Please read the Rate Sheet and the RMBL Research Code in addition to completing the appropriate application. Email the Executive Director before submitting an application for New Research. If you are a principal investigator (PI) and your research approval has expired, fill out a New/Renewal application by Feb. 1. Collectors who are not otherwise doing research should fill out a Collection Application by Feb.1.  If you have an approved research plan that is current, please fill out the Continuing application by April 1. If you are proposing new research as a supplement to your approved research plan, contact the Science Director. Finally, members of a PI's research team will need either the research assistant or visiting scientist application.

All of the applications are now located ONLINE; there are no more hard copies to complete and return.

Everyone who attends RMBL must fill out a waiver every year; these can be completed once you arrive. You can download the waiver form here.

Notes
We ask that you provide citations to your recent RMBL publications and, whenever possible, datasets and metadata for research conducted at the RMBL. Click here to learn about metadata submission. Click here to search the publication database to see if your latest publications are listed.

Project Start Dates
Applications for New or Renewal of Research submitted before October 15th begin the year in which they were submitted while applications submitted after October 15th will begin the following year.

Project End Dates
Projects end April 15th in the year after they expire. In other words, if a research plan is submitted on Jan. 15, 2008 for five years, that project would become inactive as of April 15th, 2013.

Research Application Review Process

A Research Committee (RC, currently Nick Waser, Chair, Diane Campbell, Nate Sanders, Brian Enquist, Bobbi Peckarsky, Steve Smith) receives a list of applications from the Science Director (SD, currently Jennie Reithel).  The SD and Chair of the RC assign one RC member as the lead for each application.  Some applications with clear scientific merit and low impacts are reviewed by the SD alone, in consultation with the Chair; but most are reviewed by the lead RC member, in consultation with the SD and Chair.  If the RC lacks expertise to review an application, it asks one or more external scientists for help.  Reviewers add comments to the web page for the application, and sometimes direct specific questions about design and impacts to the applicant, who may respond with clarification, revised design, etc.  As RC members review applications they set aside any that may not meet the review criteria (see below). Applications that might be given a low priority (see below) are read by at least 2 members of the RC, and those that might be denied are read by the entire RC, which then discusses them in a conference call whose aim is to reach consensus.  The RC and SD also may add comments or suggestions that go to the applicant after approval and do not influence that decision.  At the end of the process, the RC forwards to the Executive Director (currently Ian Billick) three RECOMMENDATIONS:  whether a proposal be accepted or denied, any specific conditions of approval, and a priority score.  The priority score indicates how important the RC feels it is for RMBL to allocate resources (e.g., housing, lab space, personnel support) to the project.

Criteria Used for Review of Applications

The Bylaws of the RMBL Corporation state that RMBL shall “provide quality research and teaching facilities and opportunities for biologists . . . of all disciplines who can benefit . . . from studying at this location . . .” and that it shall foster research to “promote the understanding and protection of the high-altitude ecosystems of Colorado”; furthermore that “The major criterion [for acceptance of a research program]. . . is the promise of or the fulfillment of quality scientific achievement.”  The Research section of RMBL’s Master Plan further states that “Approval of research applications should thus be based on their scientific excellence, the PI’s history or promise of research productivity, appropriateness to RMBL’s location, contribution to RMBL’s scholarly community, and potential to conflict with ongoing research projects.  In addition, the recognition that some research activities can preclude use of a study site for future research demands that project approval also be based on whether there is a risk of lasting impacts on natural populations and ecosystems.”  These passages indicate that the scientific quality of an application is critical for its acceptance.  The RC judges both the quality of the project described in the application and the PI’s record of scientific contributions (or in the case of younger PIs, the promise of contributions).  These two assessments mirror those used by the US National Science Foundation and other granting agencies worldwide.  The additional criteria for acceptance listed above (e.g., lack of conflict with other projects) also are applied.  Finally, in assigning a priority score for applications that it recommends accepting, the RC considers both scientific quality and the need for the PI to work at RMBL and to use its resources.

Genetic Experiments

Genetic experiments that involve moving genetic material among organisms of different species, in a way that would not naturally occur, will be scrutinized carefully and may be denied in some cases.  The risk that genes could escape and cause ecological disruption is weighed against the perceived scientific value of the proposed research.  Scientists proposing this type of genetic experiment must submit a pre-proposal to the Science Director by October 1 or 7 months prior to initiation of the research, whichever comes first. 

WYSIWYG Editor
Click here if you would like information about the text editor you will occasionally see in RMBL's software - including the New or Renewal Application listed above.