The Simons Foundation Autism Research Initiative (SFARI) aims to enhance the understanding, diagnosis, and treatment of autism spectrum disorders (ASD) by supporting high-quality, relevant innovative research. It emphasizes the importance of diversity in the scientific community as a crucial component for advancing autism science.
The grant program's broad goals are to support the careers of outstanding investigators in the fields of microbial ecology and evolution within marine or natural freshwater systems. These investigators are expected to enhance understanding of these systems through experiments, modeling, or theoretical work. The grant primarily focuses on basic research that addresses fundamental questions in microbial ecology and/or evolution in natural aquatic environments, explicitly excluding research on the microbiomes of animals or plants, pollution-related problems, paleoceanography, and geobiology. Grants provide $270,000 USD per year for three years, covering expenses such as salary support, travel, equipment, supplies, and other research expenses, with indirect costs limited to 20 percent of modified total direct costs.