This year, the Department of Energy’s Office of Science has redoubled its continuing efforts to improve Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility related outcomes within scientific research.
For example, in 2022, the Office of Science launched Reaching a New Energy Sciences Workforce (RENEW) Funding Opportunity Announcements (FOAs). RENEW was offered again in early 2023, together with a new FOA for Funding for Accelerated, Inclusive Research (FAIR), aiming to strengthen institutions that are historically underrepresented in its portfolio.
And, starting in FY23, all Office of Science proposals are required to include Promoting Inclusive and Equitable Research (PIER) plans, which are activities and strategies to promote equity and inclusion as an intrinsic element to advancing scientific excellence in the proposed research project. The requirement includes both new proposals (such as the Early Career Research Program and Energy Earthshot Research Center proposals) as well as renewals.
To support Lab researchers who are submitting proposals, the Strategic Partnerships Office (SPO) and the IDEA Office have developed resources for you to refer to. SPO has created a PIER Plan Information, Guidance, and Resources document to assist PIs with developing their PIER Plans. In addition, the IDEA Office has developed the PIER Plan Crosswalk to help make the PIER Plan FOA process as seamless as possible. Both resources are available in the Lab’s DEI FOA Handbook. The IDEA Office and SPO are also convening an ‘IDEA in Research’ Working Group with the goal of equipping our researchers to effectively embed inclusive practices into their workforces and successfully meet PIER and other DEI-related requirements.
The PIER Plan resources in the DEI FOA Handbook underscores Office of Science guidance for PIs, including the importance of developing a plan that advances the science in the research project proposed. For example, the composition of the research team, mentoring programs, or measures to support the professional or scholarly growth of project team members, could be included in the plan.
“A restatement of standard institutional policies or broad policies is not sufficient, nor are general outreach activities,” said Kristin Balder-Froid, who heads strategic development for SPO. “The plan has to be specific to the proposed research.”
Another tip that Kristin offers is to examine the reviewer questions. The guiding reviewer questions for the criterion “Quality and Efficacy of the Plan for Promoting Inclusive and Equitable Research,” for example, include the following:
- Is the proposed Promoting Inclusive and Equitable Research (PIER) Plan suitable for the size and complexity of the proposed project and an integral component of the proposed project?
- To what extent is the PIER Plan likely to lead to participation of individuals from diverse backgrounds, including individuals historically underrepresented in the research community?
- What aspects of the PIER Plan are likely to contribute to the goal of creating and maintaining an equitable, inclusive, encouraging, and professional training and research environment and supporting a sense of belonging among project personnel?
- How does the proposed Plan include intentional mentorship and are the associated mentoring resources reasonable and appropriate?
There were also lessons learned from RENEW proposals that were submitted in 2022 that are now being applied to PIER plans. For example, some proposals were more likely to be successful if they had included clear descriptions of targeted student demographics and specific obstacles faced by students, a plan for addressing and mitigating these obstacles, and suggestions for sustaining the program beyond the funding period. Mentorship also seems to have been an important element in successful proposals.
For guidance on incorporating a PIER plan into Office of Science proposals, refer to the IDEA FOA Handbook.
The Office of Science offers a list of Minority Serving Institutions (MSIs), Emerging Research Institutions (ERIs) and other institutions, to aid with teaming on FOAs. For a list of these MSIs and ERIs, consult the Institution Designations spreadsheet.
For additional Office of Science resources, visit their PIER Plan website.
