a maximum of $2,000 per year. Any costs other than the Fellow’s salary support and travel allocation must be approved by the Scientific Director of the PBF Fellowship Program.

Direct research project costs should be supported by the mentor’s research grants. Such grants are an essential part of the application as documentation of sufficient financial support to complete the fellow’s project.

Indirect costs and equipment purchases are not allowed.

It is permissible to supplement a Parker B. Francis stipend with funds from research grants, departmental funds or clinical income (if clinical duties are minimal). If a supplement is accepted, an explanation regarding its source and subsequent obligations must be provided to the PBF Fellowship Program Office. Fellows are also encouraged to apply for additional grant support after receiving a PBF award.

If there is an unexpended balance at the end of the second fellowship year, the next year's award will be reduced by that amount. In the final year, any unexpended balance in excess of $1,000 must be returned to the Francis Family Foundation in Kansas City, Missouri.

No applicants // Limit: 1 // Tickets Available: 1 

Only one application per institution is allowed.

The Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act (CERCLA) was amended by the Small Business Liability Relief and Brownfields Revitalization Act in 2002 to include Section 104(k), which provides federal financial assistance authorities for brownfields revitalization, including grants for assessment, cleanup, and revolving loan funds. The Brownfields Utilization, Investment, and Local Development (BUILD) Act (Public Law 115- 141) enacted in 2018 reauthorized EPA’s Brownfields Program and made additional amendments to CERCLA that affect EPA’s brownfield grant authorities, and ownership and liability provisions. (Note: References to CERCLA in this solicitation refer to CERCLA as amended by the 2002 Small Business Liability Relief and Brownfields Revitalization Act and the 2018 BUILD Act.) EPA’s Brownfields Program provides funds to empower states, Tribal Nations, communities, and nonprofit organizations to prevent, inventory, assess, clean up, and reuse brownfield sites. This guidance provides information on applying for Multipurpose Grants.

A Multipurpose (MP) Grant is appropriate for communities that have identified, through community engagement efforts, a discrete area (such as a neighborhood, a number of neighboring towns, a district, a corridor, a shared planning area or a census tract) with one or more brownfield sites. The target area may not include communities that are located in distinctly different geographic areas. 

Multipurpose Grant funds provide funding for communities to carry out a range of eligible assessment and cleanup activities, including planning and additional community engagement activities. The performance period for these grants is up to five years.

An applicant can apply for up to $1,000,000 and should demonstrate how grant funds will result in at least:

• one Phase II environmental site assessment;
• one brownfield site cleanup; and
• an overall plan for revitalization that includes a feasible reuse strategy for one or more brownfield sites, if there is not already a plan in place.

No applicants // Limit: 2 // Tickets Available: 2 

Institutions may submit up to two applications under this Funding Opportunity so long as each one describes working with a distinct beneficiary community. 

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is seeking applications for cooperative agreements to support the data, reporting, and evidence-building capacity of program beneficiaries, which include, recipients of grant funding from EPA as direct recipients of EPA funding and subrecipients who can participate in the Clean Water and Safe Drinking Water programs, particularly for those representing small, underserved, and/or tribal communities that are applying for or receiving EPA grant funding, including but not limited to funding under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), Public Law 117-58 [also known as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL)] funding and the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), Public Law 117-169.

Applicants should describe how they would collaborate with other EPA funded technical assistance providers (e.g., Environmental Justice Thriving Communities Technical Assistance Centers, EPA Environmental Finance Centers and Technical Assistance for Brownfields recipients) to avoid duplication of effort and share best practices. Additionally, as provided in EPA’s General Terms and Conditions “Copyrighted Material and Data” (a link to which can be found in Section VI.w of EPA Solicitation Clauses), EPA may authorize the successful applicant to use copyrighted works or other data developed with Agency funds by other Federally funded technical assistance providers, or to require that the successful applicant allow other Federally funded technical assistance providers to use works or data developed with EPA funds, when such use promotes efficient and effective use of Federal grant funds.

EPA expects to make between 4 to 8 incrementally funded awards with periods of performance of up to three years with total funding of approximately up to $500,000 per award depending on funding availability, the quality of applications, satisfactory progress, and other applicable considerations. The specific number of awards and the amounts may vary from these estimates. The awards for selected projects will be in the form of cooperative agreements as it is expected that there will be substantial involvement and interaction between the applicant and EPA. The total estimated funding for this competitive opportunity is approximately $4 million.

No applicants  // Limit: 1 // Tickets Available: 1 

An organization may only submit 1 proposal as the lead. There is no limit on the number of proposals on which an organization can be included as a sub-recipient.

The National Science Foundation (NSF) is soliciting proposals for managing the operation and maintenance of the National Geophysical Facility (hereafter referred to as NGF) an NSF-funded major facility. The NGF is designed to enable the research community to ask, and address, questions about a variety of Earth processes from local to global scales. NGF will operate global and regional networks of sensors; provide a lending library of instrumentation and support services to enable PI-led field experiments; support archiving, quality control, and delivery of geophysical data and data product development; and provide education, outreach, workforce development, and community engagement activities that serve a wide range of audiences. NGF will be a single facility, with a single operator that will succeed NSF’s current geophysical facilities, the Seismological Facility for the Advancement of GEoscience (SAGE) and the Geodetic Facility for the Advancement of GEoscience (GAGE).

The award recipient will work closely with NSF and the scientific community to ensure that NGF capabilities support, and advance, Earth Sciences and related disciplines. In cooperation with NSF, and within available resources, the recipient will plan and execute a viable, coherent, and inclusive program to: (1) streamline the management and operations of existing geophysical facility capabilities into one consolidated geophysical facility; (2) enhance existing facility capabilities in instrumentation, data services and cyberinfrastructure; and (3) implement a bold vision to broaden participation and foster a culture of equity and inclusion in the Earth Sciences and related disciplines.

The NSF Division of Earth Sciences (EAR) in the Directorate for Geosciences (GEO) has primary responsibility for the programmatic oversight of NGF and activities will be coordinated with the Division of Ocean Sciences (OCE), Division of Atmospheric and Geospace Sciences (AGS), and Office of Polar Programs (OPP). 

A single award will be made as a cooperative agreement with a duration of five years. NSF may renew the award for an additional five years, subject to availability of funds, the recipient's satisfactory performance, and review of a cost proposal for the second 5-year period. NSF’s decision will be informed by the National Science Board Statement on Recompetition of Major Facilities (NSB 2015-45 or its successor).
 

For planning purposes, proposers can assume a base budget of approximately $39.5 million during the first year of the award, beginning October 2025 and should plan for no more than a 6% budget increase in each of the subsequent years. All budget amounts given herein are tentative and for initial planning purposes only. Actual annual funding increments will be determined based on the detailed cost estimate required per Section VII.C below and an Annual Plan and Budget submitted by the recipient to, and approved by, NSF. Funding increments are subject annually to the availability of funds and will be contingent on the performance of the recipient. Ongoing recapitalization of instrumentation, and escalation factors used for cost estimating, should be articulated in the Cost Estimating Plan.

Transition funding of up to $1,000,000 for a duration of up to six (6) months will be available for organizations other than the incumbent organization. Relevant transition activities include interviewing and hiring personnel, establishing subcontracts, transferring data and property, and obtaining permits and licenses. Should a transition period be necessary, the incumbent will retain responsibility for management of NGF and the new recipient will have the appropriate level of access to incumbent personnel and facilities associated with NGF as determined by NSF. The funding request for a transition period should be made within the Transition Plan and should not be included in the formal cost estimate or proposed budget for the initial 5-year period but must conform to the same requirements.

No applicants // Limit: 1 // Tickets Available: 1 

An entity may submit only one Concept Paper and one Full Application to this FOA.

The research and development (R&D) activities to be funded under this FOA will support the government-wide approach to the climate crisis by driving the innovation that can lead to the deployment of clean energy technologies, which are critical for climate protection. Specifically, this FOA will invest in R&D to support continued innovation and cost reduction for high-voltage direct current (HVDC) voltage-source converter (VSC) transmission systems. This investment is intended to enable future grid upgrades required to integrate increasing renewable energy generation on to the grid, both onshore and offshore.EERE expects to make a total of approximately $10M of federal funding available for new awards under this FOA, subject to the availability of appropriated funds. EERE anticipates making approximately 3-4 awards under this FOA. EERE may issue one, multiple, or no awards. Individual awards may vary between $2.5M and $3.3M

No applicants // Limit: 1 // Tickets Available: 1 

Only one application per institution is allowed.

The purpose of the “Clinical Trial Methods in Neurological Disorders Course" Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) is to support educational activities in the mission areas of NINDS. The overarching goal of this R25 is to attract investigators who are new to or with limited exposure to clinical research, promote training of this workforce with the long-term goal of increasing the reliability and effectiveness of clinical trials by 1) introducing the principles of good clinical practice to investigators in any clinical neuroscience subspecialty, thereby providing a foundation for scientifically rigorous and ethical performance of patient oriented clinical research 2) exposing early career clinical scientists to the challenges and potential solutions to overcome these challenges in clinical research and, 3) increasing the number and expertise of knowledgeable clinical research investigators in the workforce to enhance the pipeline of scientifically sound, well-designed clinical trials. Long term, the development of well-trained, experienced clinical researchers with expertise will foster better clinical trials design and thereby hasten the introduction of improved regimens for therapy and prevention of neurological disorders into everyday medical practice and patient care.

To accomplish the stated over-arching goal, this NOFO will support educational activities with a primary focus on:

Courses for Skills Development: The goal of this activity is to support a clinical trial methodology course to train a group of talented, dedicated clinical neuroscience researchers to enable them to obtain external funding in the future. Key components of the course include a program of didactic lectures, individual or group projects, discussion sessions, and mentoring sessions.  The award will provide support for expenses for the implementation of the course in each year, including travel for all non-government course participants (faculty, advisors, and scholars) and all necessary materials and facilities, including meeting space, computer access, virtual meeting platform and course materials.

Research Experiences: An emphasis on early phase (i.e., phase I /II or pilot) trials within the mission areas of NINDS is essential, including pediatrics and rare diseases to address the full spectrum of neurological disorders. Developing trial designs for early phase trials are especially challenging yet critical to inform future scientific steps.  A major component of the educational course is expected to be small group protocol development sessions and individual one-on-one mentoring sessions with faculty, as well as outreach/engagement in the community to learn crucial aspects of trial development and potential recruitment. At the conclusion of the course, participant scholars should have developed a sound clinically relevant and feasible clinical trial protocol.

This NOFO aims to provide support for research education projects focused on clinical trial methodology in neurological disorders that are novel, innovative and designed to accomplish a specific goal based on a well-conceived evaluation plan. Applications will be expected to include a detailed plan to evaluate the effectiveness of the activities proposed and to include a plan for disseminating results of this program.

Research education programs may complement ongoing research training and education occurring at the applicant institution, but the proposed educational experiences must be distinct from those training and education programs currently receiving Federal support. R25 programs may augment institutional research training programs (e.g., T32, T90) but cannot be used to replace or circumvent Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award (NRSA) programs.

No applicants // Limit: 1 // Tickets Available: 1 

Only one application per institution is allowed.

The purpose of this Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) is to establish a Coordinating and Data Management Center (CDMC) that will coordinate and manage the activities of the Gastroenterology Neurology Research Centers (GNRCs), as described in the companion NOFO, RFA-DK-22-036, as part of the Gut Brain Parkinson's Disease Consortium (GBPDC). The responsibilities of the CDMC include, but are not limited to: (1) development of study protocols and coordination of enrollment of subjects into the study; (2) management of consortium-wide meetings and conferences, and cross-consortium collaborative activities; (3) provision of statistical and computational analysis support; and (4) establishing a central data hub for data capture, curation and management, and protocol development and registration. The CDMC will manage GBPDC-wide reporting and data and specimen sharing requirements, to include coordination of distribution of blood, biopsies, and other biological samples to the GNRCs. The CDMC will also manage the operations of the GBPDC Steering Committee and other operational committees and provide the infrastructure for the efficient design and conduct of multicenter studies and establish a repository of participant samples that may be used for ancillary studies of etiology and pathogenesis. NIDDK encourages applications from institutions that foster a diverse research environment, (for more information, see, e.g., NOT-OD-20-031), and encourages Research on Sex/Gender Differences, Sexual and Gender Minority-Related Research and Race/Ethnic Diversity (see NOT-DK-22-003). 

No applicants // Limit: 1 // Tickets Available: 1 

Only one application per institution is allowed.

The NEI Center Core Grant combines three or more Resource and/or Service Cores for a group of R01 investigators to enhance their research, consolidate resources, avoid duplication of efforts, and/or contribute to cost effectiveness by providing a service with lower costs or higher quality than could be attempted for independent projects by several individual Program Directors/Principal Investigators (PD(s)/PI(s)). Shared resources and facilities that are accessible to a group of independently funded investigators lead to greater productivity for the separate projects and can provide instrumentation and facilities that are too costly to be maintained by an individual investigator. The design and purpose of each Center Core may vary in how it serves its users. This program is designed to enhance an institution's environment and capability to conduct vision research and to facilitate collaborative studies of the visual system and its disorders and promote new research within the NEI mission and Strategic Plan.