The purpose of this Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) is to provide support for new investigators from diverse backgrounds, including from groups nationally underrepresented in biomedical research, to conduct small research projects in the scientific mission areas of the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) and participating Institutes and Centers. New investigators at the time of award under this FOA will have/have had less than $125,000 direct costs of combined research funding (excluding NIH training and NIH career awards). This R21 will support small research projects that can be carried out in a short period of time with limited resources and seeks to facilitate transition to research independence. The R21 grant mechanism supports different types of projects including pilot and feasibility studies; secondary analysis of existing data; small, self-contained research projects; development of research methodology; and development of new research technology.