Description
The Award for Innovative Mindset (AIM) supports the initial exploration of innovative, high-risk, high-gain, and potentially groundbreaking concepts in FA research, that will foster new directions, bring new perspectives to the field and address neglected issues in FA research. Studies supported by this award mechanism are expected to lay the groundwork for future avenues of scientific investigation. The proposed research project should include a well-formulated, testable hypothesis based on strong scientific rationale and study design. The presentation of preliminary and/or published data is encouraged, but not required.
The proposed research project should be innovative - introduce a novel paradigm, challenge existing paradigms, examine existing problems from novel perspectives, or exhibit other highly creative qualities. Research that is an incremental advance upon published data is not consistent with the intent of this award mechanism. It is the responsibility of the Principal Investigator (PI) to clearly and explicitly articulate how the proposed research project is innovative in the field of FA.
Only a few research applications that are innovative and feasible, specifically address the critical needs of the FA community and are consistent with the mission of FARA will be considered for review and funding.
Submission
Please submit your proposal
here, by using the LOI submission form and uploading all required information. Please select “Award for Innovative Mindset” from the dropdown menu when submitting the application.
Requirements
The proposal has a four-page limit that applies to text and non-text elements (e.g., figures, tables, graphs, photographs, diagrams, chemical structures, drawings) used to describe the project. References are not included in the page limit. Describe the proposed project in detail using the outline below.
- Rationale: Clearly articulate the rationale for the proposed research project. The presentation of preliminary and/or published data is encouraged, but not required.
- Innovation: Provide a brief summary of the proposed research that emphasizes the innovation it brings to the field of FA and the potential impact of this line of investigation.
- Hypothesis: State concisely the specific hypothesis that will be tested as it relates to a new concept, theory, paradigm, and/or method that addresses an important problem in FA research.
- Specific Aims: Concisely explain the proposed research project’s specific aims.
- Research Strategy and Feasibility: Describe the experimental design, methods, and analyses, including appropriate controls, in sufficient detail for scientific peer review. Address potential problem areas and present alternative methods and approaches. State clearly how you are qualified to test the specific hypothesis you are putting forward.
The proposal should also include a brief lay summary and an estimate of the budget with justification (not included in the four-page limit), as well as the CVs/biosketches for the Principal Investigator (PI) and co-investigators (if any are included). The anticipated direct costs budgeted must not exceed $100,000. FARA does not fund indirect costs.
Investigators at all academic levels (or equivalent) may be named as the PI on the application. We particularly encourage junior investigators to apply.
Only highly competitive proposals that are considered feasible will be peer-reviewed; no feedback will be provided for applications that are not reviewed. The award recipients will be announced by May 1 and the grant start date will be between June 1 and July 1.
Review process
All applications are first reviewed by the members of the FARA Scientific Review Committee (SRC), who score each application for innovation and impact. Those that rank highly then undergo full external peer-review. The external reviewers are selected by the SRC and each of the reviewers provides comments and scores for innovation, impact and approach.