The Division of Environmental Biology (DEB) held its latest Virtual Office Hour on March 11th. Representatives from the Civic Innovation Challenge (CIVIC) discussed translating foundational research and emerging technologies into communities through civic-engaged research. See below for the slides.
We host these office hours from 1-2pm EST on the 2nd Monday of every month. There is a designated theme each time, but attendees are welcome to ask about other NSF-related topics. We host Program Officers from different programs at each Virtual Office Hour, so a wide range of scientific perspectives are represented.
The presentation and other documents are available here:
PAPPG 23-1 – Proposal and Award Policies and Procedures Guide
PAPPG 24-1 – Effective for proposals submitted or due on or after May 20, 2024
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The CIVIC program has a helpful Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)page here.
If you were unable to attend, here are some of the questions asked during the Q & A section:
Do the partners need to submit biosketches? BioSketches are now created through SciENcv. Do the community partners (non-academic) need to create an ORCID (MyNCBI, eRA Commons) account and a SciENcv account to be a PI on CIVIC?
All principal investigators need to submit biosketches. Also, for stage 1, key principals (including partners) are encouraged to submit biosketches as it shows that the team has the requisite expertise. We encourage users to sign in to SciENcv with their credentials (NSF ID and password).
Are for-profit industry partners permitted in CIVIC proposals?
Yes, teams may choose to engage with industry partners. and those partners may participate as subawardees to an eligible lead organization.
Private sector partners can be valuable team members in a number of different roles, and their presence could help transition an idea from research to implementation by providing expertise, technology, or additional capacity. Whatever their role, it is important for teams with private sector partners to describe the roles of each partner and how they will manage the collaboration.
What does ‘community’ mean for CIVIC? Does the target community have to be a specific geographic community (e.g., town, city) or can it be a distributed community (e.g., non-profit with multiple physical locations)?
A community may be a distinct geographic entity, or it could be a metaphorical community that is distributed in space. However, if you define a community of the latter type, it must be as clear who you mean to include and how you define membership in that community.
Does the program assume that the PI already has civic partners? What if you only have one partner? Can other partners be added between stage one and two?
Strong proposals will already have at least some partners – their involvement from the beginning should shape the purpose, goals, and methods of the project. However, it is likely that as a project matures, other partners might be recruited. Describing the team of partners as it exists now and how you envision it evolving through time is wise.
Will review panels for CIVIC include reviewers from multiple directorates? I’m wondering if we’re writing to a disciplinary or interdisciplinary panel.
Proposals will be assessed in NSF-led merit review panels, comprised of civic leaders and researchers, with expertise reflective of the interdisciplinary character of the proposals. Details regarding NSF’s merit review process are described in the solicitation in Section VI; additional details are available through the following link: https://www.nsf.gov/bfa/dias/policy/merit_review/. Teams are encouraged to pay close attention to the additional solicitation specific review criteria provided in Section VI of the solicitation. The final selection of recipients will be made by the CIVIC working group–comprised of program officers from NSF and the partnering federal agencies, Department of Energy and Department of Homeland Security.
Please reach out to a Program Officer if you have any questions about the proposal submission and review process in DEB programs. NSF has suggested 5 tips on working with Program Officers as part of the NSF 101 series on our Science Matters blog.
Check out the upcoming office hour topics below and be sure to check back here or on the NSF Events Page for information on how to register. Our next Virtual Office Hour, on April 8th from 1pm-2pm Eastern Time, will focus on opportunities for broadening the STEM community.
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Upcoming Office Hours and Topics:
April 8: Opportunities for broadening the STEM community
May 13: CAREER Solicitation
June 10: Merit Review and How to Get Involved with NSF
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