Mining New Frontiers: The Critical Minerals and Materials Joint Call

Access to the Molecular Foundry and use of JGI capabilities is free.

• The JGI supports remote users. Users conduct experiments in their own labs or collect field samples. Depending on the required capabilities, they then ship samples—such as DNA and RNA for sequencing—to JGI. Users are responsible for covering the costs of the experiment, sample collection, and shipping; JGI will handle all subsequent processing from that point.
  • JGI provides users with various outputs free of charge, including data such as fully annotated genome assemblies or differential gene expression results. For DNA synthesis projects, JGI ships physical materials like expression constructs or sgRNA libraries to the user.
• Most users of the Molecular Foundry work side-by-side with our scientists at Berkeley Lab. Access to the Molecular Foundry is free of charge for non-proprietary research; the vast majority of projects fall into this category. Users are responsible for their own living, local transportation, and travel costs. The cost of standard incidentals related to the user project (such as chemicals, basic lab supplies, office supplies) is supported by the Foundry. If a user’s project requires consumables beyond what is customary, they will establish a charge account to handle these costs.
  • For projects involving computational work with Dr. Blaby-Haas to model, predict, and understand nanoscale processes responsible for the selectivity, handling, and sensing of critical minerals and materials, collaboration can be conducted remotely.

The program seeks user proposals that integrate genomics with nanoscale science, accelerating discoveries and developing transformative bio-based technologies that address challenges in the sourcing, recovery, and utilization of critical minerals and materials (CMMs). Click for a list of CMMs and the results of the 2023 DOE Critical Materials Assessment.

While we expect most projects will focus on one or more elements in the CMM lists, it may be possible to make an argument for the use of biological systems to leach and concentrate less valuable metals or elements not are not on the critical list, if such a function would address challenges in the sourcing, recovery, and utilization of elements in the critical minerals and materials lists.

These are both protocols that we do not have yet in production, so we're not offering them as part of the user calls. Please refer to the JGI CMM call available here, which includes the capabilities offered by JGI through this user proposal call.

Free access to JGI and the Molecular Foundry is granted with the understanding that the resulting work will be published. JGI data is subject to a brief embargo period, after which it becomes publicly available. If you're requesting DNA synthesis from JGI, there's also a material transfer agreement that’s required.

• Please refer to the Molecular Foundry Non-Proprietary User Agreement and the JGI User Agreements.
• An FAQ for Industry users of the Molecular Foundry can be found here.

• For the Molecular Foundry, the project needs to be scoped for 12 months or less. We can help you scope that part of the proposal. Also, once awarded, users have 12 months before they need to activate their project. Follow-on proposals can be submitted before the end of an active proposal in order to continue access in 12-month increments. 
• At the JGI, a typical proposal is active for 3 years with the possibility for extension. Fungal genomes, for instance, can take up to a year or more to complete. Having that optional 12-month wait period before you start the Molecular Foundry work might be really useful in such a case, because you can start the work with JGI first and then activate your project with Molecular Foundry once you have what is needed from JGI.  

The call is open to almost anyone. Citizenship/nationality or working at an institution in North Korea, Cuba, Iran, and Syria is fully restricted, except in cases where an individual born in one of these countries has already attained United States citizenship, and does not represent an institution in one of these countries.   

No limitations except no animals (including insects), humans, or health-related projects at JGI. We love to work with single organisms and mixed cultures of fungi, algae, protists, bacteria, archaea, viruses, plants, including microbial communities and plant-microbe interactions. However, you are encouraged to reach out to the JGI or Molecular Foundry to discuss technical feasibility before submitting your proposal.

• We recommend using a full-service courier (more information and some recommended companies here). It's more expensive, but they do take care of your samples. We actually haven't had a lot of issues with things being destroyed, but sometimes there are delays. We do encourage you to work with a company that's experienced in walking these samples through customs, and will continue to keep the samples frozen, or load dry ice, or whatever is needed.
• A potential benefit of this partner program is that the Molecular Foundry and JGI are co-located at Berkeley Lab. Through this call you may be able to perform experiments and prepare samples at the Molecular Foundry then walk over and hand your samples to the staff at JGI. Please reach out to Dr. Blaby-Haas to make sure that we have the particular growth chambers you would need to perform a specific experiment. The Molecular Foundry has standard growth chambers as well as incubators for growing anaerobes and phototrophs.

Note that utilization or transfer of any genetic resource may be covered by local, national or international regulation.  These requirements apply whether the use is for non-profit or for-profit activity. A few examples include:

• Convention on Biological Diversity Nagoya Protocol on Access and Benefit Sharing
• Benefits sharing in the US National Parks
• USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service permits
• US Fish and Wildlife permits

These examples may apply to your samples, but do not serve as a comprehensive list of regulatory requirements. The user is responsible for determining which regulations or permit requirements are appropriate and ensuring compliance before any materials are transferred to JGI or the Molecular Foundry.

• This is a pilot program, and, as such, we do not have a good indication of how many proposals we're going to receive.
• For comparison, the joint FICUS call that JGI participates in with EMSL, APS, BioSANS typically has an acceptance rate of 12 to 15%, mainly due to resource limitations with our partner labs. For some of the other JGI calls, we approve as many as 40% of the proposals.
• At the Molecular Foundry, the acceptance rate depends on which resources are being requested. Across the whole center our acceptance rate is close to 75%, but then depending on which capabilities are being requested, it could be much less than that, or more than that.