NSGO News in Brief: September 10 - October 4, 2011

Funding Opportunities

9th Annual P3 Awards: A National Student Design Competition for Sustainability
Focusing on People, Prosperity and the Planet, closes December 22, 2011
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), as part of the P3-People, Prosperity and the Planet Award Program, is seeking applications proposing to research, develop, and design solutions to real world challenges involving the overall sustainability of human society. The P3 competition highlights the use of scientific principles in creating innovative projects focused on sustainability. The P3 Awards program was developed to foster progress toward sustainability by achieving the mutual goals of economic prosperity, protection of the planet, and improved quality of life for its people – people, prosperity, and the planet – the three pillars of sustainability. The EPA offers the P3 competition in order to respond to the technical needs of the world while moving towards the goal of sustainability. Please see the P3 website (http://epa.gov/p3) for more details about this program, or http://www.epa.gov/ncer/rfa/2012/2012_p3.html

SERDP Special Solicitation: Defense Coastal/Estuarine Research Program, Proposals Due January 5, 2012 The Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program (SERDP) released a new solicitation for the Defense Coastal/Estuarine Research Program (DCERP). SERDP requests proposals to perform fundamental ecological research on estuarine, coastal, and associated terrestrial ecosystems that are necessary to sustain military readiness. The desired outcome of the requested research is to: (1) understand the effects of military activities and infrastructure on these ecosystems and (2) support their sustainable and adaptive management.
The DCERP is an existing SERDP program that involves the execution of ecological research within the context of military land and other resource use. This call for research proposals is intended to fund a new DCERP effort for a period of five years and also provide new thematic directions to guide the research effort.
Researchers from Federal organizations, universities, and the private sector can apply for SERDP funding. For complete details about this opportunity, visit http://www.serdp-estcp.org/Funding-Opportunities/SERDP-Solicitations/Resource-Conservation-Special-Solicitation.
UPCOMING: SERDP and ESTCP Funding Opportunities for FY 2013
SERDP and the Environmental Security Technology Certification Program (ESTCP) will soon announce their annual solicitations for FY 2013 funding. Visit the web site (http://www.serdp-estcp.org) in late October for the SERDP solicitation and in early January for the ESTCP announcement.


Fellowship Opportunity
National Estuarine Research Reserves Graduate Research Fellowship Competition, Applications Due November 1, 2011
In the 2012 competition, the program anticipates 9 openings for master's degree students and Ph.D. candidates at 9 National Estuarine Research Reserves (NERRs). The NERRs' Graduate Research Fellowship program offers qualified master's and doctoral students the opportunity to address to address natural or social science research questions at local, regional, or national scales. Proposals may be submitted for 1, 2, or 3 year projects and are based on the student's interest, Reserve's local needs, and the Reserve System's national priorities. Fellows conduct their research within a National Estuarine Research Reserve(s). The result is high-quality research focused on improving coastal management issues and enhancing our understanding of estuarine ecosystems. To learn more, visit: http://www.nerrs.noaa.gov/Fellowship.aspx. The program's federal funding opportunity number is NOAA-NOS-OCRM-2012-2003083 and the deadline for applications is November 1, 2011.

Events/Calls for Abstracts

• Call for Abstracts: 2012 Ocean Sciences Meeting, Due October 7
  The organizing committee for the 2012 Ocean Sciences Meeting (OSM 2012) is calling for abstract submissions. OSM 2012 will take place from February 20-24, 2012 in Salt Lake City, Utah. The submission deadline is October 7, 2011 at which time registration and the abstract fee are due.
  Implementing Coastal and Marine Spatial Planning (CMSP) is an important part of the National Ocean Policy mandated by a Presidential Executive Order. While there is a much background data available for many coastal areas to help with CMSP, in many cases the available data needed for specific planning actions is inadequate to the task at hand. This session will address the needs for increased research, the types of research needed to support the implementation of CMSP, provide examples of such research, and also discuss ways to facilitate and support additional research for adaptive management. It will provide important information to researchers interested in directing their research to be more useful for CMSP. Submissions are encouraged from all involved with research to support CMSP, researchers, managers, and others.
  For more information, please visit http://www.sgmeet.com/osm2012/files/osm2012-cfp.pdf
  
  
• Call for Abstracts: Ocean Studies Board - Communicating a Changing Ocean - Challenges and Opportunities Facing Scientists and Decision Makers, Due October 7
  The National Academies Ocean Studies Board will be hosting the following session at Ocean Sciences 2012 in Salt Lake City, UT. They are requesting abstracts for presentations about lessons learned in communicating ocean changes.
  Communicating changes in the ocean from human activities requires a different skill set than research, but can become an important component of an ocean scientist's career. Especially with implementation of the new National Ocean Policy, ocean and coastal scientists are needed more than ever to effectively communicate complex ocean and coastal science to a broad audience. How can oceanographers be more effective at communicating what they know and how they know it? What communication challenges do scientists face when changes may take place over many years before the negative effects on society are manifested? This session will explore recent advances in our knowledge of changing ocean and coasts, share techniques and examples for effective presentations of scientific information to decision makers and the public, and identify priorities for ocean and coastal science to solve emerging ocean environmental problems. Submissions are invited to share lessons learned about communicating the state of our oceans to various stakeholder groups, including policy makers, and describe factors that shape public understanding of a changing ocean. Abstract Submission Deadline, 7 October 2011. http://www.sgmeet.com/osm2012/default.asp
  
  
• Extension Disaster Education Network Meeting, October 11-14, Portland, Oregon
  A pre-conference will be offered on Tuesday, October 11, and a post-conference workshop will be offered on Friday, October 14. More details will be available at a later date.
  http://eden.lsu.edu/Conferences/EDENAM/2011/Pages/default.aspx (Meeting)
  http://eden.lsu.edu/Pages/default.aspx (EDEN site)
  
  
• American Shore & Beach Preservation Association (ASBPA) Conference, October 19-21, New Orleans
  The 2011 national coastal conference will be held at the New Orleans Marriott Hotel, Oct. 19-21. The theme of the conference is Expanding Coastal Horizons, recognizing that coastal issues extend beyond the narrow strip where waves wash ashore. Coastal protection also includes inland marshes, bays and estuaries, offshore areas (including offshore energy), and is governed and funded by an expanding array of stakeholders. Technical and policy oriented PowerPoint presentations or posters are invited for coastal issues. Additional information can be found at http://www.asbpa.org.
  
  
• Call for Abstracts: Coastal Cities Summit II, St. Petersburg, Florida, Due October 30
  The International Ocean Institute, the Patel School for Global Sustainability, and the University of South Florida announce the Coastal Cities Summit II, to be held April 30—May 3, 2012. Workshops, Plenary and Keynote speeches, and individual presentations are solicited. Emphasis: case studies, best practices, and solutions in the following thematic areas:
  - Budgeting for Smart Development under a Changing Climate
  - Coastal and Port Security
  - Coastal Energy Alternatives
  - Urbanization, Population Growth and Vulnerable Communities
  To learn more, visit: http://www.xcdsystem.com/ccs2012/abstract/index.cfm?id=4etCUmI or
  http://www.coastalcities-ioi.org/
  
  
• NOAA Library Brownbag Webinar with North Carolina Sea Grant: New Business Models for Small-Scale Fishermen and Processors, November 10, 12 noon EST
  Speakers: Barry Nash (Seafood Technology and Marketing Specialist with North Carolina Sea Grant) and Susan Andreatta (Associate Professor, University of North Carolina Greensboro Department of Anthropology). Over the last decade, the demand for local seafood has grown stronger as consumers have become more conscious of the origins of their food. The growing public demand for local seafood offers opportunities for producers to tap niche markets to stabilize and increase their incomes. This presentation will discuss how the Sea Grant network can offer practical guidance to help fishermen and processors build market-focused enterprises that create competitive advantages over foreign producers.
  Call-in info: For remote access via webinar, please fill out the registration form a few minutes before the meeting is scheduled to begin. The Meeting Number is 742656968; the Passcode is brownbag. For audio in the US and Canada, dial 866-833-7307. The participant passcode is 8986360. Registration form:
  http://www.mymeetings.com/nc/join.php?sigKey=mymeetings&i=742656968&=brownbag&t=c
  
  
• Social Science for Coastal Decision-Making, February 15 to 16, 2012, Charleston, South Carolina
  Understanding people—where they live, what they do, what they value—is an important part of successful coastal management initiatives. Participate in the first Social Coast Forum to see and share how social science tools and methods are being used to address the nation's coastal issues. To receive future e-mails about the forum, subscribe to the e-mail list through the NOAA Coastal Services Center's mailing list request form.
  http://www.csc.noaa.gov/socialcoastforum/