Cooperative Agreement for CESU-affiliated Partner with Colorado Plateau Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit | G23AS00419

Opportunity Information: Apply for G23AS00419

This grant opportunity, titled "Cooperative Agreement for CESU-affiliated Partner with Colorado Plateau Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit," is a discretionary funding announcement from the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), specifically through the Southwest Biological Science Center (SBSC). It is issued as a cooperative agreement, which typically means the USGS expects to have substantial involvement in the work beyond simply providing funds, such as collaborating on study design, data integration, modeling choices, interpretation, and delivery of usable products.

The funded work focuses on ecohydrological simulation aimed at measuring and explaining how drought conditions that matter to ecosystems have played out in the past and how they may change in the future, particularly in dryland ecosystems. In practical terms, the research is meant to connect hydrology (water availability, soil moisture dynamics, precipitation patterns, evapotranspiration) with ecological outcomes (vegetation stress, habitat conditions, ecosystem function) and use simulation modeling to quantify drought patterns that are ecologically relevant rather than purely meteorological. The emphasis on both historical reconstruction and forward-looking scenarios suggests projects may integrate long-term climate records and modeling projections to evaluate shifts in drought frequency, duration, severity, and seasonal timing, with the goal of producing information that can guide science-based management and planning in arid and semi-arid landscapes.

This opportunity is offered under the Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit (CESU) Program. CESUs are formal partnerships designed to support research, technical assistance, and education activities that address natural and cultural resource issues. A key limitation is eligibility: applicants must be active participating partners of the Colorado Plateau CESU. The listing identifies the eligible applicant category broadly as "Others," but the controlling requirement is CESU partnership status within the Colorado Plateau CESU network, meaning entities outside that partnership are not eligible to apply under this announcement.

The opportunity is cataloged under Funding Opportunity Number G23AS00419 and the assistance listing (CFDA) number 15.808. It falls within the "Science and Technology and other Research and Development" activity category, aligning it with applied and/or basic research outputs rather than construction or purely operational activities. The funding was announced with a creation date of June 13, 2023, and an original application closing date of August 18, 2023. The stated award ceiling is $329,929, indicating the maximum expected federal funding amount for an individual award under this notice. The posting indicates expected awards but does not provide a specific number in the supplied source text, implying that applicants should not assume multiple awards unless confirmed in the full announcement package.

Overall, the grant is designed to support a CESU-affiliated partner in producing ecohydrological modeling and drought characterization products tailored to dryland ecosystems, with close collaboration with USGS SBSC. The intended value is improved understanding of how drought has affected these systems historically and how future drought regimes could shape ecological conditions, supporting resource management, conservation planning, and scientific decision-making in regions influenced by Colorado Plateau and broader Southwest dryland dynamics.

• 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 Colorado Plateau 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 2023-06-13.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2023-08-18. (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 $329,929.00 in funding.
• Eligible applicants include: Others.

Apply for G23AS00419

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