Texas A&M AgriLife Research, Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service and the Texas A&M Engineering Experiment Station (TEES) are seeking multidisciplinary Program of Excellence proposals that will lead to forward-thinking water research and extension activities, and position teams to successfully secure large, competitive extramural resources. Proposals submitted to the FY2022-23 Water Exceptional Item, “Development of Water Programs of Excellence,” should focus on the following objectives:
- data science sustaining water management, including artificial intelligence, big data management, the internet of water, etc.,
- increasing the value of water to support agricultural production, including water used for urban agriculture, or
- increasing economic and social water resilience in urban and/or rural communities.
“The purpose of this initiative is to invest in multidisciplinary teams, or Programs of Excellence, to assist in positioning them to be leaders in emerging fields and successfully secure large, competitive, extramural resources that advance water management in Texas,” said Allen Berthold, Ph.D., assistant director for the Texas Water Resources Institute, part of AgriLife Research and AgriLife Extension and administering the program.
Proposals should consider future needs of water research and/or technology and extension, the trends in state and federal grant programs and attempt to match Programs of Excellence with anticipated grant program priorities. Additionally, proposals should demonstrate that stakeholders have been engaged in identifying high priority, future water-related needs and to develop long-term relationships that will be required of some grant programs.
Projects will be funded for 24 months beginning Sept. 1, 2021 for up to $310,000 per year, not to exceed $620,000 per project. It is anticipated that four projects will be selected.
The principal investigator must hold an appointment in either AgriLife Research, AgriLife Extension or TEES, and the multidisciplinary teams must include co-investigators from each of the other two agencies. Participants from other colleges within the Texas A&M University System can also be included in the proposal if their involvement is deemed necessary to the success of the project.
Read the Request for Proposal for more details, including proposal format, eligibility, award recipient expectations, selection criteria and more.
Proposals in PDF format are due at 11:59 p.m. on June 10, 2021 to Danielle Kalisek, Texas Water Resources Institute grant administrator, at Danielle.kalisek@ag.tamu.edu. For more information, contact Berthold at taberthold@ag.tamu.edu or Kalisek.
