Request for Proposals: Salata Institute Energy and Climate Research Clusters 

The Energy and Climate Research Clusters Program

Much of what we know about climate change, environmental pollution, advanced energy systems, natural systems, and biodiversity stems from work at research universities, notably including Harvard. In addition to driving knowledge, this research has laid the foundation for solutions that have improved human welfare and the health of the natural world.

The Salata Institute Energy and Climate Research Clusters program represents Harvard’s investment in the University’s potential to help the world further address the pressing needs that arise from climate change, environmental and ecosystem degradation, and the energy transition. The program seeks to use funding provided by the University to support research opportunities that promise to make transformative contributions. Priority will be given to research in: (a) energy technologies, markets, and systems; or (b) remote sensing and climate/environmental measurement with applications to physical, ecosystem, and human impacts, risk assessment, risk mitigation, and adaptation.

The Salata Institute requests ambitious proposals that stimulate or deepen research grounded in STEM fields and that draw upon cross-School and interdisciplinary expertise. Proposals must be conceived in ways that have the potential to build research capacity for the long term, and to better position Harvard to make even more powerful contributions after the grant period. 

Proposals must also describe concrete paths for financially sustaining and growing the research beyond the grant term, which may include philanthropic or foundation support, private sector funding, and/or collaborations with other universities or international organizations that contribute resources. 

Clusters comprise Harvard ladder faculty, postdocs, other researchers, and students. They may also include visiting scholars, practitioners, and external collaborators. Research funds should normally be spent at Harvard (see the FAQ on research expenditure guidance). Project activities should include engagement through conferences, convenings, or other forms of structured exchange, both inside and outside the University. Staffing support for such engagement activities, for example events management and communications, will be provided by the Institute.

Eligibility: Applications are invited from individuals who hold a tenure or tenure-track (ladder) faculty position with principal investigator (PI) rights at a Harvard School, whose grants are managed by that School, and who are employed by Harvard University. Harvard Medical School (HMS) applicants must hold an HMS appointment with PI rights, and have grants managed in one of HMS’s basic or social science departments. Faculty members at a Harvard School or a Harvard-affiliated healthcare institution who do not meet these criteria may serve as co-investigators or collaborators but may not draw salary from the award.

Available Funding: The Institute expects to award up to two clusters, with funding of up to $600,000 per cluster, per year, for a period of up to three years.

Evaluation criteria: The Salata Institute’s Faculty Research Committee will appoint a review committee of internal and external reviewers to evaluate proposals according to the criteria below.

1. Scope and ambition – The proposed cluster should take on problems that are narrow enough to ensure that concrete advances emerge, but broad enough that the results represent significant progress in meeting an important energy/climate/environment challenge. Projects should be ambitious, holding the possibility of major advances and impact.
2. Interdisciplinary and cross-School collaboration – A successful cluster will strengthen capacity and excellence in energy, climate, and the environment at Harvard through a robust interdisciplinary and cross-School collaboration, with ladder faculty PI and co-PI(s) from at least two of Harvard’s Schools.
3. Potential for Impact – The proposal should articulate how this project will advance or lay the foundation for actual solutions in energy/climate/environment.
4. Portfolio Fit – The proposal should articulate how the proposed research augments, complements, and/or expands the existing Institute research portfolio. Proposals that closely duplicate ongoing Salata Institute-funded research, or major research projects funded by Schools, are unlikely to be competitive.  Applicants are encouraged to review the existing Salata Institute research portfolio. Descriptions, faculty rosters, and recent outputs for each are available at https://salatainstitute.harvard.edu/research-initiatives/.
5. Financial viability – Proposals must describe pragmatic funding models that will allow the cluster to sustain and grow the research during and beyond the grant term.

How to Apply and Submission Cycle Timeline

To apply for funding from the Energy and Climate Research Clusters program, PIs must use the Salata Institute’s application portal:

The program has a three-step proposal process.

Step 1: Concept Proposal (500 words) – due September 28, 2026; In-person networking session October 2, 2026

Applicant Principal Investigators (PIs) should submit an initial concept proposal that states the problem; describes sample research questions to be explored; and explains why that research could lead to or underpin impactful real-world outcomes.  The proposal should also include a provisional list of the research team, including co-PIs, which does not count toward the 500-word limit. The Research Committee will confer with the proposal teams, potentially suggest mergers or extensions of proposed projects, and host an in-person networking session for all teams on October 2, 2026. All proposals should include the following information:

• Title
• Submitting team (PI and any co-PIs)
• Statement of the real-world climate problem the cluster addresses
• Description of cluster research questions
• Possible additional cross-School collaborative opportunities for the cluster
• Likely uses of funds, in broad terms

Step 2: Revised Concept Proposal (up to 1500 words) – due October 16, 2026

All teams, which could include new or reorganized teams based on researcher interactions in Step 1, will then be invited to submit a second-round proposal that includes and expands on the information provided in the Step 1 proposal. Teams selected to submit a full proposal will be notified by October 30, 2026.

Step 3: Full proposal – due January 8, 2027

Teams at this stage should submit:

1. Contact information that includes applicant’s name, affiliation, title, address, phone number, and email.
2. Up to 10,000-word proposal that describes the research project. A supplementary field is provided to upload a separate document with citations, images, relevant publications/pre-publications, etc. Reviewers will consider this supplementary information in their evaluation. 
3. Description of the interdisciplinary, cross-school collaboration, including the contributions of each member of the research cluster.  
4. Bio sketch or CV of each PI, co-PI, co-investigator, collaborator, and any other team member.
5. Project Budget requires both a Budget Form and Budget Justification. Applicants must use the Budget Form and Budget Justification Form provided in the application.
   • Non-allowable Expenses include:
     • Student tuition
     • Capital projects and renovationcosts
     • Overhead/indirect cost assessments
   • Allowable Expenses include:
     • Postdocs, RAs, travel, data, and convenings.
     • In addition, academic-year salary support for ladder faculty PIs. (Requests for partial support of principal investigator summer salary will be considered in limited circumstances.)  
   • If the total cost of the proposed project exceeds the award cap of this Clusters program, please include an overall financial plan for the project that indicates other sources of funding.
   • Applicants should note that any benefits-eligible personnel (e.g. faculty, exempt employees, union employees, postdoctoral fellows, teaching assistants, temps) expenses in the budget must include the appropriate fringe rates for each year of funding. If the application proposes to fund a certain amount of an existing employee’s time, then the budget must also include that percentage of applied fringe. Applicants should consult with Human Resources at their home Schools for applicable rates.
   • Travel funding must adhere to Harvard University’s travel policies.
6. Other Support: Applicants must use the form provided in the application to summarize active and pending support for the ladder faculty member serving as Principal Investigator. Other Support includes all financial resources, whether Federal, non-Federal, commercial, or institutional, available in direct support of an individual’s research endeavors, including but not limited to research grants, cooperative agreements, contracts and/or institutional awards. Please include any Harvard internal grants or major, project-specific support. Please do not include any “start-up” packages and/or tenure-transfer funding.
7. Project Administration:PIs should briefly describe how the Cluster will administer the project over its three-year term. For example, PIs may opt to use existing administrative capacity in their home schools, or they may plan to hire staff to assist in project coordination and financial administration.
8. Space Needs: PIs should indicate any space needs for their proposed cluster in case the Salata Institute is able to meet them. The Salata Institute is able to provide meeting space, some shared office space for faculty, and limited office space for postdocs and research assistants.  
9. Assurance of Compliance: All recipients of an award from the Energy and Climate Research Clusters program are expected to comply with all University (or local institutional, if awarded through an affiliated entity) policies governing the conduct of research including, but not limited to, the use of animals, human subjects, hazardous materials, and export controls. Awardees will be asked to provide the name and signature of a school or department administrator who, in addition to the principal investigator, will certify that the project complies with all relevant policies. Funds will not be made available, and invoices from non-Harvard entities will not be reimbursed, without such certification. All applicants are subject to audit.

Awards will be announced by the end of February 2027.

Please refer to our FAQ page for answers to frequently asked questions.