Guidelines and Application

Eligibility Criteria

All applications must meet the following criteria:

• The request must be related to organizing or hosting an in-person, hybrid, or virtual event (e.g., conference, meeting, symposium, workshop, summer school, etc.) related to the fields of astronomy (including planetary science), cosmology, fundamental physics, climate change science, and/or increasing the representation and persistence of underrepresented groups in these fields.
  • Events focused on science communication are ineligible for funding in this call.
  • For events related to climate change science, we seek proposals that focus on the physical mechanisms, drivers, and/or impacts of climate change that manifest in the various Earth system components such as changes in extreme weather, droughts or ecosystem shifts, or changes in ocean or cryosphere dynamics. Events that include related topics such as climate resilience or adaptation are eligible as long as the focus of the event is on climate science research. 
• In-person events must take place in the US, including US territories.
• The duration of the event must be 15 days or less.
• Eligible applicants must be described in Internal Revenue Code (“IRC”) Section 509(a)(1) or 509(a)(2), which includes:
  • an organization with an un-revoked determination letter from the IRS that the organization is exempt from income tax under IRC Section 501(c)(3) and is not a private foundation under IRC Section 170(b)(1)(A) or 509(a)(2)
  • a U.S. or state government, government possession, or political subdivision of a government, under IRC Section 170(c)(1)
  • an instrumentality of an IRC Section 170(c)(1) governmental unit (regardless of whether such instrumentality’s income is tax-exempt under IRC Section 115)
• Applicants at universities must work with their office of sponsored projects or affiliated foundation to gather the necessary information to apply.
• Non-US entities are not eligible to apply.
• The funding request must be within $20,000 and $80,000 (inclusive) in increments of $10,000, including indirect costs.
• The total event cost must be less than $500,000.
• For Cycle 1 proposals, the event must take place between April 15, 2025 and March 31, 2026, and for Cycle 2 proposals, the event must take place between October 31, 2025 and October 31, 2026.
• The primary audience of the event must be undergraduate level and above, and aimed at the scientific community. Events specifically targeting k-12 educators are not eligible.
• All events must fully comply with applicable laws and remain open to participants of all races, genders, and other legally protected classes without restriction.

For existing Heising-Simons Foundation grantees: applicants may not already have an active grant for the proposed event, or have received more than $100,000 cumulatively from the Foundation for the proposed event or event series within the last four years.