Findable Accessible Interoperable Reusable Open Science Research Coordination Networks | 22 553

Opportunity Information: Apply for 22 553

The National Science Foundation (NSF) opportunity titled "Findable Accessible Interoperable Reusable Open Science Research Coordination Networks" (FAIROS RCN; Funding Opportunity Number 22-553) funds the creation of three-year Research Coordination Networks designed to accelerate adoption of FAIR data principles (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable) and broader Open Science best practices across the research community. The central idea is to support networks of investigators who can make practical, community-level improvements in how research products (data, software, workflows, protocols, metadata, and related outputs) are shared, discovered, combined, and reused. Rather than primarily funding new research results in a single lab, the program emphasizes coordination, community alignment, and the infrastructure and standards that help science move faster and more transparently.

The program supports a wide range of network-building and community-advancing activities. Typical efforts may include organizing workshops and working groups, building collaborations among researchers and stakeholders, coordinating ongoing or planned research activities to reduce duplication and improve interoperability, and producing synthesis efforts that consolidate knowledge across projects. A key expected outcome is the development or improvement of community standards, norms, and practices that make research outputs easier to locate, access appropriately, integrate with other resources, and reuse responsibly. Education and workforce elements can also be part of this, especially when they help the community adopt shared practices for open and FAIR-aligned research.

Proposals must choose one of two tracks, which clarifies the intended scope of impact. The first track, Disciplinary Improvements, focuses on targeted scientific communities where a coordination network can address specific barriers to FAIR and Open Science within that field (for example, domain-specific metadata conventions, repositories, data formats, or shared protocols). For this track, NSF strongly encourages prospective principal investigators to contact a cognizant program officer in the directorate most closely aligned with the discipline where the main impact will occur, to confirm that the topic and budget fit the solicitation. The second track, Cross-Cutting Improvements, targets approaches that apply broadly across many disciplines (for example, general-purpose interoperability practices, reusable tooling patterns, cross-domain standards, or governance models for open research products). For cross-cutting proposals, NSF recommends contacting a program officer associated with the Office of Advanced Cyberinfrastructure, reflecting the program's emphasis on scalable, reusable practices and infrastructure.

This opportunity is explicitly tied to NSF's larger policy and strategic priorities around public access to federally funded research products. It supports the NSF Public Access Initiative, rooted in the agency's 2015 Public Access Plan, "Today's Data, Tomorrow's Discoveries," which responds to national policy direction (including the 2013 Office of Science and Technology Policy guidance) calling for results of publicly funded research to be made publicly accessible. In parallel, the program aligns with NSF's Office of Integrative Activities priorities, which emphasize work that crosses disciplinary boundaries, strengthens U.S. scientific and engineering capacity, builds critical human and infrastructure capabilities, and engages researchers across career stages.

Administratively, this is a discretionary NSF grant program in the Science and Technology and other Research and Development category, with multiple CFDA numbers listed (47.041, 47.049, 47.050, 47.070, 47.074, 47.075, 47.076, 47.079, 47.083), reflecting its cross-directorate relevance. The solicitation anticipated around seven awards. The posting shows an award ceiling of 0, which typically signals that applicants should rely on the solicitation guidance rather than a single fixed cap shown in the summary field. The original closing date in the provided record was April 12, 2022, and eligibility is described as "Others (see text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility for clarification)," meaning applicants need to check the full solicitation for the precise organizational eligibility rules.

In practical terms, a strong FAIROS RCN proposal is one that can credibly convene the right mix of researchers, data/software and cyberinfrastructure experts, domain repositories or standards bodies, and other stakeholders, then turn that coordination into concrete, adoptable outputs. Those outputs might look like shared standards, reference implementations, community guidance, training materials, interoperability frameworks, or coordinated practices that make it easier for the community to produce, share, and reuse research products in ways that are consistent with FAIR principles and Open Science expectations.

• The National Science Foundation in the science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Findable Accessible Interoperable Reusable Open Science Research Coordination Networks" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 47.041, 47.049, 47.050, 47.070, 47.074, 47.075, 47.076, 47.079, 47.083.
• This funding opportunity was created on Jan 13, 2022.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Apr 12, 2022. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 7 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Others (see text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility for clarification).

Apply for 22 553

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