*Federal Funding Opportunities:* *National Sea Grant American Lobster Research Initiative* - Deadline: 11 April 2019 *Maine Sea Grant Biennial RFP* - Deadline: 4 March 2019 *Knauss Fellowship* - Deadline: 22 February 2019 *NMFS-Sea Grant Joint Fellowship Program in Population and Ecosystem Dynamics and Marine Resource Economics* - Deadline: 28 February 2019 *Sea Grant Research Fellowship: Lobster* - Application review begins: 1 March 2019 ------------------------------ *National Sea Grant American Lobster Research Initiative* The National Sea Grant American Lobster Initiative <https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/view-opportunity.html?oppId=312478> will fund a national competition focused on research priorities for American Lobster, with a focus on the Gulf of Maine and Georges Bank, to enhance practical use and conservation of marine resources to create a sustainable economy and environment. Research topics suitable for study on American lobster under this FFO should have a geographic focus of the Gulf of Maine and/or Georges Bank and address one or more of the following: 1. Increased understanding of life history parameters, including but not limited to, migration, growth, and maturity; 2. Larval studies and early biology; 3. Spatial distribution; and 4. Socio-economic lessons learned from Southern New England as they pertain to Georges Bank and the Gulf of Maine. For each research topic above, special emphasis may be placed on the impact of warming temperatures. Subject to the availability of funding, this announcement <https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/view-opportunity.html?oppId=312478> describes how eligible applicants should apply for NOAA-OAR-SG-2019-2005917. Sea Grant anticipates funding between 5-10 research projects totaling between $1 million and $2 million. Projects must have a maximum duration of two years. Dates: The anticipated *start date* is September 1, 2019, with projects to be completed by August 31, 2021.*Deadline: *Applications must be submitted to Grants.gov by 11:59 p.m. Eastern time, April 11, 2019.Webinar: The NSGO will host a webinar providing an overview of this funding opportunity and its application process on February 14, 2019 from 2:00-3:00 PM ET. The webinar will include a presentation and provide an opportunity to ask questions that you may have about applying to the announcement. Please register and/or join at the link provided below: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/6161045633189367043After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the webinar. If you have any questions or concerns, please contact Alison Krepp ([log in to unmask]). Webinar accessibility: *If you would like **a plain text version of the presentation sent to you ahead of time, **or would like the NSGO to provide live captioning of this event or require any other special assistance to participate in this webinar, please [log in to unmask] <[log in to unmask]> at least 24 hours ahead of the scheduled start time of the webinar.* *For more information on Section 508 of the Americans with Disabilities Act, please visit www.ada.gov <https://www.ada.gov/>.* ------------------------------ *Maine Sea Grant Biennial RFP* *Pre-proposal submission deadline: *Monday, March 4, 2019 4:30 p.m. EST Our biennial request for proposals are designed to sponsor a diverse research portfolio that links the scientific capacity of Maine with the needs of coastal stakeholders. We anticipate an estimated $600,000 will be available to support research projects over the two-year funding period. Total two-year requests are limited to $150,000 in Sea Grant funds (including all direct and indirect costs). Maine Sea Grant is administered by the University of Maine, but the research competition is open to faculty and staff at any public or private research or higher education institution in the state. *Complete request and instructions: *Maine Sea Grant Request for Proposals 2020-2022 <http://www.seagrant.umaine.edu/files/funding/2019-biennial-rfp-instructions.pdf> (PDF)**New for 2019** *Research/Extension Webinar:* We seek proposals that link research to the needs of coastal communities. There is no better way to do this than by interacting with our Marine Extension Team. Collectively, they have decades of experience in Maine’s coastal communities. We hosted a webinar on February 5th, 2019 – view the presentation PDF <http://www.seagrant.umaine.edu/sites/default/files/2019-02/20190205-research-extension-webinar.pdf> . *eSeaGrant:* Maine Sea Grant has a *new online proposal submission tool*. All pre-proposals and full proposals must be submitted to Maine eSeaGrant <https://esg.umaine.edu/>. Please view our instruction manual for a short introduction and tutorial to using eSeaGrant <http://seagrant.umaine.edu/files/funding/2019-eseagrant-instructions.pdf>. *Contact Dan Weaver, Research Coordinator, by email <https://mail.google.com/mail/?view=cm&fs=1&tf=1&[log in to unmask]> or phone (207.581.4880) with any questions.* ------------------------------ Knauss Fellowship The Sea Grant Knauss Fellowship provides a unique educational and professional experience to graduate students who have an interest in ocean, coastal and Great Lakes resources and in the national policy decisions affecting those resources. The Fellowship, named after one of Sea Grant's founders, former NOAA Administrator, John A. Knauss, matches highly qualified graduate students with "hosts" in the legislative and executive branch of government located in the Washington, D.C. area, for a one year paid fellowship. To learn more, please visit the John A. Knauss Marine Policy Fellowship Program <https://seagrant.noaa.gov/Knauss> on the web. Visit the *National Sea Grant website for Prospective Knauss Fellows* <http://seagrant.noaa.gov/FundingFellowships/KnaussFellowship/ProspectiveFellows.aspx>, to learn more about the fellowship and the application process. *Next Application Deadline:* Friday, February 22, 2019, 5:00 PM EST *Creating your Application*: Download and carefully read the *2020 Knauss Fellowship Federal Funding Opportunity <http://www.seagrant.umaine.edu/sites/default/files/2018-12/NOAA-OAR-SG-2020-2005911-FFO-Report-knauss.pdf>* (NOAA-OAR-SG-2020-2005911), which contains information about eligibility, required application content and format, and applicant review criteria. *Please notify Kathy Villarreal at 207-581-1435 or [log in to unmask] <https://mail.google.com/mail/?view=cm&fs=1&tf=1&[log in to unmask]> as soon as you have decided to apply*, so we can track the applications coming in, start a file for your materials, and answer questions about the application process. NOAA requires official hard copies of all undergraduate and graduate transcripts for this fellowship application, which must be delivered (via mail or by hand) to our office, but all other application materials may be emailed to Kathy Villarreal at the address above. Letters of recommendation should be addressed to Maine Sea Grant Director, Gayle Zydlewski, and they may be sent via mail or signed, scanned, and emailed to Kathy Villarreal <https://mail.google.com/mail/?view=cm&fs=1&tf=1&[log in to unmask]> at the contact information above. It is critical that the application format guidance in the federal funding opportunity <http://www.seagrant.umaine.edu/sites/default/files/2018-12/NOAA-OAR-SG-2020-2005911-FFO-Report-knauss.pdf> is followed exactly, as applicants have been disqualified in recent years for errors such as word counts in excess of the maximum required. If you have any additional questions about your eligibility, or about the fellowship experience or application review criteria, please contact Beth Bisson <https://mail.google.com/mail/?view=cm&fs=1&tf=1&[log in to unmask]>. *Submit application materials to:* Knauss Fellowship Review Committee, Attn: Kathy Villarreal Maine Sea Grant College Program 5784 York Complex, Building 6 University of Maine Orono, ME 04469 Email: [log in to unmask] <https://mail.google.com/mail/?view=cm&fs=1&tf=1&[log in to unmask]> Phone: 207-581-1435 ------------------------------ *NMFS-Sea Grant Joint Fellowship Program in Population and Ecosystem Dynamics and Marine Resource Economics* *PLEASE NOTE*: The deadline for this opportunity *has been changed* to Thursday 28 February 2019 The NMFS-Sea Grant Joint Fellowship Program in Population and Ecosystem Dynamics and Marine Resource Economics is designed to help Sea Grant fulfill its broad educational responsibilities and to strengthen the collaboration between Sea Grant and the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS). Since 1999, Sea Grant and NMFS have partnered to train graduate students in two specialized areas: population and ecosystem dynamics as well as marine resource economics. Population and ecosystem dynamics involve the study of fish populations and marine ecosystems to better assess fishery stock conditions and dynamics. The goals of the NOAA Fisheries/Sea Grant Fellowship Program are: · To encourage qualified applicants to pursue careers in either population and ecosystem dynamics and stock assessment or in marine resource economics · To increase available expertise related to these fields · To foster closer relationships between academic scientists and NOAA Fisheries · To provide real-world experience to graduate students and accelerate their career development For more information, please visit the NOAA NMFS-SG Fellowship <https://seagrant.noaa.gov/NMFS-SG-Fellowship> page. *NEW Application Deadline:* Thursday 28 February 2019, 5:00 PM EST *Important Application Submission Details:* All application materials from Maine applicants for this fellowship program must be submitted to the Maine Sea Grant Program office at the University of Maine in Orono by the state application deadline (January 30). *Please contact Kathy Villarreal at the Maine Sea Grant Program as soon as you have decided to apply for the fellowship (207-581-1435 or email Kathy <https://mail.google.com/mail/?view=cm&fs=1&tf=1&[log in to unmask]>)*, so we can discuss the process and timeline for your proposal, track the number of applications coming in, and help answer questions during proposal preparation. Letters of recommendation should be addressed to NOAA Fisheries/Sea Grant Fellowship Program Manager. *2019 Application Materials*: There are two separate funding numbers for the two portions of this competition. The 2019 NOAA NOAA Fisheries/Sea Grant Fellowship Federal Funding Opportunities for both Marine Resource Economics and Population and Ecosystem Dynamics are available via grants.gov <http://www.grants.gov/web/grants/home.html> Please visit Grants.Gov <http://www.grants.gov/web/grants/home.html>, click the "Search Grants" tab, and enter the following *Funding Opportunity Numbers*, or click the links below to view and download the full announcement and submission forms: · Population and Ecosystem Dynamics Federal Funding Opportunity - NOAA-OAR-SG-2019-2005907 <https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/view-opportunity.html?oppId=310582> · Marine Resource Economics Federal Funding Opportunity - NOAA-OAR-SG-2019-2005909 <https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/view-opportunity.html?oppId=310586> For more information, please contact Kathy Villarreal <https://mail.google.com/mail/?view=cm&fs=1&tf=1&[log in to unmask]>, or email [log in to unmask] <https://mail.google.com/mail/?view=cm&fs=1&tf=1&[log in to unmask]> . ------------------------------ *Sea Grant Research Fellowship: Lobster* This fellowship is jointly supported by Maine Sea Grant and UMaine’s College of Natural Sciences Forestry and Agriculture. A one-year graduate research assistantship including stipend, tuition and insurance for a student conducting lobster research. The prospective student must be either already enrolled in or recently accepted by the admissions committee to the School of Marine Sciences Dual Master’s degree program in Marine Science and Policy. Ideally this fellowship will provide a 3rd year to complete the dual degree added to the 2 years traditionally taken for a single Masters degree. The advising faculty member and student must embrace the Sea Grant approach to research, extension, and outreach <https://www.seagrant.umaine.edu/about>, and the research area should align with the Maine Sea Grant strategic plan. The advisor must become an affiliated faculty of UMaine’s Lobster Institute. The financial terms of the one-year fellowship are as follows Stipend: $23,000 Tuition: up to $5,856 Health Insurance: $2801 Advising faculty are asked to submit: 1. Name of the prospective student; 2. Student’s enrollment status (enrolled or entering); 3. Brief project description (not to exceed 300 words) including a statement of the student’s involvement in research and outreach activities; 4. Sources of additional support beyond one year. State whether these sources are secured or pending. *Application review to begin:* 1 March 2019 Applications will be reviewed jointly by Maine Sea Grant and the Lobster Institute, and be ranked on the basis of alignment with their missions. Submit questions and applications by email to Kathy Villarreal <https://mail.google.com/mail/?view=cm&fs=1&tf=1&[log in to unmask]>.