Availability of Woods Hole Sea Grant Program Development Funds to Advance Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) in Marine Sciences
June 2020
Woods Hole Sea Grant is committed to building inclusive research, extension, communication and education programs that serve people with unique backgrounds, circumstances, needs, perspectives and ways of thinking. To help us accomplish these goals, we are dedicating program development funding for projects to advance diversity, equity and inclusion in marine sciences within the state of Massachusetts. Up to $25,000 is available, and we anticipate that most awards will be funded at a level of $1,000 - $5,000. Funding can be used for small research projects and proof-of-concept with the intent of seeding an idea for later development into larger funding proposals. Other uses of these funds include extension, education, communications, travel, graduate student support, speaker honorariums, and workshops or conferences. Applicants must express how the proposed project will advance DEI in marine sciences, and how the proposed project ties into Woods Hole Sea Grant’s strategic focus areas. Project leads must be from an organization located within the state of Massachusetts.
To Apply
Interested applicants are encouraged to share their ideas with the program prior to submitting a request, and those that exceed $5,000 must be discussed in advance. Applicants should submit their request using the program development proposal form template available on the Woods Hole Sea Grant website. A PDF of your proposal may be attached in lieu of completing the "Project Description" box. The lead applicant must submit a two-page resume. All application materials can be submitted electronically to seagrant@whoi.edu. Questions can be directed to Woods Hole Sea Grant’s Research Coordinator Jennie Rheuban (jrheuban@whoi.edu). Applications received by July 10 will be given the highest priority for funding, though additional funding will remain in place for proposals received later in the year and in future years.
Proposal Evaluation Criteria
- Alignment with Woods Hole Sea Grant strategic plan
- Measurable impact to the State of Massachusetts
- Timeliness and urgency of the proposed activity
- Potential to leverage other funds
- Proof of concept for further development
- Commitment from other partners
- Fostering relationships with other partners
- Innovation and relevance to emerging issues
- Timing of decisions, distributions, and amount available