Sustaining Infrastructure for Biological Research (Sustaining)

The Sustaining Infrastructure for Biological Research (Sustaining) Program supports the continued operation of existing research infrastructure that advances contemporary biology in any research area supported by the Directorate for Biological Sciences (BIO) at NSF. The Sustaining Program focuses primarily on sustaining critical research infrastructure that is cyberinfrastructure or biological living stocks and that is broadly applicable to a wide range of researchers. Projects are expected to ensure continued availability of existing, mature resources that will enable important science outcomes achieved by users representing a broad range of research supported by BIO and its collaborating organizations. This is an operation and maintenance funding opportunity which differs from other programs in that it does not provide funds for research or development leading to new capabilities or features, methods, or tools. Competitive proposals will clearly describe the resource that will be sustained and present documentation of its past impacts in science and education and a compelling justification for why these impacts are expected to sustain or grow during the proposed award period.