(FOA)-Biology
Integration Institutes (BII); December 20, 2020
Agency
National
Science Foundation
Directorate
for Biological Sciences
Description
In
the last century, the study of biology has slowly fragmented into subdisciplines,
creating a dynamic tension between unifying principles and increasingly
reductionist pursuits. The aim of this solicitation is to bring researchers
together around the common goal of understanding how the processes that sustain
life and enable biological innovation operate and interact within and across
different scales of organization, from molecules to cells, tissues to organisms,
species, ecosystems, biomes and the entire Earth. The Biology Integration
Institutes (BII) program supports collaborative teams of researchers
investigating questions that span multiple disciplines within and beyond
biology.
Integration
across biological disciplines is essential if we hope to understand the diverse
and ever-increasing data streams of modern biology and tackle emergent
questions about living organisms and the environment. Of equal importance is
the need for groundbreaking and sustainable training programs that prepare the
next generations of scientists to navigate the breadth of biological sciences,
training in multiple disciplines without sacrificing depth of learning or
innovation. In addition, the biology community must continue to develop
practices and adopt strategies that leverage rapid advances in
cyberinfrastructure and other technologies to bridge and integrate across subdisciplines and make resources accessible, re-usable,
and adaptable for unanticipated purposes. In these ways,BIO Integration Institutes
will enable the discoveries of life"s innovations
that will inspire new applications to drive our bioeconomy and provide solutions
to societal challenges.
While
this solicitation focuses on the integration
of biological disciplines, any field beyond biology may be
included as needed to address the overarching biological theme. Proposals may be
submitted in one of two tracks: (1) Design proposals are
for teams to develop communities and groundbreaking ideas to be submitted to
later competitions as Implementation proposals through diverse and sustained
activities, including workshops and follow-up meetings.
(2) Implementation proposals are for teams that have
already a) developed an Integrative Research Plan around a theme of
significance, b) designed an educational approach that employs effective methods
for depth and breadth of training, AND c) prepared a cohesive and sustainable
Management Plan that is ready for deployment.
Announcement
Number:
NSF
20-508
Closing
Date:
Letter
of Intent Due: December 20, 2019
Full
Proposals Due: February 06, 2020
Link
to Full Announcement
https://www.nsf.gov/pubs/2020/nsf20508/nsf20508.htm?WT.mc_id=USNSF_25&WT.mc_ev=click
Contact
Information
Reed
Beaman
(703)
292-7163