NSF Strengthening American Infrastructure (SAI)

NSF Strengthening American Infrastructure (SAI) is sponsored by National Science Foundation. Seeks human-centered, fundamental research on strengthening American infrastructure.

NSF 25-534: Strengthening American Infrastructure (SAI) | NSF - U.S. National Science Foundation Archived funding opportunity This solicitation is archived. NSF 25-534: Strengthening American Infrastructure (SAI) Download the solicitation (PDF, 0.

9mb) U.S. National Science Foundation Directorate for Social, Behavioral and Economic Sciences Directorate for Biological Sciences Directorate for Computer and Information Science and Engineering Directorate for STEM Education Directorate for Engineering Directorate for Geosciences Directorate for Mathematical and Physical Sciences Office of Integrative Activities Full Proposal Deadline(s) (due by 5 p. m.

submitting organization’s local time): Important Information And Revision Notes This revision adds For-profit organizations and Tribal Nations to the types of organizations eligible to submit proposals.

Any proposal submitted in response to this solicitation should be submitted in accordance with the NSF Proposal & Award Policies & Procedures Guide (PAPPG) that is in effect for the relevant due date to which the proposal is being submitted.

The NSF PAPPG is regularly revised and it is the responsibility of the proposer to ensure that the proposal meets the requirements specified in this solicitation and the applicable version of the PAPPG. Submitting a proposal prior to a specified deadline does not negate this requirement.

Summary Of Program Requirements Strengthening American Infrastructure (SAI) Strengthening American Infrastructure (SAI) is an NSF program seeking to stimulate human-centered, use-inspired, fundamental and potentially transformative research aimed at strengthening America’s infrastructure. Effective infrastructure provides a strong foundation for socioeconomic vitality and broad improvement in quality of life.

Robust, reliable and effective infrastructure spurs private-sector innovation, grows the economy, creates jobs, makes public-sector service provision more efficient, strengthens communities, promotes equal opportunity, protects the natural environment, enhances national security and fuels American leadership. Achieving these objectives requires the integration of expertise from across all science and engineering disciplines.

SAI focuses on how fundamental knowledge about human reasoning and decision-making, governance, and social and cultural processes enables the building and maintenance of effective infrastructure that improves lives and society and builds on advances in technology and engineering.

Successful projects will represent a convergence of expertise in one or more social, behavioral or economic sciences, deeply integrated with other disciplines to support substantial and potentially pathbreaking fundamental research applied to strengthening a specific focal infrastructure. General inquiries regarding this funding opportunity should be sent to NSF-SAI@nsf. gov .

Broadening Participation In STEM: NSF recognizes the unique lived experiences of individuals from communities that are underrepresented and/or underserved in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) and the barriers to inclusion and access to STEM education and careers.

NSF highly encourages the leadership, partnership, and contributions in all NSF opportunities of individuals who are members of such communities supported by NSF. This includes leading and designing STEM research and education proposals for funding; serving as peer reviewers, advisory committee members, and/or committee of visitor members; and serving as NSF leadership, program, and/or administrative staff.

NSF also highly encourages demographically diverse institutions of higher education (IHEs) to lead, partner, and contribute to NSF opportunities on behalf of their research and education communities. NSF expects that all individuals, including those who are members of groups that are underrepresented and/or underserved in STEM, are treated equitably and inclusively in the Foundation's proposal and award process.

NSF encourages IHEs that enroll, educate, graduate, and employ individuals who are members of groups underrepresented and/or underserved in STEM education programs and careers to lead, partner, and contribute to NSF opportunities, including leading and designing STEM research and education proposals for funding.

Such IHEs include, but may not be limited to, community colleges and two-year institutions, mission-based institutions such as Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Tribal Colleges and Universities (TCUs), women's colleges, and institutions that primarily serve persons with disabilities, as well as institutions defined by enrollment such as Predominantly Undergraduate Institutions (PUIs), Minority-Serving Institutions (MSIs), and Hispanic Serving Institutions (HSIs).

"Broadening participation in STEM" is the comprehensive phrase used by NSF to refer to the Foundation's goal of increasing the representation and diversity of individuals, organizations, and geographic regions that contribute to STEM teaching, research, and innovation. To broaden participation in STEM, it is necessary to address issues of equity, inclusion, and access in STEM education, training, and careers.

Whereas all NSF programs might support broadening participation components, some programs primarily focus on supporting broadening participation research and projects. Examples can be found on the NSF Broadening Participation in STEM website. Cognizant Program Officer(s): Please note that the following information is current at the time of publishing.

See program website for any updates to the points of contact. Joseph M.

Whitmeyer, SBE, Claudia Gonzalez-Vallejo, SBE, Christine Leuenberger, SBE, Applicable Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Number(s): --- Mathematical and Physical Sciences --- Computer and Information Science and Engineering --- Social Behavioral and Economic Sciences --- Office of Integrative Activities (OIA) Anticipated Type of Award: Standard Grant Estimated Number of Awards: 15 The number of awards is dependent upon the proposals received and the degree to which proposals meet the solicitation goals and NSF merit review criteria.

Anticipated Funding Amount: $9,600,000 Up to $9. 6 million pending the availability of funds and quality of proposals. Who May Submit Proposals: Proposals may only be submitted by the following: Institutions of Higher Education (IHEs): Two- and four-year IHEs (including community colleges) accredited in, and having a campus located in the US, acting on behalf of their faculty members.

Special Instructions for International Branch Campuses of US IHEs: If the proposal includes funding to be provided to an international branch campus of a US institution of higher education (including through use of sub-awards and consultant arrangements), the proposer must explain the benefit(s) to the project of performance at the international branch campus, and justify why the project activities cannot be performed at the US campus.

Non-profit, non-academic organizations: Independent museums, observatories, research laboratories, professional societies and similar organizations located in the U.S. that are directly associated with educational or research activities. For-profit organizations: U.S.-based commercial organizations, including small businesses, with strong capabilities in scientific or engineering research or education and a passion for innovation.

Tribal Nations: An American Indian or Alaska Native tribe, band, nation, pueblo, village, or community that the Secretary of the Interior acknowledges as a federally recognized tribe pursuant to the Federally Recognized Indian Tribe List Act of 1994, 25 U.S.C. §§ 5130-5131.

PIs must hold appointments at U.S.-based campuses/offices of eligible organizations (IHEs, Non-profit, non-academic organizations, For-profit organizations, Tribal Nations). There are no restrictions on who may serve as co-PIs, Senior/Key Personnel, or Consultant. Limit on Number of Proposals per Organization: There are no restrictions or limits.

Limit on Number of Proposals per PI or co-PI: An individual may appear as PI, co-PI, senior/key personnel or consultant on only one proposal submitted per annual deadline. This eligibility constraint will be strictly enforced. In the event an individual exceeds this limit, the first proposal received prior to the deadline will be accepted and the remainder will be returned without review.

This limitation includes proposals submitted by a lead organization, collaborative non-lead proposals, and any subawards included as part of a collaborative proposal involving multiple organizations. No exceptions will be made. Proposal Preparation and Submission Instructions A.

Proposal Preparation Instructions Letters of Intent: Not required Preliminary Proposal Submission: Not required Full Proposals submitted via Research. gov: NSF Proposal and Award Policies and Procedures Guide (PAPPG) guidelines apply. The complete text of the PAPPG is available electronically on the NSF website at: https://www.

nsf. gov/publications/pub_summ. jsp?

ods_key=pappg . Full Proposals submitted via Grants. gov: NSF Grants.

gov Application Guide: A Guide for the Preparation and Submission of NSF Applications via Grants. gov guidelines apply (Note: The NSF Grants. gov Application Guide is available on the Grants.

gov website and on the NSF website at: https://www. nsf. gov/publications/pub_summ.

jsp? ods_key=grantsgovguide ). Cost Sharing Requirements: Inclusion of voluntary committed cost sharing is prohibited.

Indirect Cost (F&A) Limitations: Other Budgetary Limitations: Full Proposal Deadline(s) (due by 5 p. m. submitting organization’s local time): Proposal Review Information Criteria National Science Board approved criteria apply.

Award Administration Information Additional award conditions apply. Please see the full text of this solicitation for further information. Standard NSF reporting requirements apply.

Robust, reliable and effective infrastructure spurs private-sector innovation, grows the economy, creates jobs, makes public-sector service provision more efficient, strengthens communities, promotes equal opportunity, protects the natural environment, enhances national security and fuels American leadership.

In recent years, NSF has been increasing its support for Strengthening American Infrastructure (SAI), seeking to stimulate fundamental, exploratory, potentially transformative , human-centered and use-inspired research aimed at strengthening America's infrastructure.

These activities specifically encouraged connections from across science and engineering disciplines, with a special focus on how basic knowledge of human reasoning, decision-making, governance, and social and cultural processes enables efforts to envision, build and maintain effective infrastructure that improves lives.

The aim of this solicitation is to invite novel and potentially transformative research that continues to contribute to the goal of strengthening American infrastructure and building the associated research community.

People rely on critical infrastructure to support and enable almost everything they do, including infrastructure that supports transportation, water, power, information technology, ecosystems, education, healthcare and emergency response systems. Businesses rely on critical infrastructure to ensure their security, protect their assets and communicate with suppliers and customers.

Cities, towns and rural and tribal areas rely on extensive networks of built and civic infrastructure. Scientific progress depends on a substantial research ecosystem infrastructure, including advanced technologies and instrumentation. Robust, effective infrastructure stimulates innovation and job growth and enables discovery and generation of new knowledge.

It also provides safety and security, improves quality of life and facilitates community welfare for all people for many years into the future. Utilizing a socio-ecological framework in the development of sustainable, resilient and equitable infrastructure can help address many urban and climatic challenges. Many infrastructure projects entail extensive planning and large initial costs.

Those substantial investments are worthwhile to the extent they provide long-term benefits and meet the needs of all people for a range of functions. Building such effective infrastructure requires a deep understanding of economic and social dynamics and the perceptions and choices of many diverse individuals and communities.

Whether involving transportation, energy, broadband, water, security, housing, forestry, agriculture, food supply, banking, health, education, communication or other essential services, infrastructure design that puts people and social welfare first is more likely to gain public support, function more effectively and serve more people.

The large costs and potentially large benefits of infrastructure investments mean that it is essential for those who build or maintain infrastructure to understand and incorporate relevant human and social factors in the earliest stages of design.

For example, transportation infrastructure to support automated vehicles will require advanced knowledge of economic and social structural influences on people's transportation needs and choices, as well as human perceptual and cognitive responses in a wide range of critical decision-making and task-switching scenarios.

Infrastructure developed to expand economic opportunity is likely to be more effective if it builds on recent evidence concerning human social biases, as well as discoveries regarding how social structures affect opportunity across groups.

Infrastructure designed to increase the speed and effectiveness of disaster response will work more effectively if its design is informed by the often complex cultural and human trust contingencies and differences in group access to response resources.

Healthcare and other public infrastructure that relies on the provision of fast and accurate information will be more effective when built from a knowledge base that includes the dynamics of how people process information and how cognitive processing changes under stress.

How people interact with built and natural environments is critical to understanding consequences of and design choices for large-scale infrastructure projects such as highways, dams, levees or managed ecosystems such as watersheds, forests and fisheries. NSF seeks to build research capacity that can address these and many other challenging infrastructure contexts that require a human- and social-centered research approach.

This solicitation offers support for research projects that will bring together experts from one or more of the social, behavioral and economic (SBE) science disciplines with experts across other scientific and engineering disciplines to support substantial and potentially pathbreaking and use-inspired fundamental research that will help to strengthen American infrastructure.

Submitted projects must be organized around social, behavioral or economic science concepts and offer the potential to substantially improve, strengthen and transform the design, development, use, deployment, cost-effectiveness, sustainability and maintenance of American infrastructure.

The social, behavioral and economic sciences bring substantial expertise and insight to the design and implementation of infrastructure, including basic understanding of barriers to equitable participation, uneven societal impacts, open access to information and data, health disparities, and other human and societal dimensions that interact with the needs for and benefits provided by infrastructure.

Proposals must bring deep leadership expertise in at least one SBE disciplinary program area , and provide details on how such SBE disciplinary expertise and leadership will contribute to strengthening American infrastructure.

Proposals must also bring relevant expertise in the focal infrastructure itself, which is likely to be in one or more research areas represented in the programs supported by the participating NSF directorates and offices: Biological Sciences (BIO) Computer and Information Science and Engineering (CISE) Mathematical and Physical Sciences (MPS) Office of Integrated Activities (OIA) Proposals must describe how this diverse expertise will be deeply integrated and applied to the specific infrastructure that is the focus of the proposed research.

Successful proposals will demonstrate an interdisciplinary and convergent approach beyond that of any single NSF program, division or directorate and will seek to advance both the SBE fields as well as the partnering fields in which they are based.

For the purpose of this solicitation, the focal infrastructure of the proposed research may be of any kind, including, for example, physical, cyber, social, economic, biological, technological or educational. However, the proposal must identify a specific, focal and well-defined infrastructure.

Proposals must be led by and build on a deep understanding of at least one SBE science relevant to the design, development or sustainability of the focal infrastructure.

These sciences may include those of psychology, learning, linguistics, anthropology, geography, network science, sociology, economics, decision science, organizational behavior, science and technology studies, law and science, governmental structures and other areas of basic SBE science supported in the disciplinary programs of the SBE directorate .

Proposals are encouraged to consider modeling approaches of both the underlying human and/or social processes and the identified infrastructure. Quantitative and predictive models can be used to compare alternative infrastructure approaches, as well as to advance improved dynamical systems.

Proposals must also include expertise in the focal infrastructure itself along with relevant areas of research supported by at least one of the other participating directorates or offices listed at the top of the solicitation.

The long-term aim of proposed research should be to understand how to better develop, design, build, rehabilitate and maintain robust and effective American infrastructure, and not solely on the social, behavioral or economic impacts of infrastructure.

Proposals that include development of new or improved performance metrics that can help stakeholders more effectively and efficiently assess infrastructure usability, cost-effectiveness, sustainability, resilience or adaptability to changing circumstances are also encouraged.

NSF welcomes and encourages proposals that include efforts to broaden participation of historically underrepresented groups in STEM and underrepresented regions in the development and conduct of the research.

Proposals from Minority Serving Institutions (MSIs) and Emerging Research Institutions (ERIs as defined in the CHIPS and Science Act of 2022) are highly encouraged, as are opportunities for participation by undergraduate and graduate students and postdoctoral fellows, K-12 students, industry stakeholders and others. Public-private partnerships can also be proposed.

Proposals should focus on infrastructure that produces broad societal impact, such as infrastructure that supports, for example, transportation (including public access, roads and vehicles), energy (including electricity, gas, solar and renewable), water and water management (including storms and floods), informatics and computing technology, national security infrastructure, built environments, and infrastructure supporting conservation and commerce.

Areas that present the greatest societal challenges are of special interest, including equitable access to and benefit from infrastructure, sustainability, climate impact and disaster mitigation, economic resilience, emerging technologies, and future safety, productivity and security for all citizens.

SAI research proposals will provide leadership from one or more SBE disciplinary perspectives integrated with areas supported by one or more other NSF directorate or office listed at the top of this solicitation in addressing the design, development and sustainability of a specific focal infrastructure.

These projects must advance a fundamental understanding of how a human-centered approach will support and strengthen American infrastructure. Pursuing a convergent research approach, projects should apply knowledge, techniques and expertise from multiple fields and sectors to create new frameworks and expand existing frameworks for addressing the research goals.

Each proposal should describe the symbiosis within the interdisciplinary team, including stakeholders in the infrastructure context and how the team will collaborate. Proposals should aim to advance understanding of how to improve and strengthen American infrastructure and not merely the human and societal impacts of infrastructure.

Projects will advance the basic science and engineering supporting improved infrastructure planning, development and implementation. They may also include tests or demonstrations of feasibility with infrastructure stakeholders and testbeds. SAI research awards will provide support for a period of up to three years and with a total overall (three-year) budget not exceeding $750,000.

In addition to the guidance specified in the PAPPG , including the requirement for a separate section labeled “Broader Impacts”, the project description must include the following separate sections, each clearly labeled with the headings used below: The focal infrastructure of the proposed research may be of any kind, including, for example physical, cyber, social, economic, biological, technological or educational.

The proposal must identify a specific and well-defined focal infrastructure. Examples include, but are not limited to, the electric grid, coastal flooding mitigation, electric vehicles, dams, pipelines, bridges, roads, emergency response systems, building construction, watershed management, communication networks and broadband, healthcare and medical technology, banking, voting technology, and manufacturing systems.

Proposals can also emphasize how quantitative and predictive modeling of a specific infrastructure can be improved by a human-centered approach. Proposals that focus on infrastructure generically or abstractly will be less competitive than those that focus on a very specific and well-defined infrastructure.

Proposals must be led by and build on a deep understanding of at least one SBE science relevant to the design, development and sustainability of the focal infrastructure.

This section of the proposal must explicitly identify these sciences, which may include psychology, learning, linguistics, anthropology, geography, network science, sociology, economics, decision science, organizational behavior, science and technology studies, law and science, governmental structures and other areas of basic SBE science supported in the disciplinary programs of the SBE directorate .

This section of the proposal should explain how the project is centered in and led by these areas of SBE science and who among the proposed leadership team brings that expertise. Proposals must also include expertise in the focal infrastructure and in areas of research supported by at least one of the other participating directorates or offices listed at the top of this solicitation.

This section of the proposal should identify those specific areas by listing NSF programs that support disciplinary research in related areas. Researchers from diverse fields are expected to work using a convergent approach , creating shared visions, models, methods and discoveries.

The “Integrative Research” section must describe how knowledge, techniques and expertise from multiple fields and sectors will create new insights into how to strengthen American infrastructure.

This section of the proposal should describe the intellectual and methodological symbiosis within the multidisciplinary team and how the team will collaborate to illuminate the technological, human and larger societal dimensions of strengthening American infrastructure.

The “Integrative Research” section must identify how the expertise of different members of the team will enable cross-discipline and cross-sector integration within the team and describe how the research will be integrated over the course of the project in support of a convergent approach. Access and inclusion are high priority goals of this program.

All proposals must therefore include an "Access and Inclusion" section that describes how the proposed project will address societal inclusion and equity relating to the focal infrastructure itself in a meaningful way.

Depending on the project, this section might address deeper understanding of issues leading to unequal access to or impacts of infrastructure, methods for mitigation of inequity, or designs of infrastructure that support access and inclusion. This section of the proposal must identify the relevant expertise represented on the proposing team for addressing infrastructure access and inclusion.

Note that this section of the proposal may be related to but should be distinct from discussion of broader impacts (which must be described in a separate labeled section of the project description, as required by the PAPPG). The long-term focus of proposed research should be on how infrastructure is designed and deployed and not solely on the social, behavioral or economic impacts of infrastructure.

All proposals must therefore identify stakeholders involved in the design and deployment of infrastructure, including private sector organizations, government agencies or community groups. This section of the proposal should address plans for engagement with those relevant stakeholders and how those stakeholders might participate in the design, testing and implementation of research-inspired changes to and improvement of infrastructure.

In this context, consideration should be given to the ways in which the proposed research supports approaches that advance sustainability and limit negative environmental impacts. Proposals emphasizing transition-to-practice are also encouraged. Such proposals can include piloting or prototyping of research results in addition to a standard research proposal or as a primary proposal focus.

C.

Principal Investigator Meetings To accelerate the rate of dissemination of ideas among researchers, to build an intellectual research core to address SAI human-centered infrastructure research challenges, and to enable enhanced research collaborations, the SAI program plans to host principal investigator (PI/co-PI) meetings every year with participation from all funded projects along with other representatives from academia, industry, government and community organizations.

PIs of SAI-funded projects must participate in these PI/co-PI meetings throughout the duration of the award. For multi-organizational projects, investigators from each collaborating organization are expected to participate. A substitute project representative may be designated to attend a PI/co-PI meeting, but only with prior approval from an NSF program officer.

Budgets for all projects should include sufficient funding for one or more designated SAI project representatives (PI/co-PI/senior personnel or NSF-approved replacement) to attend each SAI PI/co-PI meeting during the proposed lifetime of the award. For budget preparation purposes, PIs should assume these meetings will be held in person in the Washington, DC, area.

Anticipated Type of Award: Standard Grant Estimated Number of Awards: 15 The number of awards is dependent upon the proposals received and the degree to which proposals meet the solicitation goals and NSF merit review criteria. Anticipated Funding Amount: Up to $9. 6 million pending the availability of funds and quality of proposals.

IV. Eligibility Information Who May Submit Proposals: Proposals may only be submitted by the following: Institutions of Higher Education (IHEs): Two- and four-year IHEs (including community colleges) accredited in, and having a campus located in the US, acting on behalf of their faculty members.

Special Instructions for International Branch Campuses of US IHEs: If the proposal includes funding to be provided to an international branch campus of a US institution of higher education (including through use of sub-awards and consultant arrangements), the proposer must explain the benefit(s) to the project of performance at the international branch campus, and justify why the project activities cannot be performed at the US campus.

Non-profit, non-academic organizations: Independent museums, observatories, research laboratories, professional societies and similar organizations located in the U.S. that are directly associated with educational or research activities. For-profit organizations: U.S.-based commercial organizations, including small businesses, with strong capabilities in scientific or engineering research or education and a passion for innovation.

Tribal Nations: An American Indian or Alaska Native tribe, band, nation, pueblo, village, or community that the Secretary of the Interior acknowledges as a federally recognized tribe pursuant to the Federally Recognized Indian Tribe List Act of 1994, 25 U.S.C. §§ 5130-5131.

PIs must hold appointments at U.S.-based campuses/offices of eligible organizations (IHEs, Non-profit, non-academic organizations, For-profit organizations, Tribal Nations). There are no restrictions on who may serve as co-PIs, Senior/Key Personnel, or Consultant. Limit on Number of Proposals per Organization: There are no restrictions or limits.

Limit on Number of Proposals per PI or co-PI: An individual may appear as PI, co-PI, senior/key personnel or consultant on only one proposal submitted per annual deadline. This eligibility constraint will be strictly enforced. In the event an individual exceeds this limit, the first proposal received prior to the deadline will be accepted and the remainder will be returned without review.

This limitation includes proposals submitted by a lead organization, collaborative non-lead proposals, and any subawards included as part of a collaborative proposal involving multiple organizations. No exceptions will be made. V.

Proposal Preparation And Submission Instructions A. Proposal Preparation Instructions Full Proposal Preparation Instructions : Proposers may opt to submit proposals in response to this Program Solicitation via Research. gov or Grants.

gov. Full Proposals submitted via Research. gov: Proposals submitted in response to this program solicitation should be prepared and submitted in accordance with the general guidelines contained in the NSF Proposal and Award Policies and Procedures Guide (PAPPG). The complete text of the PAPPG is available electronically on the NSF website at: https://www.

nsf. gov/publications/pub_summ. jsp?

ods_key=pappg . Paper copies of the PAPPG may be obtained from the NSF Publications Clearinghouse, telephone (703) 292-8134 or by e-mail from nsfpubs@nsf. gov .

The Prepare New Proposal setup will prompt you for the program solicitation number. Full proposals submitted via Grants. gov: Proposals submitted in response to this program solicitation via Grants.

gov should be prepared and submitted in accordance with the NSF Grants. gov Application Guide: A Guide for the Preparation and Submission of NSF Applications via Grants. gov .

The complete text of the NSF Grants. gov Application Guide is available on the Grants. gov website and on the NSF website at: ( https://www.

nsf. gov/publications/pub_summ. jsp?

ods_key=grantsgovguide ). To obtain copies of the Application Guide and Application Forms Package, click on the Apply tab on the Grants. gov site, then click on the Apply Step 1: Download a Grant Application Package and Application Instructions link and enter the funding opportunity number, (the program solicitation number without the NSF prefix) and press the Download Package button.

Paper copies of the Grants. gov Application Guide also may be obtained from the NSF Publications Clearinghouse, telephone (703) 292-8134 or by e-mail from nsfpubs@nsf. gov .

In determining which method to utilize in the electronic preparation and submission of the proposal, please note the following: Collaborative Proposals. All collaborative proposals submitted as separate submissions from multiple organizations must be submitted via Research. gov. PAPPG Chapter II.

E. 3 provides additional information on collaborative proposals. See PAPPG Chapter II.

D. 2 for guidance on the required sections of a full research proposal submitted to NSF. Please note that the proposal preparation instructions provided in this program solicitation may deviate from the PAPPG instructions.

The following information supplements the guidelines and requirements in the NSF PAPPG and NSF Grants. gov Application guide: Special instructions for submitting to this solicitation: All proposals must be submitted to SBE/SAI; once received, the proposals will be managed by a cross-disciplinary, cross-directorate team of NSF program directors. The title of the proposal must begin with “SAI:”.

Project descriptions are limited to 15 pages in length. In addition to the guidance specified in the PAPPG, including the requirement for a separate section labeled “Broader Impacts,” the project description must contain the following separate sections, clearly labeled with the headings used below, with content as described in Section II.

B of this solicitation: In addition, the project description should explain why the level of resources requested is appropriate to the project scope. Budget requests are reviewed carefully at all stages of the evaluation process, and proposals with budgets that are justified and appropriate to the scope of the project are prioritized.

The SAI program welcomes proposed activities aimed at broadening participation, such as providing undergraduate students and those historically underrepresented in STEM disciplines with meaningful research experiences. The project description should describe these activities, and the budget should request funds sufficient to carry them out. Post-award supplements to support such activities are not anticipated.

Data Management and Sharing Plan: All proposals must include a data management and sharing plan (DMSP) or explain the absence of the need for such a plan. A DMSP specifies the procedures to be used for keeping, storing and sharing data and other research materials with others in a manner that is consistent with best practices in open science.

NSF’s Public Access Plan (23-104) may be consulted for guidance on best practices in open science. The DMSP will be reviewed as part of the intellectual merit or broader impacts of the proposal, or both, as appropriate. See Chapter II.

D. 2 of the PAPPG for further information about the implementation of this requirement. For directorate-specific guidance on DMSPs see NSF’s page on Dissemination and Sharing of Research Results and NSF Data Management Plan Requirements .

Required supplementary documents are listed below. No other supplementary materials are allowed. Proposals that do not contain all specified supplementary documents will be returned without review.

List of Project Personnel and Partner Organizations. Provide current, accurate information for all personnel and organizations involved in the project. NSF staff will use this information in the merit review process to manage reviewer selection.

The list must include all PIs, co-PIs, senior/key personnel, funded and unfunded consultants or collaborators, subawardees, postdocs and project-level advisory committee members. This list should be numbered and include (in this order) full name, organization(s) and role in the project, with each item separated by a semi-colon. Each person listed should start a new numbered line.

For example: Mei Lin; XYZ University; PI Jak Jabes; University of PQR; Senior/Key Personnel Jane Brown; XYZ University; Postdoc Rakel Ademas; ABC Inc.; Funded Consultant Mary Wan; Welldone Institution; Unfunded Collaborator Rimon Greene; ZZZ University; Subawardee Management and Coordination Plan (2-page limit). The SAI program aims for convergence, in which knowledge, techniques and expertise from multiple fields