[Coral-List] Virgin Islands EPSCoR Incubator Grants Call for Proposals 2009

[Nasseer Idrisi]

Please post on appropriate list-serves.

 

Virgin Islands Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research

Request for Incubator Grant Proposals 2009

 

The Virgin Islands Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive
Research (VI-EPSCoR) is pleased to announce its 2009 request for
incubator grant proposals. VI-EPSCoR Incubator Grants support
researchers in exploring new research directions related to the project
thrust on Integrated Caribbean Coastal Ecosystems (ICCE). 

 

Goals of the 2009 Incubator Grants Program

*        Stimulate research of priority to the ICCE research thrust. 

 

ICCE research teams are currently working on three interrelated research
areas: (1) Evolutionary and Ecological Patterns and Processes; (2) Ocean
and Coastal Processes; and (3) Environmental Analysis and Management.

 

*        Stimulate research collaborations in order to build strong
interdisciplinary research teams. 

 

Preference will be given to proposals that promote collaborative
linkages among Virgin Islands researchers and external researchers.
Incubator researchers will be expected to actively participate as
members of ICCE research teams. 

 

*        Provide student research opportunities.

 

VI-EPSCoR is particularly interested in proposals that include thesis
research opportunities for UVI Master in Marine and Environmental
Science students. Preference will also be given to proposals that
include research opportunities for Virgin Islands undergraduate and high
school students.

 

Current Research Priorities

*        Biodiversity - regional studies to understand Caribbean
biodiversity, genetic relationships of scleractinian corals and other
poorly known marine organisms and impacts on biodiversity such as sea
surface warming and coral diseases.

*        Coral Reef Ecosystems - Test hypotheses related to coral reef
resilience, disease, bleaching between near-shore and deep coral reef
habitats, develop monitoring and sampling protocols for measuring
impacts of human activity on coastal environments including wetlands,
mangrove, seagrass and coral reefs habitats.

*        Fisheries Ecology - Test hypotheses related to MPA
effectiveness and management of sustainable fisheries, effects of
fishing on trophic ecology, connectivity among spawning habitats and
nursery grounds and influence of coral reef condition on ontogentic
habitat shifts.

*        Dynamic ocean modeling - Produce predictive models of ocean
current patterns and processes and its linkages to coastal and oceanic
marine environments and inputs from land-based sources.  Relationship
between distribution, abundance, and settlement patterns of sessile reef
organisms and large mobile invertebrates and the transmission of coral
diseases and other pathogens

*        Pelagic connectivity - Model potential larval pathways from
spawning to settlement with an emphasis on predicting levels of
retention or dispersal mechanisms. Integrate ocean modeling, spawning
aggregations and larval behavior to understand complex coastal processes

*        Larval biology - Using field based methods test hypotheses
about larval distribution patterns over vertical and horizontal spatial
scales and analyze behavioral mechanisms that may be used to predict
vectors of dispersal or areas of larval settlement which may promote
retention 

*        Marine geology - Examine detailed bathymetry and its effects on
circulation patterns, coral distribution and fish assemblage structure.

*        Human and Ocean Health - Understanding impacts of anthropogenic
influences on watershed processes and linking watershed processes with
impact on human and coastal environmental health. Linked to ciguatera
research, infectious disease, natural products and cistern toxins.
Support development of water monitoring program. Collaborating with
WRRI, DPNR, WAPA, Public Health, Waste Management

*        Watershed Processes - Measurement and analysis of flow of
water, sediment, nutrients, and pollutants under different land
management practices, from watersheds to wetlands and near-shore reefs.
Design long-term environmental monitoring studies along land-sea
gradients.

*        Ecological Modeling - Modeling and predicting flow of water,
sediment, nutrients, and pollutants under different land management
practices, from watersheds to wetlands and near-shore reefs.

*        Economics of Natural Resource Management - Diagnostic studies.
Impact of institutions and policies. Integration of physical and
biological research with socio-economic studies to evaluate best
practices.

 

Project Deadlines
Proposals should be submitted to Dr. Nasseer Idrisi, VI-EPSCoR Acting
Director. Proposals will be considered starting on the target date of 11
April 2009. Project funds will be available upon award of the grant. 

 

Project Period and Level of Funding
The length of the project period is usually one calendar year with
possible renewal for a second year. Incubator grants are typically
funded at about $20-25,000, but larger or smaller awards will be
considered. 

 

Project Requirements
Incubator grants support pilot research, proposal development, and other
activities that advance a research project to the point at which it can
attract competitive external funding. 

 

As a condition of the incubator grant, incubator researchers must submit
at least one follow-on proposal for competitive external funding.

 

Incubator researchers are expected to participate in research team
meetings, incubator seminars, and the VI-EPSCoR annual conference. 

 

Incubator researchers are required to submit a brief semi-annual report
describing activities funded by the incubator grant as well as progress
toward obtaining external support. 

 

Further Information

Potential applicants are encouraged to attend one of the upcoming
brownbag lunches where VI-EPSCoR staff will be available to answer
questions about the Incubator Grants Program. First meeting will be on
March 25, 2009, 12 noon at the McLean Marine Science Center, Rm MSC 200,
video-conferencing and tele-conferencing will be available upon request.
Other meetings TBD.

 

For more information, contact Nasseer Idrisi, VI-EPSCoR Acting Director,
340-693-1388 or nidrisi at uvi.edu.




FORMAT FOR VI-EPSCOR INCUBATOR GRANT PROPOSALS

Incubator grant proposals should include the following elements: cover
page with abstract; project description (max. 5 pages); draft budget
with budget justification; and Curriculum Vitae of project
investigators. Proposals should be submitted to Nasseer Idrisi,
VI-EPSCoR Acting Director.

 

Cover page with abstract

Include the title of the project, email address and phone number of each
investigator, and a one-paragraph abstract describing the research to be
done.

 

Project Description (max. 5 pages)

1.	Research problem and background

Articulate (a) the research problem and why it is important, and (b)
what has already been done.

2.	Objectives

Project objectives should (a) correspond to the research problem, (b)
define the strategy to overcome the problem, and (c) contribute to
broader ICCE research priorities. 

3.	Inputs

Project inputs needed to achieve objectives could include people
(researchers, students, etc), travel costs, equipment, supplies, and
facilities.

4.	Workplan

Summarize what will be done to achieve the project objectives, when and
how activities will be conducted, and duration for each activity.

5.	Outputs

Project outputs should be clearly related to the objectives. Outputs
must include at least one proposal for external funding.

6.	Project management

Identify the project leader, list all collaborator(s), and briefly
describe who will be responsible for each activity in the workplan.

7.	Plan for seeking external funding

Describe plans for seeking follow-on external funding, including funding
agencies and expecting timing for proposal submission.

8.	Relevance of proposed activities to priorities of ICCE research
thrust

Address how the proposed research will fit into and contribute to ICCE
research priorities. 

9.	Relevance of proposed activities to development of ICCE research
teams

Describe what type of collaboration will take place, and how this will
contribute to building strong interdisciplinary ICCE research teams. 

10.	Opportunities for student research

Describe any student research opportunities included in the proposal.

 

Draft budget and justification

Provide a detailed estimate of all expected project costs, with budget
justification. Include any resources expected from other sources
including investigators' home institutions.

 

Curriculum Vitae (C.V.) of project investigators

Provide brief C.V.'s for all investigators, in standard National Science
Foundation format.

 

Faculty release time

Faculty requesting salaried release time need to provide evidence of
approval from their department supervisors for release time for research
to the amount of time requested in their budget.