In addition to SEES-related science, engineering,
and education projects being funded through NSF’s standing
programs, new SEES activities in FY 2010 focused on climate change
and adaptation to its impacts. New solicitations were released that
addressed many aspects of climate research, including ocean acidification,
water sustainability and climate, dimensions of biodiversity, earth
systems modeling, and climate change education. These five solicitations
resulted in 70 awards totaling $66 million. Combined with support
for SEES-related research funded through the core programs, the
NSF invested more than $600 million in SEES-related activities in
FY10. Updated versions of these, and new solicitations, are anticipated
in the coming fiscal years.
The goal of the Water Sustainability and Climate (WSC) solicitation
is to understand and predict the interactions between the water
system and climate change, land use, the built environment,
and ecosystem function and services through place-based research
and integrative models.
In recognition of the need for basic research concerning the
nature, extent and impact of ocean acidification on oceanic
environments in the past, present and future, the goal of this
solicitation is to understand a) the chemistry and physical
chemistry of ocean acidification; b) how ocean acidification
interacts with processes at the organism level; and c) how the
earth system history informs our understanding of the effects
of ocean acidification on the present day and future ocean.
CCE seeks to establish a coordinated national network of regionally-
or thematically-based partnerships devoted to increasing the
adoption of effective, high quality educational programs and
resources related to the science of climate change and its impacts.
This solicitation is for proposals for development of Phase
I Partnerships (CCEP-I). CCEP-I grantees will receive up to
2 years of funding to support synthesis, network-building, and
strategic planning activities leading toward potential Phase
II Partnerships (CCEP-II).
The Dimensions of Biodiversity initiative seeks to characterize
biodiversity on Earth by using integrative, innovative approaches
to fill rapidly the most substantial gaps in our understanding
of the diversity of life on Earth. This campaign will take a
broad view of biodiversity, and in its initial phase will focus
on the integration of genetic, taxonomic, and functional dimensions
of biodiversity.
This activity enables interagency cooperation on one of the
most pressing problems of the millennium--climate change--how
it is likely to affect our world, and how we can proactively
plan for its consequences. This interdisciplinary grand challenge
calls for the development of next-generation Earth System Models
that include coupled and interactive representations of ecosystems,
agricultural working lands and forests, urban environments,
biogeochemistry, atmospheric chemistry, ocean and atmospheric
currents, the water cycle, land ice, and human activities.
