The FY18 Laboratory Directed Research and Development (LDRD) Program, which constitutes one of the principal means to seed innovative science and new research directions, has been announced by Director Witherell and the Call for Proposals (CFP) has been released.
Proposals should ideally support competencies aligned with the Laboratory and DOE’s strategic directions. They are encouraged to be collaborative and cross-disciplinary. Successful Lab-wide initiative related proposals will likely advance Lab strategy in:
• Beyond Moore’s Law
• Advanced Biogenic Chemicals and Materials
• Electron Microscopy
• Data Analytics for Science
• Water-Energy Nexus
Additionally, there are high-priority topics for each Area LDRD proposal submissions, which are listed fully in the CFP. For Biosciences, the topics are:
• Biological Dark Matter
• Modeling the Biology: Environment interface
• Molecules-to-Minds Program
• Molecular to Mesoscale Analysis
More information on the Biosciences Area LDRD FY18 Foci.
This year marks the beginning of an early career funding track, in addition to the Lab-wide and Area-wide tracks, to encourage career development of young scientists. The applicants should have no more than seven years [update from previous print] of experience past their Ph.D. as of October 1, 2017. PIs should have a scientific job title (career or career track, research scientist or staff scientist) as of October 1, 2017. The topic of the proposed project should be consistent with the Area strategy, as well as create a strong basis for a future DOE Early Career grant application. Questions about this track and eligibility can be discussed with your Division Operations Deputy.
Please read the full CFP for further guidance, schedule, and detailed instructions. All proposals are to be submitted through a web-based submission system that can be accessed via the CFP website. Proposals should be put into the submission system by Friday, March 24, 2017.
IMPORTANT:
If you intend to apply, please submit a Biosciences Area Proposals Authorization Form. For more information about the internal submission process, please contact Operations Deputies Helen Cademartori (EGSB and MBIB) or Nick Everson (BSE).
Biosciences has scheduled the Area reviews for Lab-wide LDRDs on April 3 and Area LDRDs on April 4. The directorate review of these Lab-wide LDRDs will take place on May 15; directorate review of Area LDRDs will take place on May 16.
View an overview of the LDRD process.
