The Opportunities for Promoting Understanding through Synthesis (OPUS) program, funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF), supports researchers in synthesizing a significant body of prior work to produce valuable, integrated research products. The program is primarily aimed at later-career investigators who have made substantial contributions in the fields covered by the Division of Environmental Biology (DEB), including Ecosystem Science, Evolutionary Processes, Population and Community Ecology, and Systematics and Biodiversity Science. The purpose of OPUS is to enable these individuals to compile their research findings and data into novel syntheses that provide new insights or generate emergent questions that would not have been possible without such a comprehensive review.

OPUS proposals are encouraged to go beyond simple reviews or meta-analyses, with the expectation that projects will lead to new scientific understanding or tools useful to future investigators. Products resulting from the program may include scientific papers, monographs, datasets, software, websites, or books, and must serve as accessible, well-documented resources for the broader scientific community. The program is open to researchers at U.S. institutions of higher education or certain non-profit organizations.

Funding is available for up to $350,000 per award, with an estimated 8 to 15 awards granted each year, depending on available funds. Proposals may be submitted at any time. The NSF will provide support for up to 6.5 months of salary for the principal investigator over the two-year project period, allowing for focused time to complete the synthesis. Additional costs, such as travel, publications, or data management, may be covered up to $25,000 in direct costs. However, no new data collection, beyond a minor scope, will be funded.

The proposal process involves submitting a detailed plan for the synthesis, including past research, proposed methods for data integration, and broader impacts. Proposals should be submitted through Research.gov or Grants.gov, and applicants must follow the guidelines of the NSF Proposal & Award Policies & Procedures Guide (PAPPG). Proposals will be reviewed based on two key criteria: Intellectual Merit and Broader Impacts, with an emphasis on the novelty of the synthesis and its value to future research.

Researchers are encouraged to contact the program officers for guidance before submission. Additional resources and support for proposal preparation are available through the NSF’s website. The program fosters the generation of new knowledge, enhances data accessibility, and encourages broad societal impacts, contributing to NSF’s mission to promote progress in science and benefit society.