Human-Environment and Geographical Sciences Program

The Human-Environment and Geographical Sciences (HEGS) Program, administered by the National Science Foundation (NSF) within the Directorate for Social, Behavioral and Economic Sciences, supports foundational scientific research exploring the spatial dimensions of human behavior and its interactions with environmental and social systems. Recognizing the breadth of contemporary geographical research, HEGS fosters work that is empirically grounded, theoretically engaged, and methodologically rigorous. It encourages projects that advance geographical and geospatial science through generalizable, reproducible findings. The program resides within the Division of Behavioral and Cognitive Sciences and explicitly emphasizes research that engages human dimensions with relevance to people and societies. The HEGS program welcomes diverse methodologies including quantitative, qualitative, and mixed-methods approaches, provided they contribute to the advancement of geographical theory or geospatial methods. Projects that apply geospatial tools without contributing to theoretical development will not be reviewed. The program aims to support research that transforms fundamental geographical science while producing broader societal impacts. It encourages careful articulation of data collection and analysis methods, justifications for sampling strategies, and explicit efforts to reduce confounding variables and bias. Competitive proposals must demonstrate methodological rigor and substantiate the validity and generalizability of expected findings. Eligible applicants include institutions of higher education (both two-year and four-year, including community colleges), non-profit non-academic organizations (such as museums and research laboratories), for-profit organizations (including small businesses with scientific research capacity), tribal nations, and state and local governments. There are no limits on the number of proposals per institution or individual principal investigator. While proposals are accepted through Research.gov or Grants.gov, applicants are encouraged to send a project outline to the program email ([email protected]) to confirm alignment with the program's goals. Funding levels vary by proposal type. Senior research proposals may request up to 48 months of support, with budgets typically ranging between $100,000 and $500,000. Early-career researchers may apply for CAREER awards, with budgets between $400,000 and $450,000. The program also funds research coordination networks (RCN) up to $350,000, conference proposals typically up to $50,000, and Transdisciplinary REsearch in Environmental Social Science (TREES) projects which often request $200,000 to $250,000 per year. Supplemental funding may be requested for broader impacts and student research involvement. The anticipated total program funding is $7 million, with 15–25 awards expected. Full proposals are due February 3, 2025, August 1, 2025, and annually thereafter on the first Friday in August and third Friday in January. The next deadline following the current cycle is January 16, 2026. Proposals are reviewed via panel and/or ad hoc reviews, using NSF’s standard merit criteria—intellectual merit and broader impacts. Notification of award decisions typically occurs within six months following submission deadlines. Funded projects require annual and final reporting through NSF’s Research.gov platform. For inquiries, applicants should contact Jeremy Koster ([email protected], 703-292-8740), Nicholas Nagle ([email protected], 703-292-4490), or Cori Jacildone ([email protected], 703-292-8740). All communications are directed through the HEGS program email alias to ensure comprehensive support. The official solicitation is NSF 25-507, replacing NSF 21-623.

Proposals must articulate a theory-testing or theory-expanding contribution; avoid purely applied work; competitive proposals demonstrate rigorous methodology and clear broader impacts.