Establishing a Research Network to Guide Foundational Research on Human Consciousness
This grant funds a national research network to coordinate and advance foundational neuroscience on human consciousness, uniting diverse disciplines to improve diagnosis, treatment, and ethical standards for related biomedical conditions.
Funder: National Institutes of Health
Due Dates (Anticipated): February 2027 (Full application deadline, projected)
Funding Amounts: Estimated total program funding: $600,000; expected number of awards: 1; duration not specified.
Summary: Supports the creation of a national interdisciplinary research network to advance foundational science on human consciousness, develop research resources, and build capacity in the field.
Key Information: This is a forecasted opportunity; all dates are projected and subject to change.
Description
This funding opportunity from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) aims to establish the NIH Blueprint for Neuroscience Research Network to Guide Foundational Research on Human Consciousness. The initiative brings together 14 NIH Institutes, Centers, and Offices to address the insufficient understanding of the neural mechanisms underlying conscious states, which impacts diagnosis and treatment of conditions such as coma, delirium, dementia, traumatic brain injury, stroke, sleep disorders, metabolic disorders, and seizures.
Rather than supporting individual, hypothesis-driven projects, this program will fund a national interdisciplinary network to coordinate, standardize, and integrate research efforts across neuroscience, neurology, psychiatry, psychology, anesthesiology, sleep and meditation research, computational science, AI, bioethics, and philosophy. The network will focus on:
- Harmonizing operational definitions and standards in consciousness research
- Identifying promising research settings, models, and experimental designs
- Evaluating and standardizing indicators and measures of consciousness
- Addressing ethical considerations in consciousness research
- Building capacity by providing interdisciplinary cross-training, workshops, and visiting scholar programs
The overall goal is to strengthen the field, provide research resources, and enhance the rigor, reproducibility, and ethical grounding of biomedical research on consciousness.
