Department of State: Global Nuclear Security Engagement Grant

Application Submission Process: Applicants should submit project proposals electronically using Grants.gov. Thorough instructions on the Grants.gov application process are available at http://www.grants.gov. For questions relating to Grants.gov, please call the Grants.gov Contact Center at 1-800-518-4726.

Award amounts: ISN/CTR prefers projects that cost less than $250,000 though awards may involve multiple projects that cumulatively exceed $250,000. CTR will prioritize proposals that efficiently meet NOFO and programmatic goals at the lowest technically acceptable cost.

ISN/CTR sponsors foreign assistance activities funded by the Nonproliferation, Anti-terrorism, Demining and Related Programs (NADR) account, and focuses on mitigating proliferation risk in frontline states and regions where the terrorist threat is on the rise, such as South Asia, the Middle East, and North Africa.

ISN/CTR administers the Partnership for Nuclear Threat Reduction (PNTR) which works to prevent states and terrorist groups from diverting, acquiring, or proliferating nuclear material, technology, or expertise that could be used to attack the United States. In particular, PNTR works to strengthen nuclear security practices and mitigating threats from radicalized or coerced personnel at sensitive nuclear facilities. All known cases of theft involving nuclear material have been led or abetted by insiders. To address this threat, PNTR focuses efforts to prevent radicalized, disgruntled, or coerced insiders from diverting nuclear material, technology, and expertise. PNTR does not provide physical security upgrades or guard force training.

Objectives
PNTR partners with nuclear scientists, technicians, and engineers, security personnel, institutional trainers, and technical organization decision-makers to promote technical cooperation and enhance nuclear security best practices. PNTR projects broadly fall into one of three categories, listed in no particular order:

• Insider Threat Mitigation: Activities to develop and implement trustworthiness programs and related regulatory guidance (i.e. human reliability program, fitness-for-duty, etc.) at a facility, organizational, or national level and/or mitigate the risk of an insider threat.
• Nuclear Security Culture in Practice: Activities that strengthen security practices and procedures, and reinforce personal responsibility of nuclear technical organizations’ personnel for keeping nuclear material secure. Examples include, but are not limited to, the IAEA’s nuclear security culture self-assessment methodology and the development of workforce training programs for nuclear operators and regulators.
• Countering Violent Extremism in the Nuclear Sector: Activities that identify threats or mitigate risks from radicalized or coerced personnel to sabotage or divert nuclear material, technology, or expertise. Examples include, but are not limited to, trainings that raise awareness of radicalization indicators or provide training on behavioral observation techniques that can mitigate these risks.

PNTR is also willing to consider innovative activities that address emerging and unanticipated nuclear and radiological threats.

Funding Priorities
While global in scope, PNTR directs its efforts towards selected countries to maximize its programmatic impact. PNTR is specifically interested in proposals which engage the following countries, listed roughly in order of priority: India, Egypt, South Africa, Jordan, UAE, Turkey, and Libya.

PNTR also has graduate partners in Algeria, Brazil, Indonesia, Morocco, and Nigeria. PNTR does not anticipate providing substantial support for graduate partners, but will consider limited, small-scale projects.

PNTR is primarily interested in engaging partner countries’ government operators and regulators, and technical organization decision makers. However, PNTR is also willing to engage industry, academia, and NGOs on topics related to nuclear security culture, as appropriate. Audiences for these activities may include:

• Government Operators, Regulators, and Security Personnel: PNTR engages operators, regulators and security personnel to implement trustworthiness programs and insider threat mitigation activities, and improve nuclear security practices. These projects will train technical personnel, develop guidance documents and standard-operating-procedures, and establish training programs for the technical workforce.
• Technical Organization Decision Makers: To ensure the sustainability and success of PNTR engagement with operators, regulators, and security personnel, PNTR engages relevant decision makers and nuclear industry officials. These activities will provide decision makers with appropriate information to obtain the necessary support to institutionalize efforts to enhance nuclear security practices and culture, mitigate insider threats, and establish trustworthiness programs

Tailored Engagement Strategies: PNTR sponsors projects that are relevant to each partner country’s needs, capabilities, infrastructure, and regulatory environment. Rather than adopting a one-size-fits-all approach, PNTR trainings are based on an understanding of technical and human capacity in each partner country, take cultural considerations into account, and build off of past PNTR trainings. Tailored engagement strategies may include such elements as:
• Utilizing Innovative Technology: To sustain developments made during in-country trainings and to provide consistent, regular support throughout project implementation, PNTR utilizes online training modules and virtual communication for capacity building.
• Concrete Impact: PNTR seeks to move beyond awareness-raising and toward actual adoption, implementation, and sustainment of best practices. To accomplish this, PNTR is open to a variety of approaches, including leveraging private sector capabilities. Utilizing experienced international partners as trainers or subject matter experts is another possible approach. PNTR may provide specialized training, such as fellowships, study tours or consultative visits, for key individuals with the ability to promote PNTR goals in key institutions.
• Leveraging Technical and Other Expertise: PNTR incorporates relevant experts from U.S. and international technical organizations in its training activities. While PNTR does not actively seek to promote nuclear power development, it does seek to incorporate lessons learned and best procedural practices from the nuclear industry.

Additional engagement mechanisms and tools which advance nuclear security culture for technical experts are welcome, as this listing is not exhaustive.

PNTR believes that engagement with our partners on nuclear security is an ongoing endeavor. To this end, ISN/CTR will evaluate the project based on the strength of its ongoing engagement activities and established milestones, seeking work that will continue throughout the period of the project and utilize in-country activities where necessary to ensure the effectiveness of the ongoing training effort.