Priorities
Funding Opportunities
Proposal Format
Policy on Indirect Costs
Recent Grant Awards

The Commission's Research Program

The Marine Mammal Commission carries out a small research program that supports projects aimed at meeting the conservation and protection goals of the Marine Mammal Protection Act. The Commission’s research program includes all relevant activities including basic and applied research, workshops, literature reviews, compilation of expert opinion, and drafting manuscripts. The research program is administered by the Commission’s Scientific Program staff in consultation with a research subcommittee composed of members of the Commission and the Committee of Scientific Advisors on Marine Mammals. Click here for more information.

Research Priorities

The research program awards grants based on proposals submitted in response to general Requests for Proposals (RFPs), unsolicited proposals, and specific research topics identified by the Commission. The amount of funds available varies from year to year, depending on the level of congressional appropriations. Since it was established in 1972, the Commission has supported more than 1,000 projects. Final reports of most Commission-sponsored studies are available from the National Technical Information Service or directly from the Commission, and many studies have led to publication in books or scientific journals.

The Commission encourages the submission of proposals for innovative and well-designed projects that address important conservation issues for marine mammals or marine ecosystems but that may be unlikely to obtain funding through traditional research agencies. On occasion, the Commission provides start-up or seed money for promising research projects that, once proven feasible, may be supported later by other federal agencies. The Commission encourages applicants to obtain additional support by collaborating with, or soliciting funds from, other institutions, organizations, or agencies.

Funding Opportunities

The Commission accepts unsolicited proposals at any time; however, no further funding decisions are anticipated until early 2009. Potential applicants are encouraged to contact the Scientific Program Director by e-mail (bgisiner@mmc.gov) or telephone (301-504-0087) before undertaking a full, formal proposal. Proposals will be reviewed by the Commission’s Research Subcommittee and external experts, as deemed necessary by the Commission. Proposal reviews will follow standard National Science Foundation and National Academy of Sciences guidelines for conflict of interest and confidentiality.

Proposal Format

The proposal body must not exceed a maximum of eight pages, single-sided (four pages, double- sided) using 12-point font, exclusive of cover page, bibliography, budget pages, curricula vitae, and supporting materials.

• Cover Page: The Cover Page shall include the following information, in any format:

• Title:The full title of the proposal. A shorter running title is optional.
• Keywords (optional): A list of three to six keywords, indicating species, regions, research methods, or disciplinary areas of effort.
• Principal Investigator (PI): Please list only one (corresponding) principal investigator even if your proposal team consists of two or more co-equal investigators and institutions (also see instructions for Curricula Vitae).
• PI Contact Information: Address, phone, and e-mail for the principal investigator
• Financial Point of Contact (POC): An individual (with or without institutional affiliation, as appropriate) who will be responsible for contractual and fiscal matters. This may or may not be the same individual and institution listed as principal investigator.
• Financial POC Information: Address, phone, and e-mail.

• Proposal Body (suggested format)
• Abstract (optional): Provide an abstract of the proposal summarizing the problem or question to be addressed, the methods to be used to address the problem or question, possible outcomes of the work, and the utility of the research for advancing science and management related to marine mammals. Please limit the abstract to 200 words.
• Introduction, Background, or Problem Statement: Provide a review of past related effort by the research team or others. Indicate knowledge gaps, shortfalls of prior efforts, or challenges to further progress and describe how the proposed effort will address these issues.
• Goals and Objectives: Provide statements of both the general or broad goal of the proposed research and the specific objectives that will be addressed within the scope of this proposal to make progress toward that goal.
• Methods: Provide a detailed description of the methods of the investigation so that the reviewer can understand how you will address each of the specific objectives. If you are not conducting original research but are developing a workshop, review panel or other activity, describe the nature of the activity, the planned agenda or working format, likely attendees/participants, and tentative dates and location of the planned activity.
• Anticipated Outcomes: Describe the short-term outcomes, those anticipated to occur within the scope of effort and time span of the proposed project (e.g. completion of a workshop report, one or more peer-reviewed journal articles, an equipment prototype and report).
• Research and Management Utility (Long-Term Outcome): o Research and Management Utility (Long-term Outcome): Describe the anticipated long-term utility of the project and its implications for future research, management, or conservation activities.

• Budget and Time Line: Although there is no specified format for the budget pages, this section should provide sufficient detail to inform the reviewer of expenses or costs by general category (salary, equipment, supplies, travel, publication, overhead, miscellaneous) and by subtasks within the proposed effort, as appropriate. Include information on other sources of funding for the project, if applicable. For multi-year or multi-stage projects, include a timetable for completion of each phase as a means of gauging progress toward completion of the full proposed effort.

• Curricula Vitae, Research Team Qualifications: Provide a curriculum vitae or short biography of no more than two pages for all key members of the proposal team (those individuals whose unique background and experience are essential to completion of the project), including their experience or expertise related to the subject proposal. Although there can only be one corresponding principal investigator (see Title Page guidance), multiple co-investigators can be included in this portion of the proposal, if desired.

• Supporting Materials: Supporting materials such as recent publications, short descriptions of relevant work in progress or recently completed, organization charts or time lines will be accepted but should be limited to information absolutely essential to understanding the significance, approach, and context of the proposed work. It is highly recommended that supporting materials be limited to fewer than 30 pages or 5 Mb: the more material provided, the less likely it is to be used by the reviewers in developing their evaluations.

Submission process: Proposals should be submitted electronically in MS Word, WordPerfect, or Adobe PDF format to Ms. Mina Innes, Research Program Officer, Marine Mammal Commission, e-mail address minnes@mmc.gov.

Policy on Indirect Costs

Due to the limited amount of funds available for research awards and the nature of the Commission's goals and responsibilities, the Marine Mammal Commission has traditionally limited indirect costs for research grants and contracts awarded by the Commission to 10 percent of the total award. Indirect costs, or overhead, include, but are not limited to, operation and maintenance of facilities, general and departmental administration, and library expenses. Although the Commission recognizes the costs associated with the maintenance of research programs and the institutions that support them, the Commission believes it is necessary to limit its contributions to indirect costs to meet the unique and broad goals of the Marine Mammal Protection Act.

Recent Grant Awards

Research Proposals Funded Under the Commission's FY2008 Solicitation

Category: Conservation of critically endangered marine mammal species or populations

• C. Scott Baker, Hatfield Marine Science Center, Oregon State University: Genetic differentiation, individual dispersal and effective population size of the New Zealand Hector's and Maui’s dolphins: implications for management
• Yulia Ivashchenko, Seastar Scientific: Review of the Okhotsk Sea bowhead whale population

Category:  Indirect effects of fisheries on marine mammals

• Nélio Barros, Portland State University: Marine mammal-fishery interactions: assessing the effects of a gillnet ban on bottlenose dolphins from two Florida resident populations
• Jason Link, National Marine Fisheries Service, Northeast Fisheries Science Center: Marine mammal consumption of key prey fishes and invertebrates in the northeast United States: modeling, magnitude and sensitivity analysis
• Andrew Read, Duke University: An uncertainty analysis based on a modified PBR equation to assess relative risk of marine mammal stocks to indirect effects of fishing
• Federico G. Riet Sapriza, Universidad de la Republica, Uruguay: Foraging behavior and dietary preferences of South American sea lion, Otaria flavescens: resource competition with artisanal and coastal bottom trawl fishery in Uruguay

Projects Funded by the Commission in Fiscal 2008

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