The AFRI Foundational and Applied Science Program supports grants in six AFRI priority areas to advance knowledge in both fundamental and applied sciences important to agriculture. The six priority areas are: Plant Health and Production and Plant Products; Animal Health and Production and Animal Products; Food Safety, Nutrition, and Health; Bioenergy, Natural Resources, and Environment; Agriculture Systems and Technology; and Agriculture Economics and Rural Communities. Research-only, extension-only, and integrated research, education and/or extension projects are solicited in this Request for Applications (RFA).

The goal of this RFI is to reach clean energy companies focused on building decarbonization and electrification retrofits, including new and innovative hardware and software that could be employed in 2023 via LACI Community Benefit Pilots. LACI seeks to identify key resources for building decarbonization that will help Los Angeles and the county reach their climate goals. Intended outcomes for LACI Community Benefit Pilots focused on clean energy include:

• Decarbonization for existing single and/or multi-family buildings

• Reducing energy burden in DACs

• Improving grid resilience

• Local economic and workforce development

• Reduced greenhouse gas emissions

• Improved air quality and health (indoor and outdoor)

The Solar and Wind Grid Services and Reliability Demonstration funding opportunity will award $26 million in funding for projects that demonstrate the reliable operation of a power system that has up to 100% of its power contribution coming from solar, wind, and battery storage resources.

• Topic 1: Wind and Solar Grid Services Design, Implementation, and Demonstration (3-5 projects, $3-6 million each)
• Topic 2: Protection of Bulk Power Systems with High Contribution from Inverter-Based Resources (3-4 projects, $2-3 million each)

The Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy hereby issues Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) entitled “Funding Opportunity in Support of the Hydrogen Shot and a University Research Consortium on Grid Resilience” that will address two unique areas of interest: one with topic areas focused on supporting the DOE Hydrogen Shot on behalf of the Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technologies Office and a second EERE-wide topic area focused on grid resilience through a university research consortium.

The University of Utah, in support of the Department of Energy’s Frontier Observatory for Research in Geothermal Energy (FORGE) is seeking applications under this solicitation for advancing Enhanced Geothermal Systems (EGS) technologies. This solicitation covers testing and evaluation of new and innovative EGS tools, techniques, and supporting science in the following EGS lifecycle categories:

• Reservoir characterization (coupled imaging, drilling for interrogation and monitoring, high-temperature tools and sensors)
• Reservoir creation (formation access, fracture characterization, zonal isolation, stimulation technologies)
• Reservoir sustainability (long-term testing, monitoring, and operational feedback)

Frontier is an advance market commitment to accelerate the development of carbon dioxide removal (CDR) technologies. It announced its first purchases in June 2022, and are now releasing a call for applications for Frontier’s Fall 2022 CDR
purchase cycle. To support technologies at different stages of development, Frontier will purchase carbon removal through two separate tracks – pre-purchases and offtakes – that vary by eligibility criteria, diligence process, and funding amounts.

This FOA supports the development of workforce programs and partnerships that will facilitate the continued deployment of solar energy technologies, while supporting an inclusive workforce with opportunities for career advancement, including through union membership. As part of the whole-of-government approach to advance equity and encourage worker organizing and collective bargaining, this FOA and any related activities will seek to encourage meaningful engagement and participation of labor unions and underserved communities and underrepresented groups, including consultation with Tribal Nations.

Areas of interest include:

• Apprenticeship readiness (pre-apprenticeship) or apprenticeship partnerships
• Community-led training partnerships
• Clean energy sector partnerships

Note that a Letter of Intent and Concept Paper are due before the final application deadline.

Looking to scale your innovation? Need ideas, resources and advice to take your start-up or scale-up to the next level? From agriculture to transport, recycling, chemicals, clean energy and the latest in AI, you can search the Innovation Challenge Hub for and find opportunities to work with corporates, investors, accelerators and programs dedicated to helping create a cleaner, cooler future.

The Frontline Resource Institute is releasing two grant opportunities through the Collective Action Fund at the Tides Foundation. Intended for environmental and climate justice organizations serving frontline communities, both opportunities will assist in building organizational capacity and promoting shared learning and peer exchange among grant recipients. Recognizing that organizations have different needs depending on their longevity, financial capacity, and development journeys, FRI plans to disburse funds via two tracks: (1) Organizational Strategy Development and (2) Organizational Capacity Building and Organizational Durability.

The Community Geothermal Heating and Cooling Design and Deployment FOA will award $300,000–$13 million for projects that help communities design and deploy geothermal district heating and cooling systems, create related workforce training, and identify and address environmental justice concerns.

The Geothermal Technologies Office (GTO) anticipates making approximately 1–10 awards under the initial phase, with individual awards varying between $300,000 and $750,000. In the second phase, following a downselect, GTO anticipates making 1–4 awards, with individual awards between $2.5 million and $10 million. GTO seeks diverse teams to form U.S. community coalitions.

The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO) seek to invest in innovative research and development (R&D) as well as research, development, and demonstration (RD&D) projects that enable continued cost reductions, while developing next-generation solar technologies and boosting American solar manufacturing, especially in cadmium telluride (CdTe) photovoltaics.

The research and development (R&D) activities to be funded under this FOA will support the government-wide approach to the climate crisis by driving the innovation that can lead to the deployment of clean energy technologies, which are critical for climate protection. Specifically, this FOA will develop and demonstrate new technologies enabling fast deployment of large amounts of solar generation into the grid.