Funding Opportunity Summary

The Gulf Research Program’s (GRP) Health and Resilience Unit is developing new programming around health and community resilience that prioritizes the needs and challenges of communities that are disproportionately at risk from climate hazards or other disasters.

This funding opportunity is an important step in understanding what methods or approaches could be used to effectively address the priorities or needs of these at-risk communities.[1] Specifically, the GRP is interested in funding projects that demonstrate how open and accessible data can help state/local/tribal governments achieve more equitable outcomes associated with climate hazards or other disasters.

The GRP will award up to six projects under this funding opportunity. Applicants may request up to $300,000 for projects that are up to 18 months in duration.

This funding opportunity has two stages:

1. Stage I: Applicants submit a Letter of Intent (LOI) - CLOSED
2. Stage II: Applicants whose LOI is selected after a merit review process will be invited to submit a full proposal.

The Challenge

When confronting challenges associated with climate hazards or other disasters, local governments often lack the capability to effectively use science and data in planning and decision-making processes, despite an abundance of data and decision-support tools. This is especially true when it comes to using science and data to address the disproportionate impacts that climate hazards and other disasters have on a population’s most at-risk communities.

As a result, decisions that address impacts from climate hazards or other disasters may be based on incomplete, insufficient, or inappropriate data which could produce plans, policies, strategies, programs, etc. that do not adequately address the priorities or needs of at-risk communities. At worse, decisions could result in negative, unintended consequences.

Purpose of this Funding Opportunity

The purpose of this funding opportunity is to support collaborative efforts between subject matter experts and state/local/tribal governments working in the GRP’s geographic regions to utilize open and accessible data to apply an equity [2] lens to an existing plan, policy, strategy, program, etc., that would potentially result in more equitable outcomes for communities that are disproportionately at risk from the impacts of climate hazards or other disasters.

Specifically, the GRP seeks projects that demonstrate how the use of data can help state/local/tribal governments achieve more equitable outcomes associated with climate hazards or other disasters in order to address the needs or challenges of communities that are disproportionately at risk.

Applicants are encouraged to submit innovative project ideas.

Each project will produce three deliverables:

1. A case study that documents the collaborative planning process of using data to 1) inform decision making, and 2) apply an equity lens to an existing plan, policy, strategy, program, etc. The case study should identify lessons learned (both successes and challenges) about and effective strategies for engaging local government and other stakeholders; using data to inform decision making; applying an equity lens to an existing plan, policy, strategy, program, etc.
2. An equity-informed plan, policy, strategy, program, etc. that was developed through the proposed project.
3. An analysis that examines the similarities and differences between the original and equity-informed plan, policy, strategy, program, etc., including a discussion about the government partners’ reflection on the planning process, output, and potential outcomes (e.g., did the project enhance, improve, or influence their decision making? Could the implementation of the equity-informed plan, policy, strategy, program, etc. produce better outcomes for community?).

The GRP will share these three deliverables with other communities interested in using data to incorporate equity into their plans, policies, strategy, programs, etc.

[1] For purposes of this funding opportunity, at-risk communities are subgroups of the population that are vulnerable, underserved, under-resourced, or otherwise marginalized.[2] For the purposes of this funding opportunity, “equity” is defined as “the fair treatment, access, opportunity, and advancement for all people, while at the same time striving to identify and eliminate barriers that have prevented the full participation of some groups,” from Kapila, M., Hines, E., & Searby, M. 2016. “Why Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Matter.” The Independent Sector.