International Polar Year, 2007

The "International Polar Year 2007-2008" (IPY) will extend from March 2007 through March 2009. IPY is envisioned as an intense scientific campaign to explore new frontiers in polar science, improve our understanding of the critical role of the polar regions in global processes, and educate the public about the polar regions. Projects are expected to be interdisciplinary in scope; involve a pulse of activity during the IPY period; leave a legacy of infrastructure and data; expand international cooperation; engage the public in polar discovery; and help attract the next generation of scientists and engineers.  To accomplish these goals, this special solicitation for IPY proposals will support specific research and education activities within the following emphasis areas:

Understanding Environmental Change in Polar Regions:

This area will support research that advances the understanding of the physical, geological, chemical, human, and biological drivers of environmental change at the poles, their relationship to the climate system, their impact on ecosystems, and their linkages to global processes.

Human and Biotic Systems in Polar Regions:

This area will provide opportunities for scientists to address fundamental questions about social, behavioral, and/or natural systems that will increase our understanding of how humans and other organisms function in the extreme environments of the polar regions.

Education and Outreach:

This area will support standalone education proposals that specifically invigorate science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education in the context of the IPY, including: formal science education projects at the K-12, undergraduate, or graduate level; informal science education projects for the broader public; and coordination and communication for IPY education projects.

Proposed research activities must be integrally related to one or more of these emphasis areas and adhere to the guidance of the National Research Council's report “A Vision for the International Polar Year 2007-2008” (2005), including where appropriate, specific significant linkages to international activities. These emphasis areas are intended to advance the frontiers of knowledge and build on the momentum achieved by NSF IPY investments and activities that are currently underway in response to an NSF IPY solicitation published in early 2006.

As was required for the 2006 IPY Solicitation, all proposals must address the project’s relevance to the IPY in a separate statement in the Project Summary, and as an integral part of the Project Description. Proposals that fail to address IPY relevance in both sections of the proposal will be returned without review. See Section VI. “Proposal Review Information: Additional Review Criteria” for guidance.

Proposals for IPY projects that are not related to the topics described in this solicitation should be submitted to other announcements of opportunity at NSF. (See Section IX, "Other Programs of Interest."). These other announcements are also listed on an IPY web page maintained by NSF's Office of Polar Programs (http://www.nsf.gov/od/opp/ipy/ipyinfo.jsp). These IPY proposals should meet the goals and priorities of the relevant program.