Cooperative Agreement for affiliated Partner with the Desert Southwest Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit
Can you apply?
This grant is for organizations already partnered with the Desert Southwest Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit (CESU). Eligible recipients must be participating CESU partners. The grant funds research projects using remote sensing and AI/machine learning to improve understanding of southwestern dryland ecosystems. Projects should focus on biological soil crusts, remote sensing tool development, and ecosystem management options that inform land managers and decision-makers. Activities may include developing innovative mapping and assessment tools for drylands, biocrusts, rangeland productivity, and fire management.
This grant is for organizations already partnered with the Desert Southwest Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit (CESU). Eligible recipients must be participating CESU partners. The grant funds research projects using remote sensing and AI/machine learning to improve understanding of southwestern dryland ecosystems. Projects should focus on biological soil crusts, remote sensing tool development, and ecosystem management options that inform land managers and decision-makers. Activities may include developing innovative mapping and assessment tools for drylands, biocrusts, rangeland productivity, and fire management.
Program description
The U.S. Geological Survey Southwest Biological Science Center (SBSC) seeks to provide financial assistance for a research project to help build a program to use new remote sensing platforms to improve understanding of how southwestern U.S. ecosystems work and for management options that can best provide ecosystem services in these challenging ecosystems. This program will focus on remote sensing tools that are best for dryland ecosystems, on biological soil crust communities, and on using remote sensing to inform land management options. The work will also focus on using artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning, and other cutting edge data analysis tools to analyze a range and scale of data that was previously not possible.Nearly 40% of the United States are arid and semiarid ecosystems, thus these drylands are both vast and important. At the same time, remote sensing challenges unique to drylands have made landscape-scale assessments of drylands challenging and thus the power of remote sensing tools has lagged behind their use in more mesic ecosystems. Nevertheless, the utility of improving our ability to use remote sensing for assessing and understanding drylands has myriad uses, including those that directly inform resource managers and decision makers. This would include the creation of innovative remote sensing options for mapping, assessing, and managing for biological soil crusts. Biocrusts are a soil surface community that represent the dominant cover type in many U.S. drylands. It has been proposed to blend emerging remote sensing technology from drones, satellites, and on-the-ground with ground-based ecology and novel dryland experiments to improve the tools and options dryland land managers have to manage for essential ecosystem services. New remote sensing technologies could vastly improve ability to predict biocrust abundance, rangeland productivity, and exotic grass invasion, which would be of significant use for resource managers, ranchers, hunters and anyone needing to consider forage quality for livestock and wildlife, fire regimes for the upcoming year, dust production, and restoration prioritization options.
Who can apply
Eligible applicants
Details
This grant is for organizations already partnered with the Desert Southwest Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit (CESU). Eligible recipients must be participating CESU partners. The grant funds research projects using remote sensing and AI/machine learning to improve understanding of southwestern dryland ecosystems. Projects should focus on biological soil crusts, remote sensing tool development, and ecosystem management options that inform land managers and decision-makers. Activities may include developing innovative mapping and assessment tools for drylands, biocrusts, rangeland productivity, and fire management.
How to apply
Application links
Required documents
- SF-424 (federal application form)
- Project narrative/proposal
- Budget and budget narrative
- CESU partnership confirmation
- Proof of organizational eligibility and capacity
Program contact
- 👤 Geological Survey
- 📧 rachelmiller@usgs.gov
- 📞 916-278-9331
Funding track record
Recent awards under CFDA 15.808 from the last 3 years — real organizations that won funding through this same program.
Top 10 Largest Recent Awards
-
$240,000,000
-
$11,148,115
-
$10,533,234
-
$10,055,533
-
$8,476,627
-
$8,454,102
-
$7,659,261
-
$6,894,612
-
$6,800,079
-
$6,644,228
Top States by Funding
- CO 4 awards $245.0M
- CA 18 awards $70.3M
- AK 12 awards $32.6M
- FL 6 awards $22.8M
- WA 3 awards $16.1M
Source: USAspending.gov — federal spending transparency. Data covers last 3 years.
Funding history
Annual funding for this program — Federal obligations (CFDA 15.808). How funding has trended year over year.
| 2021 | $35,000,000 | |
| 2022 | $157,201,151 | |
| 2023 | $263,107,440 | |
| 2024 | $125,066,719 | |
| 2025 est. | $110,000,000 | |
| 2026 est. | $60,000,000 |
FAQ
Who is eligible to apply for this grant?
Only existing partners of the Desert Southwest CESU can apply. You must be formally affiliated with the unit before submitting.
What types of research projects are funded?
Projects must focus on remote sensing and AI/machine learning applications for southwestern drylands. Emphasis is on biological soil crusts, ecosystem assessment, and tools for land managers.
What is the application deadline?
The deadline is June 14, 2026. This is a fixed deadline, not rolling.
What are typical award amounts?
Awards range from $1 to $499,550, depending on project scope and available funding.
Can I include personnel costs in my budget?
The grant does not specify restrictions on budget categories. Check with the CESU program contact for allowable expenses.
💡 Tips for applicants
- Establish or confirm your organization's partnership status with Desert Southwest CESU before investing time in an application.
- Ground your project in practical applications that benefit land managers, ranchers, or resource decision-makers.
- Highlight how remote sensing and AI tools will solve specific challenges in dryland ecosystem assessment or management.
- Emphasize the scalability and landscape-level impact of your proposed remote sensing approach.
- Partner with ecology, GIS, and data science expertise to strengthen technical credibility.
⚠️ Common mistakes
Applicants who aren't confirmed CESU partners waste time on applications they cannot submit. Projects that lack clear management applications or focus on purely theoretical research miss the intent. Proposals underestimating the complexity of dryland remote sensing challenges fail to demonstrate feasibility.
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