November 28, 2023
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI)
Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD)
National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR)
National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS)
National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)
National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR)
National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NIMHD)
National Cancer Institute (NCI)
All applications to this funding opportunity announcement should fall within the mission of the Institutes/Centers. The following NIH Offices may co-fund applications assigned to those Institutes/Centers.
Division of Program Coordination, Planning and Strategic Initiatives, Office of Disease Prevention (ODP)
Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research (OBSSR)
Office of Research on Women's Health (ORWH)
The purpose of this NOSI is to stimulate community-engaged research that leverages geospatial data to probe the influence of geographic factors on disease development and health outcomes. Our goal is to use place-based research to help advance health equity in different communities. Applicants must select the IC and associated NOFO to use for submission of an application in response to the NOSI. The selection must align with the IC requirements listed in order to be considered responsive to that NOFO. Non-responsive applications will be withdrawn from consideration for this initiative. In addition, applicants using NIH Parent announcements (listed below) will be assigned to those ICs on this NOSI that have indicated those NOFOs are acceptable and based on usual application-IC assignment practices.
Background
A compelling body of evidence shows a link between geography and variations in health outcomes relevant to the mission of several NIH Institutes, Centers, and Offices (ICOs). Popularized by the RWJF Commission to Build a Healthier America campaign beginning in 2014, city maps were developed to show life expectancy alongside common geographic landmarks (e.g., subway stops, and highway exits) to show how health-promoting opportunities can vary dramatically by neighborhood, in communities across the United States. Research has shown that ZIP code may be more important to health than one’s genetic code, given its key role in shaping critical social determinants of health (e.g., educational access and quality, health care access and quality, economic stability). As defined by the NIH, social determinants of health are the conditions in which people are born, grow, learn, work, play, live, and age, and the wider set of structural factors shaping the conditions of daily life (NIH SDOH RCC, 2023). These structural factors include social, economic, and legal forces, systems, and policies that determine opportunities and access to high quality jobs, education, housing, transportation, built environment, information and communication infrastructure, food, and healthcare; the social environment; and other conditions of daily life. For example, where one lives influences access to essential community resources that promote or impede health behaviors and lay the foundation for educational access, social mobility, and economic advancement and opportunity. Studies have noted the role of place in influencing 1) health risks, such as food insecurity, access to healthcare and preventative care, environmental conditions and public safety; and 2) health outcomes, such as maternal health, physical inactivity, obesity, adverse health behaviors, sleep deficiency, lead poisoning, hypertension, cancer and asthma. In the U.S., racial/ethnic residential segregation by ZIP code is, in part, due to the historical practice of redlining and has also been shown to be a fundamental cause of racial and ethnic disparities in a variety of health outcomes.
Place-based research initiatives that leverage geography-based data offer the opportunity to further enhance our understanding of social, environmental, geographic mechanisms responsible for health disparities. Integrating current population databases with information from claims databases, census, and mapping data (i.e., USGS: The National Map) can help gain important insights into potential links between location and drivers of various health risk and adverse events. In addition to NIH datasets with location-based data, other datasets that could be leveraged include the following:
As we continue to personalize health interventions and move towards precision medicine, location-based metrics have emerged as pivotal tools. These metrics, derived from geospatial data, can provide critical insights into how different aspects of our environments - from air quality to access to healthcare facilities - contribute to our health. Such a geographical lens can highlight the hidden patterns and variations in disease prevalence and health outcomes across different regions or communities. This can enable more targeted and efficient interventions, and allow for the tailoring of prevention and treatment strategies to the unique contexts of specific locations or populations, thereby improving health outcomes and advancing precision medicine.
Some examples of appropriate studies include, but are not limited to, the following:
Given the nature of this research, we encourage the formation of interdisciplinary research teams. These teams should ideally encompass expertise across a broad spectrum of disciplines. Essential areas of knowledge include data science and geospatial analysis for managing and interpreting geographical data. Knowledge in environmental health, climate change, nutrition, and the built environment can provide a comprehensive perspective on various health determinants. Skills in community-based participatory research are important for fostering effective community engagement, while understanding health disparities research will aid in identifying and addressing inequalities.
Non-responsive applications will not be reviewed and will be withdrawn from consideration for this initiative.
Applicants are strongly encouraged to reach out to the relevant scientific contacts to discuss whether their applications are responsive.
Specific Areas of Research Interest
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute
The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) encourages research that explores the impact of geographical factors on the development and progression of heart, lung, blood, and sleep-related diseases. This includes studying how location and neighborhood- and community-level social determinants of health contribute to health disparities and outcomes. The NHLBI also welcomes studies that utilize geospatial data and location-based metrics to advance health equity. By leveraging secondary data and using advanced tools such as Geographic Information Systems (GIS), researchers can gain insights into the associations between built and social environments and their effects on heart, lung, blood, and sleep-related diseases and health outcomes. These studies have the potential to inform interventions and improve disease management, ultimately working towards achieving health equity in different communities. Given the nature of this research, NHLBI encourages interdisciplinary research teams that include (but not limited to) epidemiologists, geographers, health services researchers, health disparities researchers, data scientists and/or behavioral and social scientists.
NHLBI NOFOs for this NOSI
NOFO Number | NOFO Title |
PA-20-185 | Research Project Grant (Parent R01 Clinical Trial Not Allowed) |
PA-20-195 | NIH Exploratory/Developmental Research Grant Program (Parent R21 Clinical Trial Not Allowed) |
PA-20-205 | Mentored Patient-Oriented Research Career Development Award (Parent K23 Independent Clinical Trial Not Allowed) |
PA-20-190 | Mentored Research Scientist Development Award (Parent K01 - Independent Clinical Trial Not Allowed) |
PA-20-203 | Mentored Clinical Scientist Research Career Development Award (Parent K08 Independent Clinical Trial Not Allowed) |
National Cancer Institute
The National Cancer Institute (NCI) encourages applications that address the previously mentioned research opportunities with a specific focus on cancer prevention and control. NCI is interested in research that integrates geospatial data and/or spatial methodology with community-based approaches to examine how people and place interact to influence cancer prevention and control and to reduce cancer health disparities. NCI is also interested in the discovery of mechanisms underlying the influence of contextual variables on cancer risk and outcomes. Studies utilizing conceptual or theoretical models of multilevel factors on cancer risk and outcomes are encouraged. NCI is also interested in mixed methods approaches that allow for ground-truthing and collection of social and cultural meaning of space, place and history to compliment objectively- or administratively-defined geospatial data. Applicants are also encouraged to use existing data sources, including data linkages, but are not prohibited from collecting new data. Data sources at different geographic levels are encouraged, and may include data regarding relevant local, state, or organizational policies. NCI encourages collaborative research among transdisciplinary research teams that include (but are not limited to) epidemiologists, geographers, health services researchers, and/or behavioral and social scientists.
NCI NOFOs for this NOSI
NOFO Number | NOFO Title |
PAR-21-035 | Cancer Prevention and Control Clinical Trials Grant Program (R01 Clinical Trial Required) |
PA-20-185 | NIH Research Project Grant (Parent R01 Clinical Trial Not Allowed) |
PAR-21-190 | Modular R01s in Cancer Control and Population Sciences (R01 Clinical Trial Optional) |
PAR-21-341 | Exploratory Grants in Cancer Control (R21 Clinical Trial Optional) |
PAR-23-058 | NCI Small Grants Program for Cancer Research for Years 2023, 2024, and 2025 (NCI Omnibus) (R03 Clinical Trial Optional) |
PAR-23-059 | National Cancer Institute Program Project Applications for the Years 2023, 2024, and 2025 (P01 Clinical Trial Optional) |
PAR-23-153 | Impacts of climate change across the cancer control continuum (R01 Clinical Trial Optional) |
National Institute of Minority Health and Health Disparities
NIMHD is interested in projects that examine and test the underlying pathways or mechanisms that explain why health disparities are geographically clustered for NIH-designated US populations that experience health disparities, including earlier onset or more aggressive progression of health outcomes. Of specific interest are applications that focus on place-based disparities of racial and ethnic minority populations (African American/Black, Latino/Hispanic, American Indian and Alaska Native, Asian American, and Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander persons) and/or low socioeconomic status (SES) persons. Also of interest is the intersectionality of race and ethnicity and/or low SES with rural populations or sexual and gender minority (SGM) groups or persons living with disabilities or persons with other demographic characteristics and or any other condition.
Mechanisms that have been proposed that account for why health disparities are geographically clustered include but are not limited to, structural manifestation of racial discrimination such as segregation, ethnic stratification, and resulting inequality in the social and built environment; differential exposures to environmental toxins; low material and social support (such as limited health-promoting resources, inadequate quality and access to healthcare); higher concentrations of social stressors (e.g., violence, discrimination, neighborhood and economic instability); built- and social environment-induced or constrained lifestyles (e.g., high density of tobacco outlets or food deserts); and/or shared psychosocial mechanisms that influence health behaviors. Also of interest are projects that examine the role of protective and/or resilience factors and mechanisms, such as social cohesion and solidarity, community, neighbor or family support, etc., that may explain why some individuals and communities living at a place with high social vulnerability have better health outcomes than expected.
NIMHD NOFOs for this NOSI
NOFO Number | NOFO Title |
PA-20-185 | Research Project Grant (Parent R01 Clinical Trial Not Allowed) |
PAR-23-111 | NIMHD Exploratory/Developmental Research Grant Program (R21 - Clinical Trial Optional) |
PA-20-190 | Mentored Research Scientist Development Award (Parent K01 - Independent Clinical Trial Not Allowed) |
PA-20-203 | Mentored Clinical Scientist Research Career Development Award (Parent K08 Independent Clinical Trial Not Allowed) |
National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research
NIDCR is interested in observational studies to better understand the place-based and spatially-patterned root causes of oral health disparities and inequities. Studies should incorporate oral health in relation to general health and/or social determinants of health and engage with multisector stakeholders to generate place-based strategies and infrastructure for advancing population oral health. Examples of studies responding to this NOSI that NIDCR welcomes include but are not limited to:
NIDCR NOFOs for this NOSI
NOFO Number | NOFO Title |
PA-20-185 | Research Project Grant (Parent R01 Clinical Trial Not Allowed) |
PA-20-195 | NIH Exploratory/Developmental Research Grant Program (Parent R21 Clinical Trial Not Allowed) |
PA-20-205 | Mentored Patient-Oriented Research Career Development Award (Parent K23 Independent Clinical Trial Not Allowed) |
PA-20-190 | Mentored Research Scientist Development Award (Parent K01 - Independent Clinical Trial Not Allowed) |
PA-20-203 | Mentored Clinical Scientist Research Career Development Award (Parent K08 Independent Clinical Trial Not Allowed) |
PAR-21-084 | NIDCR Small Grant Program for New Investigators (R03 Clinical Trial Not Allowed) |
Office of Research on Women’s Health (ORWH)
The Office of Research on Women’s Health (ORWH), which is part of the Office of the Director of NIH, works in partnership with the 27 NIH Institutes and Centers to ensure that women's health research is part of the scientific framework at the NIH, and throughout the health research community. Critical gaps and opportunities relevant to the health of women remain. The ORWH is particularly interested in studies focused on the influence of sex and gender and other social determinants of health on wellness and disease across women’s lifespan, as well as the health of women that are understudied, underrepresented, and underreported (U3) in biomedical research. Within the focus of this announcement, the Office is open to co-funding research which uses geospatial tools to enhance understanding of and ability to mitigate impacts of place on disease risk, etiology and progression and to advance efforts to identify, recruit and maintain engagement with women of NIH-designated populations in clinical studies and trials (i.e., opportunities to advance research questions prioritized by women in those communities). Research topics incorporating strategies to improve women’s health equity and seeking to enhance the dissemination and implementation of the women’s health evidence base are also encouraged.
National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)
The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) will accept applications that reflect the mission and scientific priorities as identified in the strategic plan NIMH The National Institute of Mental Health Strategic Plan (nih.gov). Per NOT-MH-20-067, NIMH expects that grant applications involving human research participants will collect a minimum set of Common Data Elements. For research involving adults, the expected data collection instruments include demographic measures (age, sex at birth), the Self-Rated Level 1 Cross-Cutting Symptom Measure-Adult (DSM-5-TR), a measure of impairment (WHODAS), and measures related to anxiety and depression (PHQ-9, GAD-7).
Translational Research
The NIMH Division of Translational Research supports research that identifies mechanisms that contribute to etiology and progression of mental illness, markers that predict mental illness trajectories, and identification of modifiable targets for novel interventions. Examples of research appropriate for NIMH Division of Translational Research include:
COVID19
Services Research
NIMH NOFOs for this NOSI
NOFO Number | NOFO Title |
PAR-23-238 | Social Disconnection and Suicide Risk in Late Life (R01 Clinical Trial Optional) |
PAR-23-239 | Social disconnection and Suicide Risk in Late Life (R21 Clinical Trial Optional) |
PAR-24-023 | Schizophrenia and relatetdd disorders during mid- to late-life (R01 Clinical Trial Optional) |
PAR-24-026 | Schizophrenia and related disorders during mid- to late-life (R21 Clinical Trial Optional) |
PAR-23-122 | Research With Activities Related to Diversity (ReWARD) (R01 Clinical Trial Optional) |
PAR-23-130 | Translational Research in Maternal and Pediatric Pharmacology and Therapeutics (R01 Clinical Trial Optional) |
PAR-23-112 | Addressing the Impact of Structural Racism and Discrimination on Minority Health and Health Disparities (R01 - Clinical Trial Optional) |
PAR-23-102 | Mood and Psychosis Symptoms during the Menopause Transition (R21 Clinical Trial Optional) |
PAR-23-087 | Novel Assays to Address Translational Gaps in Treatment Development (UG3/UH3 Clinical Trial Optional) |
PAR-23-095 | Innovative Mental Health Services Research Not Involving Clinical Trials (R01 Clinical Trials Not Allowed) |
PAR-23-096 | Laboratories to Optimize Digital Health (R01 Clinical Trial Required) |
PAR-23-097 | Mood and Psychosis Symptoms during the Menopause Transition (R01 Clinical Trial Optional) |
PAR-23-050 | Clinical Studies of Mental Illness (Collaborative R01) (Clinical Trial Optional) |
PAR-22-155 | Silvio O. Conte Centers for Basic Neuroscience or Translational Mental Health Research (P50 Clinical Trial Optional) |
PAR-22-137 | Accelerating the Pace of Child Health Research Using Existing Data from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) Study (R01-Clinical Trial Not Allowed) |
PAR-22-138 | Accelerating the Pace of Child Health Research Using Existing Data from the Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) Study (R21-Clinical Trial Not Allowed) |
PAR-22-072 | Measures and Methods to Advance Research on Minority Health and Health Disparities-Related Constructs (R01 Clinical Trial Not Allowed) |
PAR-21-349 | Research on Biopsychosocial Factors of Social Connectedness and Isolation on Health, Wellbeing, Illness, and Recovery (R01 Basic Experimental Studies with Humans Required) |
PAR-21-350 | Research on Biopsychosocial Factors of Social Connectedness and Isolation on Health, Wellbeing, Illness, and Recovery (R01 Clinical Trials Not Allowed) |
PAR-21-275 | The Role of Work in Health Disparities in the U.S. (R01 Clinical Trials Optional) |
PA-21-235 | NIMH Exploratory/Developmental Research Grant (R21 Clinical Trial Not Allowed) |
PA-20-196 | NIH Exploratory/Developmental Research Grant Program (Parent R21 Basic Experimental Studies with Humans Required) |
PA-20-194 | NIH Exploratory/Developmental Research Grant Program (Parent R21 Clinical Trial Required) |
PA-20-185 | NIH Research Project Grant (Parent R01 Clinical Trial Not Allowed) |
PA-20-184 | Research Project Grant (Parent R01 Basic Experimental Studies with Humans Required) |
PA-20-183 | Research Project Grant (Parent R01 Clinical Trial Required) |
PAR-23-095 | Innovative Mental Health Services Research Not Involving Clinical Trials (R01 Clinical Trials Not Allowed) |
PAR-23-105 | Innovative Pilot Mental Health Services Research Not Involving Clinical Trials (R34 Clinical Trial Not Allowed) |
National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR)
The National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR) supports research aligned with our mission and strategic priorities, conducted by scientists from any discipline. NINR discovers solutions to health challenges through the lenses of health equity, social determinants of health, population and community health, prevention and health promotion, and systems and models of care. Drawing on the strengths of nursing’s holistic, contextualized perspective, core values, and broad reach, NINR funds multilevel and cross-sectoral research that examines the factors that impact health across the many settings in which nurses practice, including homes, schools, workplaces, clinics, justice settings, and the community.
NINR NOFOs for this NOSI
NOFO Number | NOFO Title |
PA-20-190 | Mentored Research Scientist Development Award (Parent K01 - Independent Clinical Trial Not Allowed) |
PAR-22-230 | NINR Areas of Emphasis for Research to Optimize Health and Advance Health Equity (R21 Clinical Trial Optional) |
PAR-22-231 | NINR Areas of Emphasis for Research to Optimize Health and Advance Health Equity (R01 Clinical Trial Optional) |
National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR)
NIDCR is interested in observational studies to better understand the place-based and spatially-patterned root causes of oral health disparities and inequities. Studies should incorporate oral health in relation to general health and/or social determinants of health and engage with multisector stakeholders to generate place-based strategies and infrastructure for advancing population oral health. Examples of studies responding to this NOSI that NIDCR welcomes include but are not limited to:
NIDCR NOFOs for this NOSI
NOFO Number | NOFO Title |
PA-20-185 | Research Project Grant (Parent R01 Clinical Trial Not Allowed) |
PA-20-195 | NIH Exploratory/Developmental Research Grant Program (Parent R21 Clinical Trial Not Allowed) |
PA-20-205 | Mentored Patient-Oriented Research Career Development Award (Parent K23 Independent Clinical Trial Not Allowed) |
PA-20-190 | Mentored Research Scientist Development Award (Parent K01 - Independent Clinical Trial Not Allowed) |
PA-20-203 | Mentored Clinical Scientist Research Career Development Award (Parent K08 Independent Clinical Trial Not Allowed) |
PAR-21-084 | NIDCR Small Grant Program for New Investigators (R03 Clinical Trial Not Allowed) |
National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences
The National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) encourages applications that leverage the previously-mentioned research opportunities to address how place-based environmental factors impact health outcomes, especially in populations disproportionately impacted by environmental exposures, including populations with health disparities. NIEHS is interested in applications that integrate place-based environmental data with other data types and sources (such as human behavior and time-activity patterns, environmental data collected by low-cost sensor networks or wearable technologies, biomonitoring data, and other molecular or clinical outcome data) to improve exposure estimates at both the community and individual level, to advance understanding of the effects of environmental exposures on health outcomes, and to inform prevention and intervention strategies.
NIEHS NOFOs for this NOSI
Application and Submission Information
This notice applies to due dates on or after February 5, 2024, and subsequent receipt dates through January 7, 2027. This NOSI expires on January 8, 2027; thus no applications will be accepted on or after January 8, 2027.
Submit applications for this initiative using one of the following notices of funding opportunity (NOFOs) or any reissues of these announcements through the expiration date of this notice.
All instructions in the SF424 (R&R) Application Guide and the notice of funding opportunity used for submission must be followed, with the following additions:
For funding consideration, applicants must include NOT-HL-23-110 (without quotation marks) in the Agency Routing Identifier field (box 4B) of the SF424 R&R form. Applications without this information in box 4B will not be considered for this initiative.
Applications nonresponsive to terms of this NOSI will not be considered for the NOSI initiative.
Applications nonresponsive to terms of this NOSI will be withdrawn from consideration for this initiative.
Please direct all inquiries to the contacts in Section VII of the listed notice of funding opportunity with the following additions/substitutions:
Scientific/Research Contact(s)
Juanita Chinn, PhD
Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD)
Email: juanita.chinn@nih.gov
Gabriel Anaya, MD
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI)
Telephone: 301-825-2778
Email: gabriel.anaya@nih.gov
Alison Brown, PhD, RDN
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI)
Telephone: 301-435-0583
Email: alison.brown@nih.gov
Shalanda A. Bynum, PhD, MPH
National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR)
Telephone: 301-755-4355
Email: shalanda.bynum@nih.gov
Nancy Jones, Ph.D.
National Institute on Minority health and health Disparities (NIMHD)
Telephone: 301-594-8945
Email: nancy.jones@nih.gov
Melissa C. Green Parker, Ph.D.
Office of Disease Prevention (ODP)
Phone: 301-480-1161
E-mail: melissa.greenparker@nih.gov
Laura A. Thomas, Ph.D.
National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)
Phone: (301) 480-1624
E-mail: laura.thomas@nih.gov
Collene Lawhorn, Ph.D.
National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)
Telephone: 301-828-7186
Email: collene.lawhorn@nih.gov
Juliette Claudine Mcclendon, Ph.D.
National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH)
Telephone: 301-379-0413
E-mail: juliette.mcclendon@nih.gov
Heather D Angelo, PhD, MHS
National Cancer Institute (NCI)
Telephone: 240-276-6597
Email: heather.dangelo@nih.gov
Hiroko Iida, DDS, MPH
National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research (NIDCR)
Phone: 301-594-7404
E-mail: hiroko.iida@nih.gov
Damiya E. Whitaker, PsyD, MA
Office of Research on Women’s Health (ORWH)
Telephone: 301-451-8206
E-mail: damiya.whitaker@nih.gov
Xenia T. Tigno Ph.D., M.S. (Epi)
Office of Research on Women’s Health (ORWH)
Phone: 301-435-0202
E-mail: tignoxt@mail.nih.gov
Christopher Gentry Duncan, PhD
National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS)
Phone: 984-287-3256
E-mail: duncancg@niehs.nih.gov
Peer Review Contact(s)
Examine your eRA Commons account for review assignment and contact information (information appears two weeks after the submission due date).
Financial/Grants Management Contact(s)
Margaret Young
Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD)
Telephone: 301-642-4552
Email: margaret.young@nih.gov