Seed funding for innovation in Global Food Security research

Applications are invited for small seed-funding grants to encourage multi-disciplinary collaboration across the university in the area of Global Food Security. (Internal, University of Cambridge).

Seed funding for innovation in Global Food Security research

Applications are invited for small seed-funding grants to encourage multi-disciplinary collaboration across the university in the area of Global Food Security. The aim of the grants is begin the conversations and lay down the foundations for ambitious projects in the future, tackling some of the major challenges such as:

• Reducing food waste and loss
• Increasing crop and livestock productivity
• Producing more habitat for biodiversity as well as humanity
• Understanding political and structural influences on access to food
• Dealing with climate change uncertainty
• Promoting sustainable and healthy diets

The University’s ability to meet these inter-disciplinary challenges will require readiness to respond to relevant funding opportunities. Such readiness needs to be nurtured in the form of developing the ideas/concepts, establishing new partnerships between departments and research groups, and undertaking any necessary preliminary research and scoping. The grants aim to help with this.

Up to four grants in the region of £5000 are available for activities such as (but not limited to):

• summer student placements/internships
• fieldwork/data collection
• meetings
• travel costs associated with establishing a wider project team.

Eligibility and criteria

Applications must be jointly submitted by investigators in at least two different University Departments. If partners in a particular area are sought, please feel free to email the GFSI Coordinator for relevant ideas and contacts. Applicants may be university teaching staff or early career researchers (graduate students and postdocs), but if the latter the names of principal investigators need to be included in the application as project mentors/supervisors. Applicants are encouraged to put forward bold proposals demonstrating novelty yet relevance to the core food security challenges.

Application process and timetable

Application forms are available from the Coordinator of the GFSI - please email coordinator@globalfood.cam.ac.uk. The form is concise and easy to complete, requesting basic information on:

• Project title
• Names, job titles, affiliations and contact details of investigators
• Details of project mentor(s) if appropriate (see above)
• Clear project aims
• A description of the work to be funded
• Budget.

Applications are to be submitted to the Coordinator of the GFSI  by the deadline of 12 June 2015. They will be assessed by a panel of three members of the Initiative and outcomes will be made known by 22 June 2015. A project report will be expected by end November 2015, and project participants should be ready to liaise with the Initiative thereafter in considering how the work can be taken forward. This may include being asked to present the project at a future food security seminar or workshop.