IDEAS-Watersheds supports ESS’s Science Focus Areas (SFA). The SFA concept aligns DOE national laboratory research efforts with elements within the President’s annual budget request. This approach is a recognition that the national laboratories are structured for conducting coordinated, team-oriented research in a manner that is distinct from, but complementary to, BER-supported research conducted via individual, single-investigator projects at other institutions such as universities or the private sector. This approach challenges the DOE national laboratories to build and sustain integrative, team-oriented research programs based on their unique scientific capabilities and administrative resources to meet the strategic goals of BER’s Environmental System Science (ESS) program.