Geosciences Open Science Ecosystem | 25 506

Opportunity Information: Apply for 25 506

The National Science Foundation (NSF) Geosciences Open Science Ecosystem (GEO OSE) program is a discretionary grant opportunity designed to accelerate research and education in the geosciences by pushing the community toward stronger, more practical open science. The core idea is to make geoscience work easier to access, reuse, verify, and build upon by promoting open, inclusive, and equitable scientific practices across different geoscience fields. GEO OSE is aimed at efforts that do more than just encourage openness in principle; it supports concrete approaches that help people actually do open science day to day, especially as data volumes, digital resources, and computing capabilities continue to grow.

The program emphasizes projects that strengthen the broader "open science ecosystem" for geosciences, meaning the connected network of datasets, software tools, physical collections, computational resources, and community norms that researchers and educators rely on. GEO OSE supports initiatives that create smoother, more seamless workflows linking these pieces together, so that discovery can happen faster and with fewer technical and institutional barriers. A key theme is capacity-building: helping current and future geoscientists gain the skills, support, and community connections needed to find, use, share, and collaborate through open science resources effectively.

GEO OSE-funded activities can take several forms. One major category is community or cohort building, where groups come together to define a shared vision for open science and coordinate adoption of open practices across one or more geoscience domains. Another category is the development and implementation of innovative open science approaches that better connect data, software, physical samples or collections, and computing environments into integrated research workflows. The program also supports educational efforts that teach open science practices and broaden the use of cyberinfrastructure, with the goal of lowering barriers that can prevent people or institutions from fully participating in modern geoscience research and learning.

Eligibility is limited to specific types of U.S.-based organizations. Proposals may be submitted by non-profit, non-academic organizations such as independent museums, observatories, research laboratories, professional societies, and similar U.S. organizations tied directly to research or educational activities. U.S. Institutions of Higher Education are also eligible, including both two-year and four-year accredited colleges (including community colleges) with a campus located in the United States, submitting on behalf of faculty members. Federally recognized Tribal Nations are eligible as well, including American Indian and Alaska Native tribes, bands, nations, pueblos, villages, or communities recognized under the Federally Recognized Indian Tribe List Act. In addition, Other Federal Agencies and Federally Funded Research and Development Centers (FFRDCs) may apply, but they must follow NSF Proposal and Award Policies and Procedures Guide (PAPPG) requirements on eligibility limitations for those entities.

If a proposal from a U.S. Institution of Higher Education involves funding that would support work at an international branch campus (including through subawards or consultants), the submission must clearly explain why the international site is necessary. Specifically, the proposer must describe how performance at the international branch campus benefits the project and justify why the same activities cannot be carried out at the U.S. campus.

From the funding details provided, this opportunity is listed as NSF Funding Opportunity Number 25-506 under CFDA 47.050, with an original closing date of February 14, 2025. The award ceiling is $1,000,000, and NSF expects to make around 8 awards. Overall, GEO OSE is best understood as an NSF investment in the people, practices, and technical connections that make open geoscience research and education more effective, more collaborative, and more broadly accessible.

• The National Science Foundation in the science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Geosciences Open Science Ecosystem" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 47.050.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2024-11-02.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2025-02-14. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $1,000,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 8 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Others.

Apply for 25 506

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