Environmental Health Cohorts Maintenance and Infrastructure (R24) | RFA ES 16 004

Opportunity Information: Apply for RFA ES 16 004

The Environmental Health Cohorts Maintenance and Infrastructure (R24) funding opportunity (RFA-ES-16-004) is a discretionary NIH grant from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) designed to keep established Environmental Epidemiology Cohorts (EECs) scientifically productive and ready for new research. Instead of primarily funding new hypothesis-driven studies, the core emphasis is on sustaining and strengthening the foundational “backbone” of existing cohorts: the staff, systems, and shared resources that allow cohorts to continue operating, retaining participants, maintaining data and biospecimens, and staying positioned to compete for and rapidly launch future research projects. A central theme is maximizing prior NIEHS investments by preventing cohort degradation over time and by making cohort resources more usable to a wider range of environmental health researchers.

The FOA supports two closely related aims. First, it funds maintenance of existing cohorts, meaning the ongoing work required to preserve cohort integrity and value, such as continued participant tracking and retention activities, upkeep of study documentation and protocols, management of data and specimen inventories, and routine operational functions that keep the cohort viable. Second, it funds enhancements to research infrastructure that improve scientific capabilities and facilitate broader resource sharing. This includes building or improving systems for data management, standardization, curation, and documentation; strengthening governance, access procedures, and collaboration mechanisms; and upgrading tools that make it easier for outside scientists to understand what the cohort contains and how to work with it. The overall expectation is that awardees will emerge with a more robust, collaborative, and “research-ready” cohort platform that can support future environmental epidemiology investigations and partnerships.

Eligibility is broad and includes many types of U.S.-based organizations and governmental units. Eligible applicants include state, county, city/township, and special district governments; independent school districts; public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities; federally recognized Native American tribal governments; tribal organizations (other than federally recognized tribal governments); public and state-controlled and private institutions of higher education; nonprofit organizations with or without 501(c)(3) status (other than institutions of higher education); for-profit organizations other than small businesses; small businesses; and other organizations as permitted by NIH. The announcement also explicitly highlights additional eligible applicant types such as Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions, AANAPISISs, Hispanic-serving Institutions, Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Tribally Controlled Colleges and Universities (TCCUs), faith-based or community-based organizations, regional organizations, eligible federal agencies, and U.S. territories or possessions.

Foreign eligibility is limited in a specific way. Non-domestic (non-U.S.) entities, including foreign institutions, are not eligible to apply as the primary applicant, and non-domestic components of U.S. organizations are also not eligible to apply. However, foreign components, as defined in the NIH Grants Policy Statement, are allowed, meaning the project can include certain foreign collaborators or elements if they meet NIH’s definition and requirements, even though the main applicant organization must be domestic.

Administratively, this opportunity falls under the Environment and Health activity area (CFDA 93.113) and uses the NIH R24 mechanism, which is typically intended for resource-related research projects and infrastructure support. The listed award ceiling is $250,000, and the original closing date for the opportunity was August 10, 2018 (with a creation date of August 1, 2016). Overall, the program is best understood as targeted support to protect and modernize existing environmental epidemiology cohorts so they can be sustained, shared, and leveraged more effectively for future NIEHS-aligned research and collaborative science.

• The National Institutes of Health in the environment, health sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Environmental Health Cohorts Maintenance and Infrastructure (R24)" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 93.113.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2016-08-01.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2018-08-10. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $250,000.00 in funding.
• Eligible applicants include: State governments, County governments, City or township governments, Special district governments, Independent school districts, Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized), Public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities, Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments), Nonprofits having a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Nonprofits that do not have a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Private institutions of higher education, For-profit organizations other than small businesses, Small businesses, Others.

Apply for RFA ES 16 004

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