Seeking Research Security SMEs, Software Developers, and Development Teams to Build Global Research Security Toolkit

On behalf of the United States Department of State, Bureau of Arms Control and Nonproliferation, Office of Cooperative Threat Reduction (ACN/CTR), CRDF Global is seeking Subject Matter Experts (SMEs), software developers, and development teams with demonstrated expertise in research security to design, build, and deliver the Research Security Toolkit, a suite of free, adaptable resources that help research security programs of any capacity level identify and manage risk, stand up a program, and document their decisions. 

This program will include the development of the following components through December 2026, including: 

1. A Research Security Risk Assessment Guide 
2. A Research Security Program Starter Kit 
3. A Model Template and Workflow Library
4. A Research Security Case Management Tool 

These components are designed to reinforce one another and function as one coherent toolkit for the global research security community: the Starter Kit directs users to the relevant templates and workflows in the Library at each step, the Risk Assessment Guide produces an output that can be recorded in the Case Management Tool, and together they give a program a clear path from a first structured assessment through a documented decision. 

CRDF Global is issuing separate Requests for Proposals (RFPs) for these components, which are linked below. Qualified experts, institutions, and teams are welcome to apply to one or both RFPs, or to one or multiple components within a single RFP, as fits their interest and expertise.

RFP 1: Research Security Toolkit — Risk Assessment Guide, Program Starter Kit, and Model Template and Workflow Library (REQ26-0594) 

The selected subject matter expert(s) will design and develop three complementary, interoperable components of the Research Security Toolkit:  

1. Research Security Risk Assessment Guide: An actionable, facilitated guide that helps a research security office identify, rate, and respond to research security risks, grounded in academic and government risk review practices and adaptable to institutions of any capacity level. 
2. Research Security Program Starter Kit: Foundational education and step-by-step guidance for standing up a research security program from a low or nonexistent baseline, covering governance, roles and responsibilities, core policies, and common scenarios. 
3. Model Template and Workflow Library: A curated set of adaptable templates and workflows, such as Technology Control Plans, collaboration-risk review templates, and due diligence checklists, that connect to the Starter Kit and the Risk Assessment Guide.

Qualified experts and organizations are welcome to apply to one or both events, depending on their expertise and capacity.  

RFP 2: Research Security Case Management Tool (REQ26-0595)  (Revised August 6, 2026)

The selected contractor(s) will fully develop the Research Security Case Management Tool, a lightweight, locally deployable, and auditable application that allows a research security office to maintain a historical repository of research security cases, the decisions made, and the reasoning behind them. This solicitation is organized in two parts: 

1. Task One — Research Security Subject Matter Expert (Product Manager): Serves as product manager across the development lifecycle, defining what research security officers and offices need in a functional and usable tool.
2. Task Two — Software Developer or Development Team: Designs, builds, packages, documents, and delivers the full tool, together with its complete source code, to the requirements defined with the Part One product manager.