High-Risk Research in Biological Anthropology and Archaeology | 19 570

Opportunity Information: Apply for 19 570

The National Science Foundation (NSF) funding opportunity called High-Risk Research in Biological Anthropology and Archaeology (HRRBAA) is a small-grant program designed to help researchers test the feasibility of anthropological projects that are inherently uncertain and difficult to evaluate in advance. It is geared toward situations that are common in biological anthropology and archaeology, where fieldwork can depend on unpredictable local conditions, access constraints, environmental variability, permitting issues, or other on-the-ground realities that cannot be reliably assessed from a desk or from preliminary data gathered at a distance. The central idea is to make it possible for investigators to take a carefully justified chance on a project that could yield major scientific payoff, but where the uncertainty is high enough that conventional funding mechanisms may be hard to secure at the outset.

A defining requirement of HRRBAA is that the proposed work must be clearly high-risk in nature. In practice, that means the project should be framed as a serious, scientifically motivated attempt to determine whether a larger research program is actually viable, rather than a straightforward, low-uncertainty extension of prior work. The award is meant to support early-stage efforts such as reconnaissance, pilot sampling, preliminary surveys, test excavations, method validation in challenging contexts, or other limited-scope activities that directly answer the question, "Can this research be done, and is it likely to be productive?" The results are expected to inform a future, more fully developed proposal, where the investigator can then present stronger evidence about site access, sample availability, data quality, logistical feasibility, and the likelihood of generating interpretable results.

The program is offered as a discretionary grant under NSF's research and development portfolio (Funding Activity Category: Science and Technology and other Research and Development) and is associated with CFDA number 47.075. Proposals are accepted at any time rather than being tied to a single annual deadline, which can be particularly important for anthropological and archaeological work that must respond to seasonal windows, unexpected opportunities, or time-sensitive access. The opportunity number is 19-570, and it was created on March 23, 2019.

HRRBAA awards are intentionally small. The maximum award amount (award ceiling) is $35,000, and NSF anticipates making about five awards. This scale signals that the program is not meant to fund full field seasons or multi-year research programs, but instead to cover targeted work that reduces uncertainty and enables a compelling next-step proposal. Because the funds are limited, applicants typically need to be very explicit about what feasibility question is being tested, what specific activities will be completed with the small budget, and what concrete evidence or decision points will come out of the pilot effort.

Eligibility is listed as unrestricted, meaning that it is open to any type of entity, subject to any additional eligibility clarifications that may appear in the full program text. As with most NSF opportunities, the practical route to submission usually involves an eligible submitting organization (often a university, museum, research institute, or other formal entity), but the listing itself indicates broad eligibility rather than restricting the program to a narrow class of applicants.

One procedural requirement is especially important for this opportunity: investigators must contact the cognizant NSF Program Director before submitting an HRRBAA proposal. This pre-submission contact is not presented as optional. It is intended to confirm that the idea is a good match for HRRBAA, that the proposed activities meet the program's high-risk feasibility-testing intent, and that the proposal is routed appropriately within NSF. This step can save time for applicants by clarifying fit early, and it also helps NSF ensure the mechanism is used for the kinds of projects it was designed to support.

Overall, HRRBAA functions as a bridge between an intriguing but uncertain idea and a mature, evidence-backed research plan. It recognizes that some of the most valuable questions in biological anthropology and archaeology are difficult to pursue precisely because the feasibility hinges on local, variable, or hard-to-predict conditions. By underwriting a focused feasibility assessment, NSF aims to help researchers convert high-uncertainty opportunities into well-founded proposals for larger-scale support when the initial risk has been better characterized.

• The National Science Foundation in the science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "High-Risk Research in Biological Anthropology and Archaeology" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 47.075.
• This funding opportunity was created on Mar 23, 2019.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Proposals accepted anytime. (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 $35,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 5 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Unrestricted (i.e., open to any type of entity above), subject to any clarification in text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility.

Apply for 19 570

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