Slots: 2. No more than two proposals across both tracks may be submitted by any Lead institution.
Deadlines
Internal Deadline: Friday, October 6th, 2023
LOI: November 16, 2023
External Deadline: March 15, 2024
Recurring Deadlines: March 15, Every Other Year Thereafter (LOI: November 16, Every Other Year Thereafter)
Award Information
Award Type: Standard Grant, Continuing Grant, or Cooperative Agreement
Estimated Number of Awards: 3 to 5
Anticipated Award Amount: $7,000,000
Who May Serve as PI: There are no restrictions or limits.
Link to Award: https://www.nsf.gov/pubs/2021/nsf21628/nsf21628.htm
Process for Limited Submissions
PIs must submit their application as a Limited Submission through the Research Initiatives and Infrastructure (RII) Application Portal: https://rii.usc.edu/oor-portal/. Use the template provided here: RII Limited Submission Applicant Template
Materials to submit include:
- (1) Two-Page Proposal Summary (1” margins; single-spaced; standard font type, e.g. Arial, Helvetica, Times New Roman, or Georgia typeface; font size: 11 pt). Page limit includes references and illustrations. Pages that exceed the 2-page limit will be excluded from review. You must use the template linked above.
- (2) CV – (5 pages maximum)
Note: The portal requires information about the PIs in addition to department and contact information, including the 10-digit USC ID#, Gender, and Ethnicity. Please have this material prepared before beginning this application.
Purpose
The Earth’s tectonics underpin many of the planet’s processes at a broad range of spatial and temporal scales, including earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, landslides and allied hazards. These solid Earth geohazards are responsible for trillions of dollars in damage and the loss of millions of lives in the history of the U.S., and these risks are anticipated to increase in the future as population increases in hazardous areas. Major advances in our understanding of the fundamental forces that drive catastrophic events are needed to respond effectively to this risk and to engage a well-informed populace living in the midst of these hazards.
The Centers for Innovation and Community Engagement in Solid Earth Geohazards are intended to catalyze, coordinate, and produce transformative research in the Earth processes that lead to solid Earth geohazards. Centers provide community-scale leadership in two areas: convergence and innovation in systems-level science, and community engagement to develop a diverse and inclusive workforce, as well as a well-prepared and informed public.
Centers will be built around a compelling research challenge or theme of significant scale and complexity that would require a coordinated approach beyond what can be accomplished by a small team of researchers. The program will support basic research on Earth processes, as well as the development of new methods needed to advance the science. The program will help facilitate new collaborations within observational, experimental, theoretical and computational domains that will be essential to address the most exciting questions at the cutting edge of Earth science. This program does not support efforts to operationalize monitoring, forecasting, or prediction of hazards, though partnerships could provide support for these activities.
Significant, long-term progress in advancing science requires a diverse and inclusive workforce that is highly skilled. Therefore, centers will also meaningfully improve the national welfare through bold and creative activities that broaden participation of underrepresented groups, develop a culture of equity and inclusion, and advance the geoscience workforce. The program’s focus on societally relevant problems provides a platform to engage and train students and postdocs from communities that have been underrepresented in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). Additionally, knowledge-sharing between groups carrying out fundamental research and those focused on mitigating and forecasting future hazards is critical for the health and safety of our country. Consequently, Centers will expand the impact of fundamental research to a wide range of stakeholders.
Visit our Institutionally Limited Submission webpage for more updates and other announcements.