NERC Calls Open for Exploring and Pushing the Frontiers of Environmental Science Research
The Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) has issued two calls to carry out frontier research in environmental science.
The Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) has issued two calls to carry out frontier research in environmental science.
The Exploring the Frontiers of Environmental Science Research call seeks to explore new ideas and approaches that may open up novel paths of research or result in discipline-shifting discovery in environmental science. This funding opportunity is a pilot and will be reviewed.
Proposals are sought that can support pure, applied, technology-led or policy-driven research but still address, or provide the means to address, clearly defined scientific questions. This may include undertaking proof-of-concept research projects, or tackling a problem that can be constrained to a shorter duration award than NERC’s Pushing the Frontiers funding stream.
Applicants can submit a proposal in any area of environmental science. NERC welcomes multidisciplinary proposals that cross into other research council areas, provided it is predominantly within a research area or subject associated with NERC’s remit.
Projects are required to have a Principal Investigator based in a UK research organisation eligible for UKRI funding (ie approved higher education institutions, research council institutes, independent research organisations and public sector research establishments). NERC individual eligibility rules apply (refer to Section C of the NERC research grant and fellowships handbook).
Application can be made as a research group or an individual. Principal Investigators and Co-Investigators can be at any career stage. NERC welcomes proposals from applicants that can demonstrate a capability to collaborate with experts from other disciplines to generate innovative research. Multidisciplinary research and collaborations with other UK organisations are encouraged. International and non-academic collaborators can be involved as project partners.
The scheme’s total budget is £4 million. The full economic cost of the project can be up to £100,000. NERC will fund 80% of the full economic cost. Equipment (items over £10,000) will be funded at 100%. The grant duration is flexible.
There are two stages to apply for this funding opportunity: Notification of Intent followed by a full proposal. The Notification of Intent will not be assessed, but NERC will use the information to plan resourcing for the proposal assessment. Full Je-S proposals submitted without a prior Notification of Intent will be rejected.
The Notification of Intent deadline is 10 May 2022 (16:00). The full proposal deadline is 14 June 2022 (16:00).
NERC is funding ambitious, curiosity-driven, high-risk, high-reward environmental science projects through the Pushing the Frontiers of Environmental Science Research call.
This scheme will support adventurous researchers who have curiosity and imagination to enable discoveries that unlock new knowledge.
NERC is seeking proposals that can support pure, applied, technology-led or policy-driven research but still address, or provide the means to address, clearly defined scientific questions. The research must sit predominantly within NERC’s remit.
Multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary research projects are welcomed, as are those that can be designed, supported and delivered in partnership with other research funders and research users.
Projects are required to have a Principal Investigator based in a UK research organisation eligible for UKRI funding (ie approved higher education institutions, research council institutes, independent research organisations and public sector research establishments). NERC individual eligibility rules apply (refer to Section C of the NERC research grant and fellowships handbook).
Application can be made as a research group or an individual. Principal Investigators and Co-Investigators can be at any career stage. NERC welcomes proposals from applicants that can demonstrate a capability to collaborate with experts from other disciplines to generate innovative research. Multidisciplinary research and collaborations with other UK organisations are encouraged. International and non-academic collaborators can be involved as project partners.
The scheme’s total budget is £26 million. The full economic cost of the project can be up to £1 million. NERC will fund 80% of the full economic cost. Justified equipment costs will be funded at 100%. The majority of projects are expected to have started by 1 April 2023.
Applications must be submitted by the deadline of 19 July 2022 (16:00).
(This report was the subject of a RESEARCHconnect Newsflash.)