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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

1) What is this funding opportunity?

This is a National Science Foundation (NSF) Division of Environmental Biology (DEB) grant opportunity supporting fundamental research in environmental biology. It is identified as Funding Opportunity Number 11-573 and is associated with CFDA 47.074 (Biological Sciences).

2) What kind of research does NSF DEB support under this opportunity?

The opportunity supports basic, fundamental research focused on understanding how biological systems work and change. The emphasis is on evolutionary and ecological patterns and processes shaping life on Earth, spanning levels from populations and species to communities and entire ecosystems.

3) Is this opportunity focused on basic science or applied development?

The program is aimed at basic science rather than applied development. Projects are expected to emphasize underlying ecological and evolutionary principles and mechanisms, rather than product development or implementation-focused work.

4) What spatial and temporal scales are appropriate for projects?

Projects may address questions across any spatial scale, from local habitats to global patterns, and across any temporal scale, from short-term ecological dynamics to deep evolutionary history.

5) What are examples of research topics within DEB’s scope?

The scope is broad and includes topics such as:

• Biodiversity, including the origins and maintenance of biological diversity
• Phylogenetic systematics and evolutionary relationships among organisms
• Molecular evolution and how genomes change over time
• Life history evolution and tradeoffs shaping reproduction, survival, and development
• Natural selection in real environments
• Core ecological and biogeographic research (species interactions, community structure, distribution patterns, range shifts)
• Ecosystem structure and functioning
• Ecosystem services
• Conservation biology
• Global change biology
• Biogeochemical cycles

6) Are ecosystem services and conservation biology included in the program scope?

Yes. The opportunity explicitly notes ecosystem services and conservation biology among the areas of interest, reflecting DEB’s interest in connections between ecological/evolutionary processes and broader Earth system dynamics.

7) What types of methods and approaches are allowed or encouraged?

DEB emphasizes methodological openness. Supported approaches may include field studies, laboratory experiments, and collection-based approaches (such as museum, herbarium, or other biological collections). Projects may be observational, manipulative/experimental, synthesis-oriented (integrating existing datasets or prior findings), and/or theoretical and quantitative (including analytical work and statistical or computational modeling).

8) Does the opportunity support synthesis research using existing data?

Yes. The program welcomes synthesis activities that integrate existing datasets or prior findings to generate new, general insights.

9) Are theoretical, analytical, statistical, or computational modeling approaches supported?

Yes. The opportunity explicitly supports theoretical and quantitative approaches, including analytical work and statistical or computational modeling.

10) What is the administrative category of this grant program?

Administratively, it is described as a discretionary grant program under NSF’s science and technology research and development category.

11) How many awards were anticipated and what was the estimated total funding?

The opportunity anticipated roughly 200 awards and listed an estimated total funding amount of $72,000,000.

12) Is cost sharing or matching required?

No. Cost sharing or matching was not required.

13) Who is eligible to apply?

Eligibility was described as unrestricted, meaning it was broadly open to applicant types, subject to any clarifications in the official program text.

14) Is there a preliminary proposal requirement?

Yes. The process used a two-stage submission structure in which preliminary proposals were required first.

15) Can an applicant submit a full proposal without submitting a preliminary proposal?

No. Full proposals were submitted by invitation only, following the preliminary proposal stage.

16) What were the annual due dates for submissions?

The annual due dates listed were January 9 for preliminary proposals (due by 5 p.m. local time of the proposer) and August 2 for invited full proposals.

17) What time zone or time standard applied to the preliminary proposal deadline?

The preliminary proposal deadline was listed as due by 5 p.m. local time of the proposer.

18) When was the opportunity posted and when did it close?

The opportunity was posted on August 25, 2011. The original and current closing date listed was August 2, 2012.

19) Is this opportunity still open?

No. The opportunity was archived on November 6, 2012.

20) Where can applicants find the official program details?

Official details are associated with the NSF publication for this opportunity, referenced as NSF 11-573.

21) Who should be contacted for Grants.gov access issues related to this announcement?

For access issues with the full announcement through Grants.gov, the contact provided was NSF Grants.gov support at grantsgovsupport@nsf.gov.

22) What CFDA number is associated with this opportunity?

The opportunity is associated with CFDA 47.074 (Biological Sciences).

23) What levels of biological organization does the program focus on?

The focus includes understanding biological systems from the level of populations and species up through communities and entire ecosystems.

24) Does the program connect ecology and evolution to broader Earth system dynamics?

Yes. The scope includes areas like global change biology and biogeochemical cycles, highlighting interest in how ecological and evolutionary processes connect to broader Earth system dynamics.