Grants / Department of Health and Human Services / National Institutes of Health

NIDA Avenir Program: Fundamental Mechanistic Research in Addiction Science

Forecast Expected deadline May 26, 2027 Opportunity RFA-DA-28-002

• Award ceiling$375,000
• Award floornot stated
• Expected awards5
• Total funding$3.0 million
• Cost sharingNot required
• Funding typeGrant

Key dates

Add the deadline to your calendar

Who can apply

This opportunity is open to nonprofits, colleges and universities, state and local governments, tribes, small businesses and businesses.

• State governments
• County governments
• City or township governments
• Special district governments
• Independent school districts
• Public and State controlled institutions of higher education
• Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized)
• Public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities
• Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments)
• Nonprofits having a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education
• Nonprofits that do not have a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education
• Private institutions of higher education
• For profit organizations other than small businesses
• Small businesses
• Others (see text field entitled "Additional Information on Eligibility" for clarification)

Other Eligible ApplicantsIndian/Native American Tribal Governments (Other than Federally Recognized);Eligible Agencies of the Federal Government;U.S. Territory or Possession;Faith-based or Community-based Organizations;Regional Organizations;

More grants for nonprofits, colleges and universities, state and local governments, tribes, small businesses, businesses.

Is this a realistic fit?

• No cost sharing or match is required.

What the grant funds

Avenir, the French word for "future," reflects NIDA's commitment to developing the next generation of leaders in addiction science. Since 2015, the Avenir Program has supported exceptionally creative early stage investigators (ESIs) in launching innovative research programs. NIDA is now expanding this program to support bold mechanistic research across a broader range of addiction science, including genetic, epigenetic, molecular, cellular, circuit, chemical, pharmacological, behavioral, and cognitive processes relevant to Substance Use Disorders (SUDs). This initiative is intended to catalyze high-risk, high-reward research and attract outstanding new investigators, including those from outside the addiction field. Applications proposing novel, unconventional, or interdisciplinary wet-lab and/or data science approaches to advance understanding of the mechanisms underlying SUDs are encouraged. The Avenir Program is designed for ESIs who may lack the preliminary data needed for an R01 application but propose high-impact research and show strong potential to become future leaders in fundamental mechanistic addiction science. Grant authorities that allow NIDA to forecast this opportunity are 42 U.S.C. §§ 241 and 284.

Category: Health.

How to apply

1. Read the full notice and attachments on Grants.gov. The notice is the official source for deadlines and requirements.
2. Make sure your organization has an active SAM.gov registration and Unique Entity ID; registration can take several weeks.
3. Register on Grants.gov and submit through Workspace before the deadline and time given in the notice. Our application guide walks through each step.

Questions go to National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA, NIDA_GED_Program@nida.nih.gov, Please contact via e-mail..

Open the official notice