New Frontiers in Research Fund — Transformation Stream

Who is eligible?

The 2024 Transformation competition under the New Frontiers in Research Fund (NFRF) is open to large-scale, Canadian-led interdisciplinary research projects that aim to tackle significant challenges with the potential for transformative impact. The projects must be world-leading, and applicants must adhere to various merit indicators used throughout the evaluation stages.

• High Risk: Projects must propose novel, world-leading approaches that diverge from current state-of-the-art solutions - 20% of the overall score at the LOI stage and 25% at the full application stage.
• High Reward: Projects should have the potential for a transformative impact, suggesting a significant and real change rather than an incremental advance - 60% of the overall score at the LOI stage and 25% at the full application stage.
• Feasibility: The practicality of achieving the project's goals with the proposed approach - 20% of the overall score at the LOI stage and 50% at the full application stage.
• Interdisciplinarity: The synergy and integration of multiple disciplines in the project are crucial. This is assessed on a pass/fail basis.
• Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion in Research Practice (EDI-RP) / Early Career Researcher (ECR) considerations: Ensures that the project incorporates diverse perspectives - assessed on a pass/fail basis.
• Budget: While not a primary selection criterion, feasibility includes the assessment of whether the proposed budget aligns with the project goals and adheres to eligible expense guidelines.

Eligible expenses

This grant focuses on supporting large-scale, interdisciplinary research projects led by Canadians. It seeks projects that address major challenges and have the potential to bring about significant and lasting change, whether through scientific breakthroughs or impactful applications in social, economic, environmental, or health sectors.

• Research projects aiming for scientific breakthroughs or practical applications that tackle significant challenges.
• Large-scale interdisciplinary initiatives that integrate global research expertise and are world-leading in nature.
• Projects that demonstrate high-risk and high-reward characteristics with transformative impacts.

Here are additional relevant details for this grant:

• Applicants should demonstrate a commitment to diversity, which is a significant component in assessing project quality and decision-making processes at various stages.
• The grant includes a multi-stage review process: Letter of Intent (LOI) stage, Full Application stage, and Jury stage, each with specific deadlines and criteria focusing on high risk, high reward, and feasibility, as well as interdisciplinarity and EDI considerations.
• There are strict confidentiality and conflict of interest guidelines, which reviewers and participants involved in the evaluation need to adhere to, ensuring fairness and objectivity in assessment.
• Conflicts of interest must be declared and addressed promptly to maintain the integrity of the evaluation process.
• Applicants should not contact panel members regarding their application’s progress, as all communications and outcomes are strictly managed through official channels.