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Marine Debris Program Hosts Informational Webinar for Invited Applicants to FY22 Removal Competition
DEC. 20, 2021 — On Dec. 6, the NOAA Marine Debris Program (MDP) hosted an information-sharing webinar for grant applicants.
The goal of this webinar was to communicate the expectations for invited full proposal submissions to the MDP’s Fiscal Year 2022 Removal funding opportunity, provide clarity for what applicants could expect during the application submission process, and share the anticipated timeline and an overview of the competition and award process.
The webinar brought together over 50 attendees from across the United States, of which nearly two thirds were first time applicants to a NOAA MDP funding opportunity. The webinar was intended to reach applicants from a variety of sectors including state and local agencies, nonprofit organizations, academia, as well as other groups. Participants learned about the various application components, evaluation criteria, the online accounts needed to submit the application, and the steps taken by NOAA between proposal submission and award notifications.
The success of this webinar was truly a team effort, with valuable support and ideas provided by many MDP team members. The webinar itself was presented by Amanda Dwyer, MDP grant specialist, and MDP Program Officers Tom Barry, Sarah Lowe, and Christy Kehoe participated in the following panel question and answer discussion. The MDP is planning on hosting a similar webinar in January 2021 for selected FY2022 NOFO prevention applicants.
Providing this webinar to applicants, designed to address some of the common challenges with the application process for both first time and repeat applicants, is one of many steps the MDP plans to take to better support diversity and inclusion in its grant programs. Additional actions include adding new justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion language to the FY2022 MDP Notices of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) and creating a NOFO guidance document. Promoting justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion improves the creativity, productivity, and vitality of the communities in which the program engages. NOAA is strongly committed to broadening the participation of veterans, minority-serving institutions, and entities that work in underserved areas.
For more information, please contact Amanda.Dwyer@noaa.gov.