Countering Weapons of Mass Destruction: Academic Research Initiative (ARI) | DHS 20 CWMD 077 001

Opportunity Information: Apply for DHS 20 CWMD 077 001

The Countering Weapons of Mass Destruction: Academic Research Initiative (ARI) is a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) grant opportunity designed to strengthen the United States' ability to prevent and defend against incidents involving chemical, biological, radiological, or nuclear (CBRN) threats. Framed around the security, prevention, and protection mission areas outlined in Presidential Policy Directive 8 (PPD-8), the program focuses on research that can improve national capabilities to detect and stop the illicit entry, movement, assembly, or potential use of unauthorized CBRN materials, devices, or agents within the United States. In practical terms, ARI is looking for research that helps close gaps in how the country identifies emerging CBRN risks and prevents those risks from turning into real-world attacks.

A defining feature of ARI is its emphasis on novel, cross-cutting academic research. Rather than funding short-term, incremental projects, the opportunity prioritizes fundamental research that addresses long-term and high-risk challenges in CBRN science and engineering. The intent is to push forward basic scientific understanding that can later translate into stronger detection methods, more resilient protection strategies, improved threat characterization, and broader technological or methodological breakthroughs that support the countering weapons of mass destruction (CWMD) mission. The program also explicitly aims to coordinate and align research activity across the federal government, helping reduce fragmentation and sustain a consistent national investment in foundational CWMD-related science.

The opportunity has two primary objectives. First, it seeks to engage the academic community to expand fundamental knowledge in CBRN sciences as they apply to CWMD, with a clear preference for work that takes on difficult, long-horizon problems where outcomes are uncertain but potentially transformative. Second, it aims to develop human capital for the CBRN science and engineering workforce. This workforce component reflects the reality that national preparedness depends not only on technologies and discoveries, but also on building and sustaining a pipeline of trained researchers and practitioners who can carry this work forward over time.

Administratively, ARI is offered as a discretionary funding opportunity under Funding Opportunity Number DHS 20 CWMD 077 001, with awards made through a cooperative agreement mechanism. Cooperative agreements typically signal that the federal agency expects to have substantial involvement during the project period, which can include collaboration, technical engagement, and coordination to ensure the work aligns with CWMD mission needs. The funding activity category is listed as Education, reflecting the program's strong emphasis on academic engagement and workforce development alongside research outputs. The associated CFDA number is 97.077, and the posting identifies an expectation of about seven awards. The award ceiling is listed as 0 in the source data, which often indicates that the ceiling may be defined elsewhere in the full announcement, handled through topic-specific limits, or structured based on available appropriations rather than a single fixed cap.

The opportunity is administered by the Department of Homeland Security, Office of Procurement Operations - Grants Division, and eligibility is broadly described as "Others," with clarification referenced in an additional eligibility section in the full announcement. The notice was created on August 13, 2020, with an original closing date of August 27, 2020. Overall, ARI is best understood as a DHS effort to both accelerate foundational CBRN research relevant to preventing WMD incidents and to cultivate the next generation of scientists and engineers who will support the CWMD mission over the long term.

• The Department of Homeland Security, Office of Procurement Operations - Grants Division in the education sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Countering Weapons of Mass Destruction: Academic Research Initiative (ARI)" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 97.077.
• This funding opportunity was created on Aug 13, 2020.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Aug 27, 2020. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 7 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Others (see text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility for clarification).

Apply for DHS 20 CWMD 077 001

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