The Agroecosystem Sustainability Center (ASC) is a new research center aiming to be a world-leading innovation powerhouse in advanced monitoring and modeling of agroecosystems for improving sustainability under climate change. ASC is jointly funded by the Institute for Sustainability, Energy and Environment (iSEE), the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences (ACES), and the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research and Innovation (OVCRI). ASC gathers leading researchers from across the UIUC campus in the subject areas of biophysical and biochemical research in agroecosystems, primarily focusing on whole-plant and landscape-level studies to regional and global applications. The research is driven by co-founding and affiliated faculty members, professional staff scientists, postdocs and graduate students to advance science goals and technological innovations, with clear motivation to generate real-world solutions and impacts. ASC also has plans to work closely with industry partners and bring truly interdisciplinary educational opportunities for aspiring students at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign.

ASC has two job openings:

• Research Engineer/Senior Research Engineer (applications due Sept. 30, 2023)
• Research Specialist (applications due Sept. 21, 2023)

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has outlined its intent to publish a series of Carbon Negative Shot (CNS)-aligned funding opportunities focused on supporting the advancement and maturation of a suite of carbon dioxide removal (CDR) technologies. This CNS Notice of Intent outlines multiple program interests that aim to support the development and commercialization of CDR technologies and collectively enable the Department’s CNS target of gigaton-scale deployment for less than $100 per net metric ton of CO₂-equivalent within the decade.

If you are interested in pursuing either of these opportunities, please each out to Heidi Leerkamp to discuss the ways iSEE can support your team and proposal development.

Agency: DOE

Program: DE-FOA-0003082 – Carbon Negative Shot Pilots (expected release date of early FY24) 

• Includes four (4) anticipated Areas of Interest (AOIs) related to: o Small Biomass Pilots, Small Mineralization Pilots, Small Marine CDR Pilots, and Multi-Pathway CDR Testbeds. 
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Other intended funding opportunities and prize tracks include: 

• Direct Air Capture (DAC) Pilot Prize § (expected release date late FY23) 
• CDR Purchase Prize § (expected release date late FY23) 
• Regional Direct Air Capture Hubs § (expected release of additional FOA(s) in FY24/25 and beyond) 
• Monitoring, Reporting, and Verification (MRV) for CDR § (expected release date FY24) 
• DE-FOA-0002614 – Carbon Management: CDR Technology Research and Development § (expected release date FY24)

Full NOI >>>

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has released two funding opportunities, one on innovative long duration energy story system demonstration projects advancing a technology toward commercialization and validating cost and performance in the field.  The second is on Storage Innovations, fostering partnerships of companies to pursue pre-competitive R&D ideas.

If you are interested in pursuing either of these opportunities, please each out to Heidi Leerkamp to discuss the ways iSEE can support your team and proposal development.

 
Agency: DOE

Program: DE-FOA-0003036 – Energy Storage Demonstration and Validation

Deadlines: Required Concept Paper due Sept. 15; Full Application due Dec. 4

Funding: Up to $5M over 4 years, *requires 50% cost share*

Topics: 1. Lithium Batteries 2. Flow Batteries 3. Other Innovative Technologies

Full solicitation PDF >>>

Agency: DOE

Program: DE-FOA-0003020 – Storage Innovations 2030: Technology Liftoff

Deadlines: Required Concept Paper due Sept. 15; Full Application due Dec. 4

Funding: Up to $5M over 2-4 years, *requires 20% cost share*

Details: Projects must enable a long-duration capable (10+ hours) energy storage technology with a pathway to $0.05/ kWh Levelized Cost of Storage (LCOS) by 2030.

Full solicitation PDF >>>

Please see an opportunity below for the NOAA Climate Program Office 2024 Competitions, which support six themes in the Earth System Science and Modeling program.

Agency: NOAA

Deadlines: Letters of Intent Aug. 18 or Sept. 11, 2023, depending on topic; all full proposals due Nov. 17, 2023.

Funding: Individual proposals up to $190k/year for three years; team proposals up to $750k/year, varying by competition topic.

Topics:

• Atmospheric Chemistry, Carbon Cycle and Climate (AC4): Understanding Urban Air in a Changing Climate
• Climate Variability and Predictability (CVP): Advancing Understanding of Ocean Variability and Change in Support of NOAA’s Climate Ecosystems Fisheries Initiative
• Climate Variability and Predictability (CVP): Advancing Understanding of Multi-year to Decadal Climate Variability and Predictability for U.S. Climate Prediction
• Modeling, Analysis, Predictions, and Projections (MAPP): Advancing an Integrated NOAA
• Capability for Climate Predictions and Projections in Support of NOAA's Climate Ecosystems Fisheries Initiative
• Modeling, Analysis, Predictions, and Projections (MAPP): Process-Oriented Diagnostics for NOAA Climate Model Improvement and Applications
• Modeling, Analysis, Predictions, and Projections (MAPP): Early Career Award for Exceptional Research in Earth System Model Development and Application

The full solicitation at grants.gov >>>

If you are interested in pursuing a proposal through iSEE, please reach out to Heidi Leerkamp, and we can discuss how our Institute can support your proposal efforts.