Long-Term Ecological Research | 22 543

Opportunity Information: Apply for 22 543

The National Science Foundation (NSF) Long-Term Ecological Research (LTER) opportunity supports research designed to answer ecological questions that simply cannot be addressed with short-term studies. Established in 1980, the LTER program is built around the idea that many of the most important ecological processes, including slow environmental change, rare events, and multi-decade shifts in ecosystems, only become clear through sustained observation and coordinated research over long time horizons. The program’s purpose is to deepen fundamental understanding of how ecosystems function and change, and to use that evidence to develop and test ecological theory about long-term dynamics in populations, communities, and whole ecosystems.

A defining feature of LTER is that the research is anchored at specific, established field sites that represent major ecosystem types or natural biomes. Rather than funding isolated projects in any location, NSF supports a network of sites (currently 28) where consistent, comparable, and cumulative datasets can be built over time. This site-based approach enables researchers to track ecological patterns and processes within a well-characterized system and to compare findings across different regions and ecosystem types through network-wide collaboration.

Another key feature is the program’s emphasis on long-term data collection organized around five core areas. While the solicitation text provided does not list those areas explicitly, the intent is clear: LTER research is expected to generate sustained, high-quality datasets that allow integrated analysis of ecosystem components and their interactions. Long-term monitoring and coordinated experiments at these sites help scientists separate short-term variability from true directional change, evaluate how ecosystems respond to disturbances and climate pressures, and understand feedbacks across biological, chemical, and physical processes. Because LTER work often spans multiple disciplines, projects commonly integrate ecology with fields such as climatology, hydrology, geoscience, biogeochemistry, and data science, and they may also include cross-site studies that reveal broad-scale patterns not visible at a single location.

The program also places a strong emphasis on data sharing. NSF requires that data collected at LTER sites be made publicly accessible, reflecting the idea that long-term datasets become increasingly valuable over time and are useful far beyond the original research team. Open access enables reuse by other scientists, supports synthesis efforts across the network, improves transparency and reproducibility, and helps maximize the public value of federally funded research.

This particular solicitation is specifically for renewal proposals for active LTER site awards, meaning it is aimed at teams already operating an NSF-supported LTER site and seeking continued support to sustain and advance their long-term research and data collection. The broader LTER program remains ongoing, and NSF may periodically announce separate solicitations to add new sites or rebalance the network’s coverage when scientific needs or funding conditions make that appropriate, but those competitions are handled through different announcements.

Administrative details from the opportunity record include: it is a discretionary NSF grant opportunity in the science and technology/research and development category, with CFDA numbers 47.050, 47.074, and 47.075. The funding opportunity number is 22-543, the record was created on December 23, 2021, and the original closing date listed is March 23, 2022. The expected number of awards is 12, and the award ceiling is shown as 0, which typically indicates that a fixed cap is not specified in the summary field and that applicants should rely on the full solicitation or program guidance for budget expectations. Eligibility is listed broadly as “Others,” with clarification referenced in an additional eligibility section of the solicitation, which is common for NSF programs that have specific institutional or organizational requirements.

• The National Science Foundation in the science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Long-Term Ecological Research" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 47.050, 47.074, 47.075.
• This funding opportunity was created on Dec 23, 2021.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Mar 23, 2022. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 12 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Others (see text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility for clarification).

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