| | A Message from the Acting Assistant Director for NSF's Biological Sciences Directorate Dear Colleagues, I wanted to give you all an update to a few items I've highlighted in previous newsletters. We recently announced our first set of awards under the Partnership to Advance Conservation Science and Practice (PACSP) program in partnership with the Paul G. Allen Family Foundation. The projects, funded by $8 million in combined support from the two organizations, focus on protecting diverse ecosystems and imperiled species across the country and the knowledge gained will help us protect other species, understand and mitigtate climate change, and more. Second, we continue to provide resources to aid you in responding to the new requirements around safe and inclusive work environments. FAQs were recently posted and recordings and slides from our virtual office hours are available. The list of programs participating in the pilot, along with links to the above-mentioned resources can be found on nsf.gov. Last, but not least, as you may be aware, the FY 2024 budget request has been released and includes $11.314 billion for NSF, an increase of 18.6% from the agency's current budget. More information, including a full copy of the request for NSF and fact sheets can be found on NSF's budget page. Sincerely,  Simon T. Malcomber
NSF Assistant Director for Biological Sciences | |  Researchers supported by the Neuronex program and others across NSF have completed the most advanced brain map to date, that of an insect, a landmark achievement in neuroscience that brings scientists closer to true understanding of the mechanism of thought. |  An Opportunities for Promoting Understanding through Synthesis (OPUS) award from the Division of Environmental Biology supported work that found that over the course of the 20th century, urban sprawl and agricultural development have dramatically changed the landscape of the state, forcing many native bird species to adapt to new and unfamiliar habitats. |  Research funded by the Division of Molecular and Cellular Biosciences explains why cancers not only stop responding to kinase inhibitors but come back stronger, a finding that could inform which drugs oncologists use as a first-line treatment. |  Researchers supported by the Division of Integrative Organismal Systems found that sunflower florets coordinate their opening in concentric rings starting from the edge and moving inwards on successive days, with a ring of female flowers always outside the earlier-stage, pollen-bearing male flowers. This means pollinators pick up pollen after they have walked over the female florets, then carry it to a different flower head. | Reminder: Share your highlights and outcomes with your Program Officer as soon as possible. We also encourage you to illustrate how an NSF award enabled your work when discussing it publicly and promoting it. | | | You can always use the Funding Search to find new opportunities, upcoming deadlines, and programs that support your area of research. BIO Core Programs As a reminder, the core programs in all BIO Divisions accept proposal submissions at any time and have no deadlines. Submissions to these programs must now be made through Research.gov or Grants.gov. Division of Biological Infrastructure (DBI) Division of Environmental Biology (DEB) Division of Integrative Organismal Systems (IOS) Division of Molecular and Cellular Biosciences (MCB) Newly Released Opportunities
- Dear Colleague Letter: A New Supplemental Funding Opportunity for Skills Training in Advanced Research & Technology (START) (Supplemental funding requests may be submitted at any time in FY2023 with a target date of June 15, 2023 to be reviewed for possible funding prior to October 1, 2023)
- Dear Colleague Letter: Research Collaboration Opportunity in Europe for NSF Awardees (Requests due at least 3 months prior to proposed visit, but no later than May 26, 2023, for consideration using FY 2023 funds)
- Dear Colleague Letter: INCLUDES Alliances - Strengthening and Scaling Systems Transformation (Supplemental funding requests must be submitted by May 15, 2023)
- Synthesis Center for Understanding Organismal Resilience (Preliminary proposal deadline: January 12, 2024)
- Dear Colleague Letter: Bioinspired Design Collaborations to Accelerate the Discovery-Translation Process (BioDesign) (See letter for details on timing)
- Accelerating Research Translation (ART) (Full proposal deadline: May 23, 2023)
- Global Centers (GC) (Track 1 proposal deadline: May 10, 2023; Track 2 proposal window: April 12, 2023 - May 10, 2023)
- Pathways to Enable Open-Source Ecosystems (POSE) (Full proposal deadline: September 7, 2023)
- Dear Colleague Letter: NSF-Swiss NSF Lead Agency Opportunity (SNSF will be the Lead Agency in the first year and will accept proposals on their deadlines of April 3rd and October 2nd, 2023)
- Molecular Foundations in Biotechnology (MFB) (Full proposal deadline: May 11, 2023)
Upcoming Deadlines | |  FY 2024 NSF Budget Request On March 9, 2023, the Biden-Harris Administration released the Fiscal Year 2024 Budget Request to Congress, which firmly supports NSF's mission to advance the frontiers of U.S. science and technology progress. The request includes $11.314 billion for NSF, an increase of 18.6% from the agency's current budget. "The Fiscal Year 2024 budget request reaffirms NSF's mission and the Administration's commitment to investing in science and engineering research, creating new partnerships to keep America competitive, and breaking down barriers to participation in STEM," NSF Director Sethuraman Panchanathan. Learn more at nsf.gov. |  New Biotechnology and Biomanufacturing Reports On March 22, the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy released a series of five reports authored by federal agencies, including the U.S. National Science Foundation, outlining bold research and development goals for the U.S. bioeconomy. The NSF-led report lays out the research and infrastructure investments needed to harness the potential of recent developments in biotechnology, much of which was supported by the agency, and to advance new innovations across all sectors of the bioeconomy. Learn more at nsf.gov. |  LIFE: Leveraging Innovations From Evolution NSF is partnering with Knowinnovation to host two Leveraging Innovations From Evolution (LIFE) Scoping Workshops (one in-person and one virtual) that will bring together diverse scientists to think on specific research challenges and opportunities, including technological and educational training needs, that leverage convergent evolution to investigate the evolution of innovation and adaptive traits. If you are eager to engage with diverse researchers to spark creative paths forward to advance our understanding of LIFE, join us! We encourage researchers with interest and expertise in a variety of fields. A virtual Town Hall about the scoping sessions will be held May 15, 2023, from 1:00 pm - 2:30 pm ET to help answer any questions. Click here to learn more and apply! (Deadline: June 5, 2023, by End of Day) |  We're making changes to nsf.gov We recently rolled out significant updates to our website intended to make it easier to find the information that's relevant to you. Here's what has changed: - The new section of our website, previously called beta.nsf.gov, is now new.nsf.gov.
- We've updated our homepage and site navigation to better connect you to the information you care about.
- We've updated our pages for funding seekers and awardees so they provide clearer guidance.
- We've created new "Focus Area" landing pages that showcase some of our funding priorities.
We welcome your feedback on these changes and on your experiences with nsf.gov through a short survey. | | | | Each division hosts regular office hours on topics of relevance to the community that provide investigators the opportunity to communicate with and ask questions of program officers. Notices are posted on NSF.gov, and more information is available on each division's blog. To get the latest on what's happening in BIO and learn about announcements, opportunities, upcoming deadlines and more, visit our directorate page. | | | Emerging Frontiers (EF)
EF supports multidisciplinary research opportunities and networking activities that arise from advances in disciplinary research. Division of Integrative Organismal Systems (IOS)
IOS supports fundamental research aimed at understanding organisms as units of biological organization, encouraging the use of integrative, interdisciplinary approaches to solving complex problems in organismal biology | | | | |
