The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Water Power Technologies Office (WPTO) today announced an opportunity for hydropower developers and other stakeholders to receive technical assistance from the DOE national laboratories to advance hydropower’s role on the electricity grid. This technical assistance opportunity is open to hydropower developers, system operators, utilities, energy co-ops, manufacturers, regulators, policymakers, nonprofits, and others. Both for-profit and nonprofit companies or entities that are incorporated (or otherwise formed) under the laws of a particular state or territory of the United States are eligible to apply.

The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) is offering $50,000 to $200,000 in prize awards for impactful and inclusive approaches to foster a thriving, collaborative national innovation support ecosystem to advance research and development (R&D) from ideas to impact. By fostering connections between entrepreneurs, advisors, mentors, partners, philanthropies, corporations, investors, and other shared resources, the 2023 Growth Accelerator Fund Competition (GAFC) will catalyze strategic ecosystem partnerships to build community and organizational capacity for the successful launch, growth, and scale of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics)-based entrepreneurs and startups.

Isotope R&D and Production (IP) FOA will support MSI-led efforts to increase diversity in the isotope workforce development pipeline. MSI-led teams will partner with sites funded by IP to engage in routine isotope production. Students will participate in isotope production related research, fostering the next generation workforce of isotope scientists and engineers. Efforts will also expand research and training capabilities of MSIs and opportunities for their faculty. Webinar: January 17^th, 12 pm EST. Register here.

The Nuclear Physics (NP) FOA will support workforce development and increased workforce diversity especially from underrepresented groups via a wide range of activities that increase entry points into the research community, support retention, and expanding research capabilities at institutions with historically low participation in nuclear science. Webinar: January 27^th, 3 pm EST. Register here.

The High Energy Physics (HEP) FOA will support training and research experiences in particle physics for members of underserved communities, with the goals of supporting investigators and building research infrastructure at institutions which have not traditionally been part of the particle physics portfolio and encouraging underrepresented populations to pursue STEM careers. Webinar: February 1^st, 2 pm EST. Register here.

The Fusion Energy Sciences (FES) FOA will encourage the participation of underrepresented groups in FES’s fusion and plasma science and technology research portfolios by supporting sustainable research collaborations and undergraduate, graduate, and early career training opportunities between non-R1 institutions and/or MSIs and DOE national laboratories, SC designated user facilities, and DOE-sponsored facilities. Webinar: January 19^th, 3 pm EST. Register here.

The Basic Energy Sciences (BES) FOA will increase participation of underrepresented groups in BES’s research portfolio in condensed matter and materials physics, chemistry, geosciences, and aspects of biosciences by providing internship and research opportunities for students, postdoctoral researchers, and faculty from non-R1 MSIs through partnerships with DOE national laboratories or R1 MSIs. Webinar: January 23^rd, 4 pm EST. Register here.

The Basic Energy Sciences (BES) FOA will increase participation of underrepresented groups in BES’s research portfolio in condensed matter and materials physics, chemistry, geosciences, and aspects of biosciences by providing internship and research opportunities for students, postdoctoral researchers, and faculty from non-R1 MSIs through partnerships with DOE national laboratories or R1 MSIs. Webinar: January 23^rd, 4 pm EST. Register here.

The Advanced Scientific Computing Research (ASCR) FOA will create new workforce training opportunities in computer science for artificial intelligence and high-performance and scientific computing, quantum computing, and quantum networking as well as hands-on programming, data organization and cleaning, data visualization, and data science experiences for students and postdocs from underrepresented groups and at historically underrepresented institutions such as non-R1 institutions and/or MSIs. Webinar: January 31^st, 2 pm EST. Register here.

Formerly known as EPA’s State Environmental Justice Cooperative Agreement Program (SEJCA), this program has been renamed to better reflect the multiple entities eligible for the funding as well as the purpose of the program. The EJG2G program provides funding to governmental entities at the state, local, territorial and tribal level to support and/or create model government activities that lead to measurable environmental or public health results in communities disproportionately burdened by environmental harms and risks. These models should leverage or utilize existing resources or assets of state agencies to develop key tools and processes that integrate environmental justice considerations into governments and government programs at all levels.

EPA’s EJ Collaborative Problem-Solving Cooperative Agreement Program provides funding for eligible applicants for projects that address local environmental and public health issues within an affected community. The EJCPS Program assists recipients in building collaborative partnerships to help them understand and address environmental and public health concerns in their communities.

The Destination Decarbonization Challenge is a case study competition open to undergraduate students who want to get involved in the energy industry, solve challenges surrounding carbon emissions in their local region, and win some prize money along the way!