FY24 Bluefin Tuna Research Program | NOAA NMFS SE 2024 2008086

Opportunity Information: Apply for NOAA NMFS SE 2024 2008086

The FY24 Bluefin Tuna Research Program is a NOAA/NMFS discretionary funding opportunity (Department of Commerce) designed to strengthen science-based management of Atlantic bluefin tuna by filling key gaps in knowledge about the species and its fisheries. The central purpose is to improve understanding of bluefin tuna biology and fishery dynamics in ways that can directly support management decisions, with particular emphasis on the long-standing scientific challenge of how much eastern and western Atlantic bluefin tuna populations mix and how they move across the Atlantic. That mixing and movement affects stock assessments, harvest limits, and the effectiveness of conservation measures, so research that clarifies these patterns is especially relevant to the program.

A major feature of this opportunity is that it is aligned with, and meant to contribute to, a broader multi-year international research effort coordinated through the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT). The United States is a contracting party to ICCAT, and the program is framed as part of a collaborative push among ICCAT members and partners to improve the scientific foundation behind ICCAT management of bluefin fisheries. Because of that, proposals that include clear collaboration with the ICCAT Atlantic Bluefin Tuna Research Program and other ICCAT partners are strongly encouraged, signaling that projects with international coordination, data sharing, compatible methods, or joint field and analytical work may be viewed as particularly valuable.

The funding instrument is a cooperative agreement, which typically implies NOAA expects to have substantial involvement during the project period (for example, through coordination, technical input, or shared responsibilities), rather than acting only as a pass-through funder. The program falls under CFDA 11.472 and is categorized under environment, natural resources, and science and technology research and development, reflecting its focus on applied fisheries science with management outcomes.

Eligibility is broad and includes state governments, federally recognized tribal governments, public and private institutions of higher education, independent school districts, 501(c)(3) nonprofits (other than universities), individuals, for-profit organizations (including small businesses and other for-profits). This wide eligibility suggests NOAA is open to proposals from academic researchers, government science agencies, nonprofit research groups, and industry or private-sector teams, as long as the work advances the program goals and contributes to the broader ICCAT-oriented research priorities.

For FY24, the opportunity (Funding Opportunity Number: NOAA NMFS SE 2024 2008086) anticipated around five awards, with an award ceiling of $300,000 per award. The opportunity was created July 26, 2023, and the original closing date was September 29, 2023. Overall, it is best understood as a targeted research program intended to produce usable scientific information that improves stock assessment and management of Atlantic bluefin tuna, especially where uncertainty about trans-Atlantic movement and mixing complicates decision-making, and where coordinated international research can meaningfully improve the evidence base for ICCAT and national fisheries management actions.

• The Department of Commerce in the environment, natural resources, science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "FY24 Bluefin Tuna Research Program" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 11.472.
• This funding opportunity was created on Jul 26, 2023.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Sep 29, 2023. (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 $300,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 5 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: State governments, Independent school districts, Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized), Nonprofits having a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Private institutions of higher education, Individuals, For profit organizations other than small businesses, Small businesses.

Apply for NOAA NMFS SE 2024 2008086

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