Long-Term Ecological Research Program Description  (LTER)

CONTACTS

PROGRAM GUIDELINES

PD 05-7381

Important Notice to Proposers

A revised version of the NSF Proposal & Award Policies & Procedures Guide (PAPPG), NSF 13-1, was issued on October 4, 2012 and is effective for proposals submitted, or due, on or after January 14, 2013. Please be advised that, depending on the specified due date, the guidelines contained in NSF 13-1 may apply to proposals submitted in response to this funding opportunity.

Please be aware that significant changes have been made to the PAPPG to implement revised merit review criteria based on the National Science Board (NSB) report, National Science Foundation's Merit Review Criteria: Review and Revisions. While the two merit review criteria remain unchanged (Intellectual Merit and Broader Impacts), guidance has been provided to clarify and improve the function of the criteria. Changes will affect the project summary and project description sections of proposals. Annual and final reports also will be affected.

A by-chapter summary of this and other significant changes is provided at the beginning of both the Grant Proposal Guide and the Award & Administration Guide.

DUE DATES

Archived

SYNOPSIS

Long-Term Ecological Research (LTER) supports fundamental ecological research that requires long time periods and large spatial scales. This program supports a coordinated network of more than two dozen field sites [http://www.lternet.edu/sites/]. The general mission of LTER is to understand ecological phenomena that occur over long temporal and broad spatial scales; to create a legacy of well-designed and documented ecological experiments; to conduct major syntheses and theoretical efforts; and to provide information necessary for the identification and solution of environmental problems. The LTER network of sites conducts integrated research in five core areas: pattern and control of primary production; spatial and temporal distribution of populations selected to represent trophic structure; pattern and control of organic matter accumulation in surface soils and sediments; patterns of inorganic inputs and movements of nutrients through soils and waters; and patterns, frequency, and effects of disturbance. LTER also supports a Network Office [http://lternet.edu/sites/net/], whose mission is to coordinate and facilitate information technology development and implementation across the network, to facilitate management of the network, to aid efforts in research synthesis, and to conduct public outreach. LTER field sites represent a diversity of habitats in continental North America, the Caribbean, Pacific Ocean, and the Antarctic, including coral reefs, deserts, estuaries, lakes, prairies, various forests, alpine and Arctic tundra, urban areas and production agriculture. This breadth is possible through coordinated funding from Biological Sciences, Geosciences, Polar Programs, and Social, Behavioral and Economic Sciences. Supplemental funding supports the LTER Schoolyard educational program, international collaborative research, and related activities at LTER sites.

LTER does not solicit proposals, except when new LTER sites are initiated and does not accept unsolicited proposals from LTER or non-LTER PIs. For more information and announcements of opportunity, visit the LTER web page [http://www.lternet.edu/].

RELATED URLS

Addressing the Ecological Challenges of the 21st Century - video clip

LTER Current Findings

LTER Brochure: Translating Science for Society Broader Impacts of NSF's LTER Program

General LTER Network Brochure

Schoolyard LTER

"The Lost Seal" - a children's book

What Has Been Funded (Recent Awards Made Through This Program, with Abstracts)

News

Discoveries