PLEASE NOTE:DOE is aware of the issue of being unable to upload a PDF Document in the Letter of Intent phase. To resolve that issue, please enter all the requested information into the data Fields of the Letter of Intent screen and enter a brief (200 words) explanation of the proposed project in the "Abstract" field. Once that is done and all the information is entered, click on the "Create Letter of Intent" button. When an Applicant creates a Letter of Intent it is automatically submitted to DOE and the Applicant will receive an email notifying them that the Letter of Intent has been submitted.
There is nothing further required of the Applicant in the Letter of Intent Phase. The next step is to complete and submit a Full Application by the FOA Closing Date.
Please be aware the under the "Status" Column in EERE Exchange your Application will show as "Not Submitted". This refers to the Full Application status, not the Letter of Intent Status. The confirmation email sent to the Applicant (referenced above) serves as the record of your Letter of Intent Submittal.
The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy
(EERE) seeks applicants to its Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) DE-FOA-0001371, Solar Decathlon Program Administrator. This FOA will support the Obama administration’s commitment to improving the nation’s science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education efforts, and to building a more knowledge-intensive workforce. The Department of Energy (DOE) and EERE are eager to create and support education and workforce development programs that are specific to applied energy, and are essential to carrying out DOE’s mission and advancing energy technologies for the future.
One of America’s most pressing and technically difficult scientific and engineering challenges is developing new and better technologies to supply clean and renewable energy. As the nation’s demand for energy increases and the energy sector grows to meet these needs, the United States faces an impending shortage of the skilled workforce needed to support this sector. An educated and highly-trained workforce is imperative if it is to support today’s low-carbon economy as it develops—and lead it to tomorrow. Finding solutions to these challenges is critical today and for America’s future. For this reason, DOE’s Strategic Plan supports developing and providing educational and technical training opportunities for students and for the workforce.
Since its inception in 2000, the Solar Decathlon has been a high-profile DOE-branded education and workforce development program for university-level students. It culminates in a competition that is a public demonstration of EERE technologies that promotes energy efficiency and increases awareness about residential energy use; fostering greater adoption of clean energy technologies. The competition demonstrates that an aesthetically beautiful and well-designed house can generate enough thermal and electrical energy to meet the needs of a single family household. At the bi-annual Solar Decathlons, first in Washington, D.C. and then in Irvine, California, 65,000-100,000 visitors have toured the houses to see student teams’ use of EERE technologies in action. More information about past Solar Decathlons is available at http://www.solardecathlon.gov.
The Solar Decathlon’s wide audience includes collegiate student teams, the building industry, the sustainable and clean energy industries, homeowners, and general public consumers. The student teams pursue multidisciplinary approaches to meet DOE’s requirements in designing, building, and operating energy-efficient, solar-powered houses. The program’s technology showcase educates the attending public and industry professionals about the benefits, affordability, and availability of clean energy solutions, with research papers, media coverage, and digital outreach serving as tools to amplify this message.Under this Funding Opportunity Announcement, DOE intends to select one recipient to organize, manage, and conduct the Solar Decathlon competitions in 2017 and 2019. This includes identifying and providing the competition location/venue, soliciting sponsorships, hosting the competitions, awarding prize money to the competitors, and promoting the mission and goals of DOE’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy through educational programs and outreach. A key near-term requirement will be to identify a new location/venue for the 2017 Solar Decathlon.
DOE is seeking applicants for the 2017 Solar Decathlon College Team Competition under a separate Notice. See FOA DE-FOA-00001398 for details.
Please see the complete FOA document and the "FOA FAQs.xslx" spreadsheet in the "FOA Documents" section below.
The Information Webinar was held on September 2, 2015 for potential applicants. A PDF of the slides presented are in the FOA Documents section and a recording of the Webinar is available at this link:
https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/recording/756755739443904257