Sources for research funding

LEVERHULME TRUST

www.leverhulme.org.uk

2001 Leverhulme Prize Fellowships

Leverhulme Prize Fellowships are designed to recognise and facilitate the work of outstanding young research scholars of proven achievement, who have made and are capable of continuing to make original and significant contributions to knowledge in one of the following disciplines: astronomy and astrophysics, classics, earth sciences, economics, engineering, geography (excluding physical geography), philosophy and ethics. Each prize fellowship carries an award of Pounds 50,000. Candidates must hold a post in a UK institution of higher education and should be under age 36 at October 16. Nominations may be made only by the head of the nominee's employing institution. No more than two prize fellowships will be granted in any one discipline to any one university. Deadline: 16 October, 4.00pm. Information packs are downloadable, or write to: Prize Fellowships, The Leverhulme Trust, 1 Pemberton Row, London EC4A 3BG. Queries: tel: 020 7822 6952; fax: 020 7822 5084; email: jcater@leverhulme.org.uk.

THE WISHBONE TRUST

www.wishbone.org.uk

Research Grants

The Wishbone Trust aims to: provide funding for orthopaedic surgeons and fellow researchers to be involved in musculo-skeletal research; encourage young researchers to undertake research particularly when working for a further degree; fund small discrete projects; to fund pump-priming projects to facilitate further grants from other bodies; support those projects which are outside the traditional areas of interest of other charities but which are relevant to orthopaedics. The trust usually makes three rounds of direct grants each year. The level of funding for any one grant is normally to a maximum of Pounds 30,000. There is an annual fellowship of Pounds 30,000 in any one year. Appreciating the need for smaller value grants, the Trust has introduced grants at the level of Pounds 5,000, reviewed at the same time as its other pump-priming grants. The major grants programme supports through partner sponsors, research projects in the Pounds 30,000 to Pounds 100,000 range. Applications are invited once a year. All projects must be sponsored by a consultant orthopaedic surgeon and all grant-holders are required to submit a paper on the outcome of their project.

Next deadlines - for pump-priming grants: August 9; for major grant abstracts: August 1, 12pm. Email enquries to: wishbone@globalnet.co.uk

PHYSIOLOGICAL

SOCIETY

www.physoc.org

Postgraduate

Support Fund

A sum of Pounds 5,000 has been allocated to provide support for postgraduates in exceptional circumstances such as periods of ill-health, absence of essential facilities, disruption of supervision etc, to assist in the completion of their research projects and to bridge the period between graduation and the availability of full-time posts for especially gifted students. Graduates in physiology, or a related science, engaged in research in the UK in a department of physiology or related science, when their supervisor is a member of The Physiological Society. Applicants will normally be registered for a PhD, although MPhil and MSc students may apply. The maximum award allowable is Pounds 1,000. Applications must be made via the Administration Office, supported by confidential letters of support from the supervisor and Head of Department. Deadline: July 31. applications at other times will also be considered. Application forms can be downloaded from the website or obtained from: The Administrator, (Postgraduate Support Fund), The Physiological Society, PO Box 11319, London WC1E 7JF; tel: 020 7631 1459; fax: 020 7631 1462.

MEDICAL RESEARCH COUNCIL

www.mrc.ac.uk

Discipline Hopping Awards - opportunities for Interdisciplinary Research

Development

These awards provide short-term support to pump-prime interdisciplinary research with the aim of encouraging long-term collaborations. The council recognises the need for interdisciplinary working in all areas but has identified particular potential in the application of chemistry, physics and economics to addressing biological clinical and health research questions. This award scheme allows researchers who can demonstrate an appropriate track record in their own field to apply for funding to investigate and develop ideas, skills and collaborations in other disciplines. The awards can be used flexibly to develop interdisciplinary working by any method. The awards are cash limited to a total of Pounds 50,000 and would generally be for one year. Prospective applicants are encouraged to talk through their proposals with head office staff in the first instance. Please contact:

Dr Raechel Kenny, scheme manager

(email: raechel.kenny@headoffice.mrc.ac.uk).

Deadline: September 15. Queries to: Michele Michalczuk; tel: 020 7636 5422; email: michele.michalczuk@headoffice.mrc.ac.uk.

SOCIETY FOR GENERAL MICROBIOLOGY

www.sgm.ac.uk

International

Research Fellowships

The purpose of these awards is to allow scientists to travel to or from the UK or Ireland in order to carry out a defined piece of research in any field of microbiology. Applicants must be of postdoctoral level or above. The visits may be of up to three months duration. The awards cover the costs of return travel, a subsistence allowance and a contribution towards the costs of consumables in the host laboratory. There will normally be three rounds of applications during each calendar year. Next deadline: July 31. Application forms available on the website or contact the grants office by email: grants@sgm.ac.uk.

MACARTHUR

FOUNDATION

www.macfdn.org

Initiative on Population, Consumption, and the Environment

Support research that addresses population and consumption-related transformations of coastal and marine ecosystems. Four research questions are of particular interest: (1) What are the specific socio-cultural and institutional factors and processes that mediate the relationship between population variables and coastal systems? (2) What adjustment mechanisms do people use in response to a changing environment? (3) What are key economic factors that influence migration, fertility changes, and resource use? (4) What factors contribute to situations in which population changes coincide with positive changes in coastal and marine ecosystems? Projects that address the impact of northern consumption on tropical coastal and marine resources will also be considered.

Collaborative research between northern and southern institutions will be given priority. Research should be multi-disciplinary, drawing from social and natural sciences. Project duration could be two to three years, with budgets of $50,000 - $100,000 per year. Deadline: August 1. Email queries to: 4answers@macfound.org.

ENGLISH NATIONAL BOARD FOR NURSING, MIDWIFERY AND HEALTH VISITING

www.enb.org.uk/rdcom.htmNofund

Educational Preparation for Cancer

Nursing and Palliative Care for Children

and Adolescents

This project was first tendered in December 1999, but the contract was not awarded. In re-tendering the project the board wishes to draw attention to the need to focus equally on three elements within the research design. These are educational evaluation, cancer nursing and palliative care in the context of children's nursing. Expertise in all three elements will be sought in the selection process and interested research teams may wish to consider collaboration between disciplines.

The evaluation must include: (a) comparative analysis of curricular learning outcomes of ENB 240, R84 and comparable educational programmes; (b) the nature of practice experience and the process and outcomes of the assessment of practice within practice; (c) the extent and nature of shared learning and the impact of this on knowledge and competence within practice; (d) comparability of outcomes from different programmes at different academic and practice levels; (e) synthesis of evidence to inform the future definition of national threshold competences. The project will be funded in the region of Pounds 100,000 - Pounds 110,000 for a period of 21-24 months. Deadline: July 13, 1pm. Full details on the web. For further information contact: Dr Sonia Crow, Assistant Director for Educational Policy (Research & Development) at the English National Board, London; tel: 020 7391 62; email: sonia.crow@

enb.org.uk.

AMERICAN ORCHID SOCIETY

http://orchidweb.org/

Research Grants

The society periodically awards grants for experimental projects and fundamental and applied research on orchids. The purpose is to advance the study of orchids in every aspects, including classification, evolution, conservation, propagation, culture, care and development. Qualified research personnel associated with accredited institutions of higher learning or appropriate research institutes, and qualified graduate students, may apply. Next deadline: August 1.

Contact: Pamela Giust,

American Orchid Society,

6000 South Olive Avenue, West Palm Beach, Florida 33405, USA; tel: 561 585 8666; fax 561 585 0654; email: The AOS@compuserve.com.

DEPT OF TRADE

& INDUSTRY

www.dti.gov.uk/ost/

ostbusiness/north.htm

The North West

Science Review will aim to identify areas of strategic scientific and technological importance, for the next 20 years, which are consistent with the regional strategy for the north west. The call for proposals invites projects for funding which can help bring about this aim. In carrying out this call for proposals, the key criteria are: quality of science;

impact on the north west science base; impact on the future of the north west economy. Projects could be individual pieces of scientific research, feasibility studies for future major scientific activity, or contributions to scientific infrastructure. This is an open call for proposals aimed at all universities and other publicly funded institutions in the north west. Applicants should note that a small number of strategic projects will be funded by this initiative. Projects proposed should demonstrate world-class science, and a long-term vision for science in the region while aiming to meet the future needs of the scientific community. Deadline: July 28, 4pm. Contact: Mr Chris France,

Government Office of the North West, 5th Floor, Washington House, New Bailey Street, Manchester M3 5ER; tel: 0161 952 4459.

BRITISH ACADEMY

www.britac.ac.uk

Research Readerships, Senior Research

Fellowships

These schemes are aimed at established scholars in UK universities who are in mid-career, have already published works of intellectual distinction, and who are currently hampered in their efforts to accomplish a major piece of research by their heavy burden of teaching and administration. The awards are designed to allow the successful candidates to undertake or to complete an approved programme of sustained research, while relieved of their normal teaching and administrative commitments, which will not only be an important contribution to knowledge and understanding but also help to enhance the future career and career prospects of the award-holder. Research readerships are tenable for two years. Senior research fellowships are tenable for one year. These schemes are open to scholars in the humanities and social sciences. Application forms are available from the academy's research posts department; tel: 020 7969 5265; fax: 020 7969 5414; or can be downloaded from the website as a rich text format form. Deadline: July 31.

NATURAL ENVIRONMENT RESEARCH COUNCIL

www.nerc.ac.uk

Antarctic Funding

Initiative -

announcement of

opportunity

AFI offers opportunities to undertake projects embracing a wide range of terrestrial, marine and atmospheric science, to address problems of global and regional relevance. Field work may be conducted either at the year-round Halley or Rothera stations; at the summer field stations of Signy Island and Fossil Bluff, or in the deep field, supported by aircraft and light surface transport. Field support will be restricted largely to the summer period (December March), but there will be limited opportunities for winter-based projects. This third round, offering a total of Pounds 1.8M, is designed to support research from the 2002/2003 field season. AFI is an open competition, but in cases of equal scientific merit, collaborative projects with BAS will be preferred. The Collaborative Gearing Scheme, initiated in the second phase, will be continued. The aim is to facilitate additional collaborative opportunities between BAS and HEI's in situations where no additional funding for salaries, grants or direct science costs is required, but where access to field activities already included in the BAS Core programme can enhance significantly the scientific outcome. Further details are available at www.nerc-bas.ac.uk/public/afi/ or from Dr David Peel, AFI Coordinator (tel: 01223 221478; fax: 01223 2219; email: d.peel@bas.ac.uk). Proposals should be submitted on the outline bid form which can be downloaded from the AFI website. Deadline: August 3. Enquiries to: Dr David Peel, details as above.

EUROPEAN

MOLECULAR BIOLOGY ORGANISATION

www.embo.org

Long Term Fellowships

The aim of the EMBO is to promote molecular biology studies in Europe. It's actions are funded by contributions from 23 member states which together form the European Molecular Biology Conference. Long term fellowships are awarded for prolonged visits (4 to 24 months) and are particularly intended for advanced training through research. The fellowships provide the travel costs and a stipend for the fellow and his/her family.

Applicants must hold a doctorate degree or equivalent before the start of the fellowship but not necessarily when applying. As a minimum, applicants must have at least one first author publication in press or published in an international peer reviewed journal at the time of application. The long term fellowships are aimed to support those who have recently completed their Ph.D. Normally this means young scientists with up to approximately, four years post-doctoral experience. In the past, this has translated to an age limit of 35 years. This limitation is now removed but the emphasis on the support of those early in their scientific career remains. All fellowships must be started within one calendar year of the relevant closing date for applications. Next deadline:

August 15. Application forms are downloadable from the website or contact: EMBO Secretariat,

Postfach 1022.40, D-69012 Heidelberg, Germany; tel: ++49 6221 383031; fax: ++49 6221 384879; email: embo@embl-heidelberg.de. Each week this section lists funds available for academic researchers. Items for inclusion should be

submitted to: research@thes.co.uk Compiled by Sarah Knowles. A more comprehensive version of this service is available to subscribers on our research microsite at www.thesis.co.uk