IMPORTANT NOTICE: Pre-Proposals for the current call must be submitted using this website. If you have never used this site before to submit proposals, start with the “CREATE AN ACCOUNT” link at the bottom of this page.  If you have used this site before, please use the "ALREADY HAVE AN ACCOUNT?" link at the bottom of this page to log in.

JRS is specifically seeking 1, 2, or 3 year projects to advance the field of biodiversity with a particular interest in those endeavors that systematically gather and make widely available information that is required to realize conservation outcomes.  The Foundation seeks applications proposing projects to establish a clear connection and identifiable potential link to conservation outcomes, and an explanation of the tangible uses of the data that may yielded via the grant.  No minimum or maximum funding limit has been established for individual grants but JRS is allocating an amount of $1 million US dollars to fund this new call for each of the next 3 years.  More costly projects will have a higher review threshold. 

All pre-proposals will be evaluated on their own merits and only those submitted using the Foundation website will be considered.  You will need to comply with the word limit for your responses to each of the questions on the pre-proposal template.  No exceptions will be allowed. You may begin the application process immediately. No pre-proposals will be accepted after 15 February 2012.

Responses to this new invitation must further the general interests of the Foundation.

• Mission: To enhance knowledge and promote the understanding of biological diversity for the benefit and sustainability of life on earth.
• There is a particular interest in focusing on interdisciplinary activities primarily carried out via collaborations in developing countries and economies in transition with a special interest in Africa but will consider exceptional projects outside of Africa on a limited basis.
• Within those bounds a strategic interest has been chosen to: advance projects, or parts of biodiversity informatics projects that focus on: (1) collecting data, (2) aggregating, synthesizing, publishing data, and making it more widely available to potential end users, and (3) interpreting and gaining insights from data to inform policy and management of biodiversity.

When the Foundation refers to biodiversity it does so within the context of the meaning set by The Convention on Biological Diversity where at the Rio de Janeiro Conference in June 1992 it defined biological diversity as “the variability among living organisms from all sources including, among other things, terrestrial, marine, and other aquatic ecosystems and the ecological complexes of which they are part: this includes diversity within species, between species and of ecosystems.”

When the Foundation refers to biodiversity informatics it does so based on a definition taken in essence from Dr. Walter Berendsohn.

Biodiversity informatics is the application of information technology (IT) tools and approaches to biodiversity information, principally at the organismic level. It thus deals with information capture, storage provision, retrieval, and analysis, focused on individual organisms, populations, and species, and their interactions. It covers information generated by the fields of systematics, evolutionary biology, population biology, and ecology, as well as more applied fields such as conservation biology and ecological management.

With this call, JRS places particular weight on supporting efforts that are practical and likely to yield a tangible result that can be broadly shared to achieve specific conservation outcomes.  Additional Foundation interests include: (1) fostering the use of existing biodiversity information technologies; (2) assuring that knowledge may be maintained and broadly spread to enhance biodiversity and sustainability; (3) fostering the training of the next generation of scientists; and (4) educating decision-makers.  The Foundation interest in promoting human capacity through its grants encourages in proposals, the inclusion of staff development, involvement of mentors, travel for short courses for junior and senior staff, and similar activities that will build biodiversity competence in developing nations.

Timetable:

• January 1, 2012:  JRS Web site enabled to accept pre-proposals
• February 15, 2012:  Deadline for completion of pre-proposals
• March 15, 2012:  Invitation to pre-proposal finalists to submit final proposals
• April 15, 2012:  Deadline for submission of final proposals
• May 30, 2012:  Final funding decision announcement by Foundation
• June 30, 2012:  Distribution of first payment to approved grantees

Remember, the Foundation will only accept pre-proposals for this call via its website.  If you have a problem entering your information please contact the Foundation IT support at support@sitetechs.com.

Thank you in advance for your interest. 

Harry E. Cerino
JRS Biodiversity Foundation