News & Updates

NIH is awarding $170 million over five years, pending the availability of funds, to clinics and centers across the country for a new study that will develop algorithms to predict individual responses to food and dietary routines. The Nutrition for Precision Health powered by the All of Us Research Program (NPH) will recruit a diverse pool of 10,000 participants who are part of the NIH’s All of Us Research Program to inform more personalized nutrition recommendations.

Through this Prize, DOE aims to fund community-centric individuals, teams, or organizations for ongoing and/or proposed activities related to climate and clean energy that support, build trust, and strengthen relationships and partnerships with disadvantaged communities. Up to 10 organizations will share a total prize pool of up to $2.5M. Apply by Feb 25, 5 pm ET.

The DOE has issued an FOA for up to $100 million to support the deployment of novel technologies that can significantly change how communities, industries and businesses reduce emissions, promote energy efficiency, and drive grid modernization. The funding program, administered by DOE’s Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E), supports President Biden’s Building a Better America agenda by lowering emissions, generating good-paying jobs and securing US leadership on clean energy technologies.

The DOE announced a plan to provide up to $110 million for basic research and technology development to design and engineer plants and microbes for the production of advanced biofuels, bioproducts, and biomaterials. The research will elucidate fundamental biological processes to enable genome-scale redesign and editing to develop more productive and resilient crops and novel microbial strains that can efficiently produce valuable chemicals and materials that will advance a sustainable and secure bioeconomy.

The DOE has announced a funding opportunity for up to $24 million for new grants under the Established Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (DOE EPSCoR). The grants, to be awarded competitively on the basis of peer review, are aimed to help institutions in EPSCoR-eligible states to conduct research while building capabilities to enable these regions to compete more successfully for other federal R&D funding awards.

On behalf of the EPSCoR/IDeA Foundation, I’d like to thank you for your support this year. In 2021, we saw a return to somewhat “normal” with many meetings going back to an in-person format. We also added new resources including Cyndy Buckhaults as our communications consultant to revamp our website, start our newsletter and update our social media, and Stephanie Cooke to provide administrative support.

Robin Boineau, MD, MA, has been selected as the new director of the Office of Clinical and Regulatory Affairs (OCRA) at the NIH National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health.

As director of OCRA, Boineau leads a team that serves as a resource for the planning, implementation, and oversight of clinical research funded by NCCIH. OCRA plays a crucial role in maximizing the success, scientific potential, and impact of NCCIH-supported clinical research and in minimizing the risk to research participants.

Dr. Sethuraman Panchanathan, Director of the NSF, was awarded the NAI Founder’s Award during the National Academy of Inventors 2021 Day 1. Award was presented by Paul Sanberg, President of NAI.

USDA NIFA has announced an investment of over $50 million to 140 organizations and institutions that teach and train beginning farmers and ranchers.

In fiscal year 2020, NIFA awarded $16,783,829 in Beginning Farmer and Rancher Development Program (BFRDP) grants. In fiscal year 2021, thanks to enhanced funding from the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act of 2021, the total award investment for this program was $50,026,684, which included 85 newly funded grants and 55 continuation projects.

Funded projects from USDA EPSCoR jurisdictions include:

RII Track-2 FEC builds interjurisdictional collaborative teams of EPSCoR investigators in STEM focus areas consistent with NSF priorities. Projects are investigator-driven and must include researchers from at least two EPSCoR eligible jurisdictions with complementary expertise and resources necessary to address challenges, which neither party could address as well or rapidly independently. The STEM research and education activities should seek to broaden participation through the strategic inclusion and integration of diverse individuals, institutions, and sectors throughout the project. Proposals must describe a comprehensive and integrated vision to drive discovery and build sustainable STEM capacity that exemplifies diversity of all types (individual, institutional, geographic, and disciplinary). The development of early-career faculty that are underrepresented in the chosen STEM field and the integration and inclusion of Minority Serving Institutions (MSIs) and Primarily Undergraduate Institutions (PUIs) and community colleges is a critical component of this sustainable STEM capacity.

For FY 2022, Track-2 proposals are invited on a single topic: “Advancing research towards industries of tomorrow to ensure economic growth for EPSCoR jurisdictions.”