Through the Collaborative Research Grant program, the RI Science & Technology Advisory Council (STAC) makes available funding to support multi-institutional, multi-disciplinary projects that focus on building research capacity and infrastructure across institutions to advance the competitiveness of RI researchers. This Call for Proposals is in support of STAC’s partnership with the National Science Foundation’s (NSF) Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR).
Approximately $800,000 in competitive funding is offered to support research related to assessing and understanding the impact of global climate change and environmental stressors on our watersheds, coastal and marine environments. Climate change and environmental stressors impact watersheds, coasts, and marine environments in multiple ways: rainfall patterns, food web structures, coastline delineations, fisheries abundance and coastal economies. The resilience of these systems and the ability to predict how these systems may fluctuate are of critical importance to maintaining a healthy and vibrant coastal ecosystem. By developing novel sensor technologies, enhancing bio imaging capabilities, incorporating art/design into understanding coastal processes and systems, and incorporating modelers and social scientists into a cohesive framework, Rhode Island investigators will be well positioned to make significant intellectual and technological contributions into the understanding and management of coastal systems.
Eligible proposals will address one or more of the following research themes:
- Assessment and Impacts utilizing natural sciences, coupled with advances in nanosensor design and bioinformatics to assess the inputs and impacts of environmental stressors (i.e. contaminants and climate change) on coastal communities (biological and human)
- Visualization and Imaging utilizing new advances in visualization and imaging to better enhance the potential of scientific visualization for addressing complex coastal science research questions
- Forecasting and Management integrating observational and experimental data across disciplines for coastal forecasting and management.
Proposals are sought that can 1) lead to major new research opportunities that can be supported by federal agencies, corporations and/or foundations; 2) contribute towards current or future economic development of the state through technology development and commercialization and/or 3) contribute to infrastructure development that significantly advances the competitiveness of scientists in Rhode Island to secure additional funding.
Letters of Intent are due September 23, 2015 with Proposals due October 21, 2015