Alzheimer’s Association World Wide FINGERS Network Funding Program (ALZ WW-FNFP)

Eligibility

The ALZ WW-FNFP is open to international (non-U.S.) researchers conducting multi-domain lifestyle intervention studies. Interested applicants should contact Emily Meyers at easmeyers@alz.org to arrange initial discussions with the Alzheimer’s Association team. For a study to be eligible, it must meet at least one of the following criteria: 

● Trial is active (in recruiting participants, implementing intervention and/or ongoing follow up); Data collection is harmonized with the WW-FINGERS Network; The trial is funded; OR 
● Research teams are actively working to advance trial planning, protocol development or explore proof of concept within the local setting; trial is funded. 
● Studies that are actively working to advance a WW-FINGERS trial within their country/population; trial is not funded 

The Principal Investigator of the project must be a full-time faculty member or full time paid employee of the organization submitting the proposal. Note: Investigators that have received Alzheimer’s Association funding for a related or other study and are currently delinquent in submitting required reports or have awards closed as “Incomplete” are not eligible to apply. For questions about eligibility, please contact the Alzheimer’s Association at grantsapp@alz.org and note that you are seeking clarification regarding the WW-FNFP program eligibility.

Summary

The WW-FINGERS network is a collaboration led by the FINGER Brain Health Institute and the Alzheimer’s Association. To support the expansion and opportunity for advancing this research, the Alzheimer’s Association is launching a pilot funding program for multimodal behavioral intervention studies that incorporate at least 3 domains. The Alzheimer’s Association WW-FINGERS network funding program (ALZ WW-FNFP) will provide initial / startup funding and/or opportunities for ongoing studies to initiate studies that expand multimodal interventions and/or add/leverage unique opportunities that enhance the study. This will be a competitive funding program and all submissions will be reviewed.

The ALZ WW-FNFP is open to international multi-domain lifestyle intervention proposals that are in need of financial support (up to USD$500,000 total for up to 3 years). 

The Alzheimer’s Association recognizes the needs of each study may be varied and the costs to conduct the study may also be varied; we anticipate most requests to be in the USD$200,000-$400,000/ year range.

DEADLINES: 

Pre-submission Inquiries will be welcome at any time; following pre-submission inquiries, applications will be invited for those that meet the program objectives. Proposed deadlines will be discussed with teams invited to submit full applications.

Overhead

Indirect costs are not supported. 

Application deadlines

Program application deadline

NOTE: Consult your Faculty Associate Dean (Research) (ADR) regarding Faculty-specific deadlines and submission processes.

Principal Investigators: Complete a Research Management System (RMS) record, including a copy of your complete application, and submit this for approvals in RMS.

Postdocs, students, and trainees: For fellowships and externally-sponsored research training awards or opportunities, you must complete the Research Funding Application Approval (RFAA) Trainee PDF form, and submit it, along with a complete copy of the application, to Research Services at rsotrainee@ucalgary.ca. Trainees should not use RMS at this time.

Approvals: The University of Calgary requires that all funding applications be approved prior to submission. Approval requires signatures via either RMS or the RFAA Trainee form, in the following order:

• Principal Investigator
• Department Head
• Faculty ADR/Dean
• Research Services (on behalf of the Vice-President Research)

Read the Meaning of Grant Signatures policy to understand what your approval means. Please see the agency guidelines for details about which signatures are required on your application, as it may differ from internal requirements.

Late submissions: Late submissions will only be accepted in cases of medical or family emergencies, or other exceptional circumstances. If you submit your RMS record to Research Services after the internal deadline has passed, you must secure additional approvals. Please read: Late Applications Process.

SUBMISSION PROCESS

Pre-Submission Inquiries will be accepted at any time. Please use the template provided and include the following: 

● Describe the status of the project and what is being requested 
● Overview of the geographical location of the study (cultural, economic, sites, etc.), expertise of the study team, information on the population to be engaged and community that will be involved, and a high level description of the proposed intervention. 
● Describe future plans or long-term goals of the initiative (i.e. are there opportunities for federal funding, for partnership, other ways for sustainability, etc). ● Level of study as defined by the above criteria and Kivipelto et al (2020) Alzheimer’s & Dementia. Please send the pre-submission form to grantsapp@alz.org. Pre-submission Inquiries will be welcome at any time; following pre-submission inquiries, applications will be invited for those that meet the program objectives. Proposed deadlines will be discussed with teams invited to submit full applications.

RESOURCES

Reminder: The sooner the researcher engages with Research Services, the more help we can be!

Contact the following Research Service units for support with:

Projects Involving Indigenous Research:

Support with incorporating wise practices in Indigenous research, community engagement, and Indigenous data management is available through the Indigenous Research Support Team (IRST).

Applicants can reach out by email to IRST at IRST@ucalgary.ca in advance of the RSO internal deadline. For more information about IRST, please visit the IRST webpage.

Knowledge Mobilization, Research Impact Assessment, DORA:

Support for knowledge mobilization/engagement/translation, community partnerships, research impact, responsible research assessment (DORA), and open science, is available through the Knowledge to Impact team.

Applicants can reach out by email to the KI team at knowledge.impact@ucalgary.ca.

For more information and access to resource archives, please visit the KI team webpage.

Research Data Management:

For information on research data management plans, processes, or best practices for your research program, please contact research.data@ucalgary.ca.

EDI in Research:

RSO can provide resources and support to research teams on the integration of equitable and inclusive practices in research design and research practice.

Contact edi.rso@ucalgary.ca for more information.

Research Security:

The Research Security Division is available to ensure researchers adhere to research security guidelines and policies, including the National Security Guidelines for Research Partnerships (NSGRP) and the policy on Sensitive Technology Research and Affiliations of Concern (STRAC).

Visit the Research Security website to learn more or contact researchsecurity@ucalgary.ca.

Pre-Award Submissions:

RMS: Creating a Pre-Award LOI
RMS: Creating a Pre-Award Application