Geoscience Opportunities for Leadership in Diversity | PD 21 178Y

Opportunity Information: Apply for PD 21 178Y

Geoscience Opportunities for Leadership in Diversity (GOLD) is a National Science Foundation (NSF) Directorate for Geosciences (GEO) grant opportunity aimed at tackling a long-standing problem in the geosciences: talented people from historically excluded and underrepresented backgrounds often enter STEM pathways but face barriers that push them out before they can fully contribute to research, education, and professional practice. NSF frames this as an "all minds needed" challenge, noting evidence that underrepresented scholars frequently generate high levels of scientific novelty yet are less likely to persist in the systems where innovation is produced. The overall purpose of this program is to support projects that either create new, disruptive approaches or expand proven efforts to increase inclusion and long-term participation in the geoscience community, with a strong emphasis on retaining people and changing structures rather than simply recruiting.

The solicitation encourages proposals in two main tracks. The first is Professional Development, focused on building and scaling efforts that develop BAJEDI leaders (Belonging, Accessibility, Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion). Projects in this area are expected to strengthen the geoscience ecosystem by creating cohorts of trained diversity leaders, identifying and addressing barriers within academia and geoscience culture that prevent people from becoming effective diversity champions, and establishing professional development models that can be adopted broadly. Example activities include BAJEDI training designed for graduate students and postdoctoral researchers approaching the job market; developing curriculum, standards, or shared expectations for safe, equitable, and inclusive teaching and research environments; producing practical guidance to help departments, labs, and research units design or implement BAJEDI plans; and working on institutional change strategies so that BAJEDI leadership and related labor are recognized and valued in promotion, tenure, and advancement systems rather than treated as invisible service.

The second track is Geoscience Capacity Building at Minority Serving Institutions (MSIs). NSF highlights MSIs as places that often provide intentional, holistic support for students, and invites proposals that build new geoscience educational pathways or expand existing MSI geoscience offerings into degree-granting and graduate-level programs. Strong proposals in this area should address the concrete steps required to create or scale programs through partnerships and collaborations, with particular attention to collaborative infrastructure concepts aligned with NSF INCLUDES. The solicitation also points to bridge or pipeline efforts as a priority, including pilot programs that support transitions from high school to undergraduate study, undergraduate to graduate training, and graduate education to the workforce, all designed to grow the pool of geoscience majors at MSIs and prepare them for professional careers. Another explicit expectation is that proposals identify and reduce structural barriers that can undermine program sustainability, such as limited grants management capacity, restrictive institutional policies, or insufficient administrative infrastructure. Relatedly, NSF welcomes the creation of coordinating units that can strengthen or build grants management infrastructure at MSIs, helping institutions compete successfully and manage awards effectively over the long term.

Across both tracks, NSF signals that meaningful progress on BAJEDI goals requires expertise beyond geoscience alone. Proposal teams are expected to recognize the need for deeper engagement with social and behavioral science experts and to incorporate relevant best practices and evaluation-informed approaches into project design. NSF also encourages proposals that share lessons learned from related efforts and networks (including NSF INCLUDES and other broadening participation activities) and that create new collaboration opportunities across the geoscience community and the wider NSF ecosystem.

This opportunity is a discretionary NSF grant in the science and technology research and development category (CFDA 47.050). Eligibility is listed as unrestricted in the provided notice. A key review requirement is that competitive proposals clearly explain and demonstrate alignment with the mission and goals of NSF's GOLD Program; proposals that do not make that relevance explicit can be declined. The listed funding opportunity number is PD 21-178Y, and the original closing date shown is 2024-10-25.

• The National Science Foundation in the science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Geoscience Opportunities for Leadership in Diversity" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 47.050.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2021-06-14.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2024-10-25. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Eligible applicants include: Unrestricted.

Apply for PD 21 178Y

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