The Rita Allen Foundation is pleased to announce our next Letter of Inquiry (LOI) open submission period, beginning on March 30th and closing on April 22nd, 2022 at 5 p.m. Pacific Time.

For this submission period, the Foundation is seeking letters proposing innovative, early-stage work that advances civic science approaches and knowledge. Inquiries may address issues and challenges such as emerging science on contentious issues, inclusive public engagement to inform science, projects highlighting the role of intermediaries and new alliances, pilots that mitigate the influence of misinformation related to science in public decision-making, and evidence-based initiatives to advance more diverse, inclusive, and equitable engagement.

Ideas that seed or support early-career leaders or early-stage ideas; and proposals that incorporate working with underserved audiences and valuing diverse perspectives, bridging civic science research and practice gaps, and creating new partnerships and alliances are of particular interest.

We welcome two types of inquiries:

1. Seed grants ($5,000-$25,000), which will be awarded to seed early-stage civic science ideas, pilot projects, and partnerships developed with or by early-career leaders.
2. Connection grants ($25,000-$150,000 over two years), which will be awarded to support nonprofit organizations to develop civic science projects, build civic science alliances and networks, and foster beneficial knowledge and learning

The Foundation will review all LOI submissions and qualify those that meet the program and eligibility criteria. Note that we expect to open a second LOI submission period for seed grants only in fall 2022.

The deadline for submitting an LOI is April 22, 2022 at 5:00pm PT. We will respond to all inquiries on or before May 27, 2022.

For more information, please visit our page about civic science, as well as our page about other opportunities, which includes details about eligibility, as well as guidelines for drafting an LOI, and instructions for applying.