NOAA Climate Program Funding Opportunities

In preparation for the early July publication of the FY 2010 funding opportunity announcement, information on individual programs that will be accepting project applications and the optional Letter of Intent process is now available.

General Program Information

Changing climate confronts us with significant economic, health, safety, and national security implications. NOAA has a significant responsibility in operational observation, research, prediction, and information management for studying climate and global change.

NOAA's climate mission is to "understand climate variability and change to enhance society's ability to plan and respond." This is an end-to-end endeavor whose overall objective is to provide decision-makers with a predictive understanding of the climate and to communicate climate information so that the public can incorporate it into their decisions.

The NOAA Climate Program Office (CPO) enhances NOAA's ability to achieve its climate mission through: 1) managing a competitive research program that funds high-priority climate science to advance understanding of atmospheric and oceanic processes as well as impacts and opportunities associated with changing climate conditions; 2) provision of strategic guidance and oversight for the agency's climate science and services programs; and 3) assisting in the lead of NOAA's climate communication, education, and professional development and training activities. CPO builds on NOAA's long-standing capabilities in climate variability and change research and prediction and partners with Federal, academic, private, and international organizations and agencies. NOAA's climate programs are key contributing elements of the interagency U.S. Climate Change Science Program (CCSP). These programs are addressing climate initiatives that encompass both the U.S. Global Change Research Program (USGCRP) and the Climate Change Research Initiative (CCRI).

Letter of Intent (LOI) Information

The purpose of the LOI process is to inform Program Managers of potential applicants to their Programs and to provide potential applicants with an opportunity to receive feedback on the relevance and likelihood of funding of their proposed projects. Program Managers will only encourage development of full applications for LOIs that describe projects deemed relevant to Program priorities. While it is in the best interests of applicants to submit an LOI, it is optional; applicants who do not submit an LOI are still eligible to prepare and submit full applications.

The LOI should provide a concise description of the proposed work and its relevance to the targeted program. The LOI should be no more than two pages in length and should include the components listed below. If these components are not included, the LOI risks a delayed response and may not be considered.

Identification of the program that is being targeted in the LOI.

Specification of a tentative project title in the LOI.

Name(s) and institution(s) of all Principal Investigator(s), and specification of which individual is the Lead Principal Investigator.

Statement of the problem.

Brief summary of work to be completed, methodology to be used, data sets needed or to be collected, data sharing provisions, and approximate cost of the project.

CPO Program Managers will review each LOI to determine whether it is responsive to the Program's goals, as indicated in the Information Sheets available at the link at the bottom of this page . An LOI response (e-mail or letter) will be sent back to the investigator within three weeks encouraging or discouraging a full application. The final decision to prepare and submit a full application is up to the investigator.

LOI Submission:

In order to receive feedback from the LOI process in advance of preparing a full proposal, all Letters of Intent should be received at the Climate Program Office by 5 p.m. Eastern Time, June 12, 2009. Applicants who have not received a response to their Letter of Intent within three weeks should contact the identified NOAA Program Manager.

Letters of Intent should be submitted by email to the NOAA Program Manager listed on the Information Sheets available at the link at the bottom of this page. If an applicant does not have access to email, a hard copy of the LOI may be sent to the appropriate Program Manager at NOAA Climate Program Office (R/CP1), 1315 East-West Highway, Silver Spring, MD 20910.

Award Information for Proposed Projects

A. Funding Availability
In FY 2008, approximately $14M in first-year funding was available for 102 new awards. While similar funds and number of awards are anticipated in FY 2010, the number of new awards and funding levels depends upon the final FY 2010 budget appropriations. It is anticipated that awards will be at a funding level between $50,000 and $200,000 per year (note that awards from the Sector Applications Research Program are limited to $150,000 per year.)

B. Project/Award Period
Projects will be led by principal investigators, over a period of one to three years, though this timeframe is program-specific (note that awards from the Sector Applications Research Program are limited to two years).

C. Evaluation Criteria
Applications will be evaluated in accordance with the evaluation criteria listed below: Importance/Relevance and Applicability of Application to the Program Goals (50%) This criterion ascertains whether there is intrinsic value in the proposed work and/or relevance to NOAA, federal, regional, state, or local activities. For the CPO Grant Program Competition, this includes importance and relevance to the scientific priorities of the selected Competition(s). Technical/Scientific Merit (50%) This criterion assesses whether the approach is technically sound and/or innovative, if the methods are appropriate, and whether there are clear project goals and objectives.

Information on programs that will be accepting individual applications in FY 2010 can be viewed at www.cpo.noaa.gov/index.jsp?pg=/opportunities/opp_index.jsp&opp=2010/program_elements.jsp.