The Burroughs Wellcome Fund is currently accepting applications for its Climate Change and Human Health Seed Grants.
The mechanism aims to stimulate the growth of new connections between scholars working in largely disconnected fields whose collaboration has the potential to change the course of climate change’s impact on human health.
Funding Information
Over the next two years, they will dedicate $1M to supporting small, early-stage grants of $2,500 – $50,000 toward achieving this goal.
Eligibility Criteria
Applications must be submitted by non-profit organizations or degree granting institutions in the United States or Canada. Applicant organizations may submit multiple proposals, but an individual may only serve as a principal investigator/project director on one application during each review period.
This call focuses on developing partnerships. Proposals from single institutions must develop partnerships that do not already occur naturally: for example, proposals from departments that draw students from the same shared graduate program are not responsive to this call. Proposals from more than one institution are responsive. Academic institutions, professional societies, and advocacy organizations are only a few of the appropriate drivers of proposals. Only non-profit institutions may be supported by BWF’s award, but non-profits may involve for profit organizations in their proposals. This program does not support biomedical research projects proposed by individual investigators.
Eligible proposals will include rationale/vision for the project, including who it is intended to impact.
Individuals may only serve twice as directors (principal investigators/project directors) for proposals supported over time by this program. Awardees and past awardees from other BWF programs are eligible to apply.
Selection Process
Selection will be based on the logic of the proposed activity, its potential impact on stimulating development of effective partnerships that may influence understanding of the interplay between climate change and human health or model effective approaches to changing how people, systems, places, or organizations think about the impact of climate change on human health.
To be competitive, the proposed support should not be to fund the applicant’s current projects but should be utilized to catalyze new transdisciplinary effort. they expect to support work that brings new collaborators together, pulls fields together in new ways, or combines separate resources into more powerful wholes. they do not expect to support work that, but for funding, is easily within an applicant’s capacity.
Proposals involving gathering people should include a description of a backup plan for proceeding if COVID-19 concerns again limit contact between participants.
Proposals will be reviewed by a standing committee within BWF with advice from expert reviewers drawn from a panel recommended by the National Academy of Medicine. BWF does not provide substantial critiques of unfunded proposals.
