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Collaborative Research

Collaborative Research

Generating new science to inform decisions

Collaborative research projects conduct new applied science through a user-driven, collaborative process grounded in reciprocal relationships that results in data, tools, or other products that will inform decision making related to a reserve management need. Collaborative research projects can use natural, social and/or physical science approaches and must have a well-defined research question that the project is designed to answer. 

To learn more about prior projects, browse Collaborative Research Projects in our catalog.

The 2025 Call for Pre-Proposals is Open!

  Download the RFP

Proposals involving less than five reserves have two options:

  • Request up to $200,000 per year for three years for a total of $600,000 or
  • Request up to $150,000 per year for four years for a total of $600,000.

Proposals involving five or more reserves have two options:

  • Request up to $250,000 per year for three years for a total of $750,000 or
  • Request up to $250,000 per year for four years for a total of $1,000,000.

Overview and Q&A Webinar: 2-3pm ET on November 13

Register for the Webinar

Pre-proposals are due December 11, 2024

Apply

How do I get started?

To help focus your project’s purpose, get to know user needs, and scope your project, here are a few helpful resources:

  • Understanding user needs. Map out the needs of potential users with a template designed to identify their challenges, interests, and needs related to the management issue. A single project cannot address all needs, but this tool should help you hone in on a smaller set of primary users and a closely related set of challenges that a project could address.
  • Question prompts to guide your background research and conversations with potential users.
  • Twelve example problem statements to promote thinking about how to envision and design a new project.

Additional questions about this funding opportunity can also be directed to: 
Email: [email protected] 
Phone: Maeghan Brass (734-763-0727) or Arianna Stokes (734-763-0056)