Climate Program Office (CPO), Climate and Societal Interactions (CSI) Division — Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL)

Threats from flooding and wildfire are some of the most significant risks of climate change facing communities in the U.S. and its territories. Since 2020, flooding and wildfire have caused over $20 Billion in damages (NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Billion-Dollar Weather and Climate Disasters (2022)). These impacts are most acute in Frontline communities. Frontline communities are defined here as those communities who are the most vulnerable to and will be the most adversely affected by climate change and inequitable actions because of systemic and historical socioeconomic disparities, environmental injustices, or other forms of injustice. However, it is also understood that characterizing identity is inherently complex, changes over time, and is best defined by communities in their own terms. Communities must adapt in order to address the risks of climate change now and in the future. Accomplishing this requires improved understanding of the social conditions that create vulnerabilities, methodologies for including frontline communities in planning processes, inclusion of local knowledge and experiences, and pathways for successful implementation of adaptive actions, including through building community capacity. These types of information are foundational to delivering relevant, responsive, equitable and inclusive climate services, by generating a comprehensive picture of the complexity of community needs and how those needs can be best addressed. The goal of this Notice of Federal Funding Opportunity (NOFO) is to support collaborative research and community engagement projects that improve climate adaptation planning and action. Collaborative research and community engagement are defined here as the process of developing trusted and sustained partnerships between scientists, decision-makers, and communities that lead to shared understandings of climate adaptation needs and the co-generation of credible and actionable climate knowledge to support community defined plans, including implementable solutions. Outcomes from this work will support and inform the identification of equitable and inclusive infrastructure investments that mitigate flooding and wildfire risks. This initiative supports National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) activities within the 2021 Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL). Through BIL, NOAA aims to improve capabilities to better inform decisions to protect life and property, and mitigate flooding and wildfire impacts to the U.S. population and economy. Specifically, outcomes of grants funded through this opportunity will support national adaptive capacity by 1) generating new, locally relevant knowledge and strategies to reduce risks from flooding and wildfire in frontline communities, 2) testing and evaluating the scalability and transferability of existing methods of engagement and/or approaches for integrating social and interdisciplinary knowledge into climate adaptation planning for flooding and wildfire, and 3) piloting new methods of engagement and/or approaches for integrating social and interdisciplinary knowledge into climate adaptation planning for flooding and wildfire. Through this NOFO, the Climate and Adaptation Partnership program in the Climate and Societal Interactions (CSI) division of the Climate Program Office is soliciting applications for three competitions totaling approximately $3.6 Million in FY22/23. 1. Improving Engagement Methods for Coastal Resilience Planning (approximately $800,000 available) 2. Assessing Tradeoffs and Co-Benefits for Complex Decision-Making in Communities Facing Coastal Inundation and/or Inland Flooding (approximately $1,870,000 available) 3. Identifying Complex Interactions between Social Infrastructure and Wildfire Risks to Improve Community Adaptive Capacity (approximately $930,000 available) Competitions 1, 2, & 3 support collaborative activities that leverage the Climate Adaptation Partnerships (CAP) program, formerly the Regional Integrated Science and Assessments (RISA) program. Projects will work across existing CAP/RISA teams and expansion activity regions, to test, scale, and transfer knowledge to build national adaptation capacity. The Principal Investigator of the proposal must be a member of a current CAP/RISA team, see here for a list of current teams, and section I.B. for additional information on eligibility and team composition requirements. CAP/RISA is a network of regionally focused and applied research and engagement teams with over 25 years of experience building local capacity to adapt to climate impacts. CAP/RISA teams possess extensive knowledge of the key physical, social, cultural, and economic dynamics associated with climate risks and opportunities, and have developed innovative and transformative solutions to build adaptive capacity within their regions, making them credible sources of knowledge and support for partners. As long term, place-based NOAA investments, CAP/RISA teams have had the time to develop sustained and trusted relationships with decision-makers and community members at the frontline of climate impacts.
Categories: Business and Commerce, Environment, Science and Technology and other Research and Development, Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), Natural Resources.