Sponsor:
National Science Foundation (NSF)
Summary:
The Centers for Innovation and Community Engagement in Solid Earth Geohazards program supports university-based centers to advance research on the fundamental solid Earth processes that underpin natural hazards. Centers will catalyze, coordinate, and produce transformative research, lead innovation, and enable convergent approaches for systems-level insights that require the collective efforts of a large group of individuals. Centers provide community-scale leadership in two areas: convergence and innovation in systems-level science, and community engagement to develop a diverse and inclusive workforce, as well as a well-prepared and informed public.
The Program has two tracks. Track I – Center Catalyst awards are intended to provide resources to catalyze initiatives to develop future centers. These awards would support groups to develop the science, management, and broader impact concepts for of a major research center. Track II – Center Operation awards are intended to support the operation of a fully developed center.
For more information, view the full solicitation for the Centers for Innovation and Community Engagement in Solid Earth Geohazards program.
Award:
Track I: up to $500,000 for 2 years
Track II: up to $3,000,000 per year for 5 years
Limited Submission Requirements and Timeline:
Two (2) applications per institution are permitted under this solicitation.
Only proposals approved by the Division of Research and Economic Development may be submitted to this program. For such approval, Principal Investigators must first submit a white paper to preaward@boisestate.edu by October 28, 2021.
Your white paper should include:
- Cover Page
- Proposal Narrative for Track I or Track II (see details below)
Cover Page (1 page)
A cover page is required and should include the following details:
- Proposal Title
- Principal Investigator (PI)
- A list of proposed collaborators such as Co-PIs, Senior Personnel, and funded and non-funded collaborators
- Identify if the proposal is for Track I or Track II
Track I – Center Catalyst Proposal Narrative (up to 2 pages)
White papers for Track I must address the following in the Proposal Narrative:
- Describe the research and broader impact activities, including those related to creating a diverse and inclusive Center, proposed in sufficient detail to demonstrate the feasibility of the proposed work, potential for collaboration and synergy, and potential for transformative impact.
- Demonstrate how the scope of work for the Center will align with the priorities outlined in the in the National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine decadal survey report The Earth in Time, including; What is an earthquake? What drives volcanism? What are the causes and consequences of topographic change? and How can Earth science research reduce the risk and toll of geohazards?
- Include details about Center development activities, including goal setting, strategic planning and community building, as well as developing and piloting Center-scale activities that generate new knowledge with a broad range of impacts.
- Discuss how the Track I efforts can lead to a fully-fledged Center worthy of eventual support as a Track II – Center Operations award.
Track II – Center Operations Proposal Narrative (up to 3 pages)
White papers for Track II must address the following in the Proposal Narrative:
- Identify and describe the Major Activities (MA) of the proposed Center. For each proposed MA that involves a research thrust, provide a concise description of the long-term research goals and intellectual focus, and describe the planned research activities. For an MA that involves workforce development, community-building, or other similar activities, the need for the activity should be clearly established, including justification for the approach, arguments for why the proposed Center is the appropriate vehicle for the activity, and the expected impacts on science and the community.
- Describe how the Center will respond rapidly to emerging opportunities, promote synergy, enhance collaborations, engage in potentially transformative research, and integrate research, innovation, education, science communication, and efforts to broaden participation.
- Describe shared facilities and infrastructure to be established.
- Describe any proposed partnerships and/or collaborations with other institutions
- Describe the plans for the administration of the Center.
If selected to submit a full proposal, PIs must ensure that proposals meet all requirements stated in the RFP, in the announcement, and in the implementing laws and regulations related to this state grant program.
Key Submission Dates:
- October 28, 2021 – White paper due to preaward@boisestate.edu. We encourage you to cc your Dean for visibility as well.
- November 3, 2021 – Internal Awardees Notified
- November 30, 2021 – Letter of Intent Due via Fastlane (Authorized Organizational Representative approval is not required)
- March 8, 2021 – Full proposal due to OSP
- March 15, 2022 – Full proposal due to NSF
Important Notes on Requirements:
- Every Center must have the six attributes required in Section II, Program Description of the solicitation.
- Additional Track II notes:
- Any one individual may be the Principal Investigator (PI) or co-PI for only one Center Operation (Track II) proposal. Individuals may be listed as participating Senior Investigators on more than one proposal.
- For Track II – Center Operations proposals, only proposals built around a compelling research challenge or theme related to fundamental earthquake processes will be funded in this funding cycle. Future competitions may be broader in scope.
- A Major Activity will most frequently be a major research thrust of the Center but may also be a large-scale effort for workforce development, community-building, broadening participation, or other comparable effort to support broader impacts.
Did you find a limited submission opportunity? Email us at preaward@boisestate.edu!