Aims

The British Academy is inviting applications for projects which seek to develop new ideas and methods to bear on existing international challenges. Projects will need to demonstrate an innovative and interdisciplinary partnership (between researchers in the social sciences or the humanities on the one hand and counterparts in the natural, engineering and/or medical sciences on the other), yielding new conceptual understanding and policy-relevant evidence on questions of international significance.

Projects will aim to achieve the following outcomes:

1. Enhance public, cultural and/or policy understanding of international challenges (past, present and future) through the expertise of the humanities and the social sciences in collaboration with the natural, engineering and/or medical sciences;
2. Develop the insights required to address matters of international interdisciplinary concern;
3. Engender new interdisciplinary and international collaborations in order to yield new understanding for culture, policy and/or research agendas;
4. Further cross-learning between disciplines and/or between academic, policy, cultural, practitioner and public communities on issues that are topical, under-explored or necessitate reframing.

Eligibility requirements

The lead applicant must be based at an eligible UK university or research institute, and be of postdoctoral or above status (or have equivalent research experience).

Collaboration between researchers in different institutions is particularly encouraged, where appropriate, given the nature and aims of this programme, and applications may include named co-applicants and other participants from overseas.

For more details about the programme and the eligibility requirements, please see the scheme notes.

Value and duration

Awards of up to £50,000 and 18 months in duration are available.

Funding can be used to support research expenses and consumables; travel and subsistence; networking, meeting and conference costs; and research and/or clerical assistance (postdoctoral or equivalent).

Awards are not offered on a full economic costing basis, with contributions to overheads an ineligible cost.

Application process

Applications must be submitted online using the British Academy's Grant Management System (GMS), Flexi-Grant®.

• The deadline for submissions and UK institutional approval is 15 May 2019 at 17.00 (UK time).

Email: internationalchallenges@thebritishacademy.ac.uk