Cooperative Agreement for CESU-affiliated Partner with Great Lakes Northern Forests Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit | G21AS00575

Opportunity Information: Apply for G21AS00575

This funding opportunity, numbered G21AS00575, is a discretionary federal grant offered by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) through its Great Lakes Science Center. It is structured specifically as a cooperative agreement, which generally means USGS expects to have substantial involvement in the work as it is carried out (for example, collaborating on study design, data collection approaches, analysis plans, or coordination with other Great Lakes efforts), rather than simply providing funds with minimal engagement. The opportunity sits within the Science and Technology and other Research and Development activity category and is listed under CFDA 15.808, aligning it with USGS research and science support activities.

The project focus is titled "Great Lakes Connecting Channels Ecology" and is aimed at generating practical, management-relevant scientific insight into the environmental and biological conditions of the Great Lakes Connecting Channels (GLCC). The GLCC are the major rivers and connecting waterways that link the Great Lakes and influence how water, nutrients, organisms, and contaminants move through the basin. The opportunity explicitly highlights several key connecting systems: the St. Marys River, St. Clair River, Detroit River, Niagara River, and the St. Lawrence River, along with their adjoining waterways. Because these channels act as ecological and hydrological "gateways" between lakes, understanding their conditions can be especially important for anticipating basin-wide changes, tracking stressors, and improving ecosystem and fisheries management decisions.

A central rationale for the work is that better information on GLCC ecology supports management across the Great Lakes Basin, including both recreational and commercial fisheries. Connecting channels can strongly shape fish habitat availability, spawning and nursery areas, migration pathways, and food-web dynamics, and they can also influence exposure to invasive species, changing temperature regimes, altered flows, shoreline development pressures, and water quality issues. By improving knowledge of both environmental conditions (such as water quality, habitat characteristics, and physical conditions) and biological conditions (such as species presence, community structure, and ecological interactions), the research is positioned to help agencies and partners make more informed decisions that affect fish populations and broader ecosystem health.

Eligibility is limited to CESU partners affiliated with the Great Lakes Northern Forests Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit (CESU). In other words, this is not an open competition for all institution types; it is intended for organizations that are already part of, or formally aligned with, that CESU network. The CESU framework is designed to facilitate applied research collaborations among federal agencies, universities, tribes, and other partners, so this opportunity is best understood as a targeted call to leverage that established partnership infrastructure for Great Lakes connecting-channels science.

In terms of funding scale and timing, the award ceiling is listed as $499,999. The opportunity was created on June 23, 2021, and the original closing date was July 23, 2021. The notice lists "ExpectedAwards" but does not provide a number in the supplied source data, so while it indicates an intent to make awards, the exact count is not specified in the excerpt. Overall, the program is essentially a targeted USGS Great Lakes Science Center cooperative research effort, intended to deliver actionable ecological understanding of the connecting channels that underpin Great Lakes basin management and fisheries sustainability.

• The Geological Survey in the science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Cooperative Agreement for CESU-affiliated Partner with Great Lakes Northern Forests Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 15.808.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2021-06-23.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2021-07-23. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $499,999.00 in funding.
• Eligible applicants include: Others.

Apply for G21AS00575

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