NSF Collections in Support of Biological Research (CSBR)
Solicitation Summary:
 Limit on Number of Proposals: An institution may submit three proposals as a lead institution.
In a single round of the CSBR competition, only one proposal may be submitted from any
individual collection within an organization. Organizations that house multiple collections and
submit proposals from more than one collection must demonstrate strategic planning activities
and clearly articulate their prioritization of the needs outlined in the proposals.
 Budget: Awards are limited to $500,000 for up to three years.
 PROPOSAL DUE to NSF:
July 13, 2015
If you are interested in submitting a proposal, please notify the Office of Sponsored Programs at
osp@unlv.edu by 5:00 p.m. Thursday April 2, 2015. If a selection process is necessary, pre-proposal
instructions will be sent to interested faculty. Please include in the notification the names and
departments of all key personnel on the project.
Project Summary:
The Collections in Support of Biological Research (CSBR) Program funds activities that improve
infrastructure for existing living stock/culture collections and specimen-based vouchered natural history
collections that serve a broad community of biological researchers. Activities involving the application of
new and improved curatorial techniques and tools related to the maintenance, provision, care,
preservation, storage, and data management of collections are encouraged. The program will also
consider digitizing activities such as databasing, geo-referencing, and imaging activities that are
associated with securing and improving access to collections. Proposals concerning the preservation and
organization of tissues, DNA, images, and collection data that can be linked to voucher specimens will be
considered, as will proposals for innovative enhancements for diverse collections and
workshops/symposia that will lead to improvements in the security, access, and maintenance of
biological collections. As a part of the improvements to collections, all specimens handled---if not
already digitized--- should be digitized and the data linked to the national resource for digitized
biocollections. This program does not support building a new collection, single-taxon natural history
collections devoted to a narrow research focus, or collecting new specimens to augment collections;
these are integral activities of research projects supported by other programs in the biological sciences.
Competitive Area 1. Natural History Collections
Competitive Area 2. Living Stock Collections
Competitive Area 3. Transfer Ownership of Collections