The Delaware Sea Grant College Program is particularly interested in funding projects focused on two topics: (1) understanding the effects of ocean renewable energy development, specifically offshore wind, on Delaware’s coastal ecosystems and communities, and (2) advancing the management of horseshoe crabs for multiple uses, including ecological value, commercial fisheries, and biomedical research. The goal of the first special topic area is to catalyze ecological, technology, and social science research to establish baseline data and improve understanding of the potential effects of ocean renewable energy development on the coastal environment, community resilience, and economies. The goal of the second special topic it to support research that will further inform management of the harvest of horseshoe crabs in the Delaware Bay. For both special topic areas, findings should benefit multiple stakeholders, including federal and state regulators and decision-makers, developers, communities, and multiple users of Delaware’s coastal environment (e.g., commercial and recreational fishers). Successful research proposals will undertake collaborative, multidisciplinary, and/or innovative approaches with results that will be applicable and/or useful to stakeholders and users in Delaware and throughout the mid-Atlantic region.

Two tiers of funding are available:

• Topic-Focused Research Projects: These “traditional” research projects will receive up to $75,000 per year and may be single or multi-investigator projects within a single discipline (science, engineering, social, behavioral, or economic sciences) that address significant coastal or marine issues facing Delaware.

• Interdisciplinary Research Projects: These multi-investigator projects will receive up to $115,000 per year for the two-year funding cycle. The intent of proposed interdisciplinary projects shall be to explore multi-faceted research questions at the intersection of science or engineering and social, behavioral, or economic sciences. To be eligible to receive the higher level of funding for interdisciplinary research, proposed projects must include investigators with expertise in at least two distinct disciplines (e.g., physical, chemical, or biological sciences, or engineering, partnered with social, behavioral, or economic sciences).

Interdisciplinary Research Projects will be eligible for support for up to two graduate students, one must be in each discipline; Topic-Focused Research Projects will be eligible for support for a single graduate student. The number of Interdisciplinary and Topic-Focused Projects that are funded will depend on the quality and number of proposals received and will be made at the discretion of the Director of the Delaware Sea Grant College Program in accordance with the competition guidelines presented in this RFP.

The proposal process involves two main steps:

1. Prospective investigators submit a pre-proposal by 3 p.m. EST Friday, February 3, 2022
2. Prospective investigators submit a full proposal by 3 p.m. EST Friday, April 21, 2022

Extension is a hallmark of the Sea Grant College Program. Within the Sea Grant network, extension is considered to be the application of knowledge and understanding gained through research that is shared with individuals and groups of people for their benefit . Prior RFPs issued by the Delaware Sea Grant College Program required all research proposals to incorporate extension into the project in the form of a plan that explicitly described how the proposed research would be extended or adapted for end-users outside of scientific peers.

In an effort to more effectively implement extension activities, and to encourage collaborative work between extension professionals and the research community, under this RFP extension plans will be developed only after projects are funded; a full extension plan is not required in either the pre- or full proposal. Proposals should instead include a brief description of potential ideas for extension activities and should identify stakeholders that will benefit from the research (e.g., resource managers, community officials, private sector businesses). Proposals should also specify how those stakeholders would specifically benefit. The Delaware Sea Grant College Program will then work collaboratively with researchers after they receive funding to develop and administer a full extension plan. Additional funding will be made available for extension and outreach activities. Details regarding these commitments are presented in subsequent sections.

The Delaware Sea Grant College Program encourages participation from the broad science and social science research community within Delaware and invites participation by investigators new to the Delaware Sea Grant RFP process.

The Delaware Sea Grant College Program is committed to building an inclusive program that serves all people including those with unique needs, circumstances, perspectives, and ways of thinking. Eligible applicants of all ages, races, ethnicities, national origins, gender identities, sexual orientations, abilities, cultures, religions, citizenship types, marital status, job classifications, veteran status, and socioeconomic status are encouraged to apply.

To be eligible, principal investigators must be affiliated with an academic institution, research laboratory, or other institution with a research or science-based mission in Delaware, including non-profit organizations. Co-principal investigators on projects may be from institutions outside of Delaware. Please note that individuals from state and federal agencies and private sector for-profit and foreign organizations cannot apply for direct support; however, their non-federal contributions may qualify as matching funds for the project. Detailed information regarding required match is presented subsequently. Principal investigators are encouraged to include Delaware Sea Grant Marine Advisory Service personnel as project collaborators; however, Marine Advisory Service staff should not have oversight of project budgets and should not advise Delaware Sea Grant funded graduate students. Delaware Sea Grant Marine Advisory Service staff are also prohibited from requesting salary support.

To be eligible to submit a full proposal, applicants must submit a pre-proposal. Pre-proposals will be reviewed for relevance to the Delaware Sea Grant Strategic Plan and anticipated benefit to stakeholders. Comments and feedback will be provided to prospective researchers to guide development of the full proposal and maximize the value of proposed research. Regardless of the feedback, all prospective investigators who submit a pre-proposal are welcome to submit a full proposal.

Full proposals will be evaluated through a three-phase, competitive process, which will consist of peer review, followed by reviews by both technical and programmatic panels. Equal weight will be given to the technical and programmatic panel reviews, which will take into consideration feedback from the peer reviews. The decision to recommend proposals for funding will ultimately rest with the Delaware Sea Grant Director and will be made at her discretion to address needs, gaps, and priorities of the Delaware Sea Grant program as outlined in the Delaware Sea Grant Strategic Plan. Full proposals that are recommended for funding by the Director will be forwarded to the National Sea Grant Office for final funding approval as part of the Delaware Sea Grant Omnibus proposal package. Of note, inclusion of a proposal in the Omnibus proposal package does not guarantee final approval or funding.

Please use the following guidelines to prepare a proposal. Delaware Sea Grant encourages prospective researchers to read this document carefully, review the frequently-asked-questions (FAQ) document available, and participate in the designated Question and Answer Sessions. Any remaining questions concerning the RFP may be directed to Christian Hauser, the Delaware Sea Grant Associate Director, at hauser@udel.edu.