The Arab Council for the Social Sciences Research Grant Program

The Arab Council for the Social Sciences (ACSS) is pleased to announce the sixth cycle of its Research Grants Program on the theme of “Environmentalism, Impoverishment and Social Justice Movements: Interdisciplinary Perspectives.” The ACSS Research Grants Program (RGP) is a funding opportunity that aims to support research across disciplinary boundaries and methodological approaches on key themes of concern to the Arab region.

This competition is funded by a grant provided to the ACSS by the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida). Grants will be available to individual researchers (up to USD 20,000) and teams of researchers (up to USD 50,000) whose research focuses primarily on Arab societies. Priority will be given to researchers residing in the Arab region. Grants are intended to support a maximum timeline of 18 months, starting in April 2019 and ending in October 2020.

Topics and Methods of the Grant:

[1] The interplay between environmental, political and economic factors in shaping and reshaping life conditions including situations of displacement, marginality and de-development.

[2] The distribution of resources (especially scarce resources such as water) that create new ecologies shaped by political as much as ‘natural’ factors.

[3] The relationships between development policies, environmental impacts and the well-being of communities.

[4] Issues concerning environmental justice: this refers to equity, or the distribution of environmental ills and benefits, with the recognition of the diversity of the experiences in affected communities, according to class, gender, age and other factors.

[5] The relationship between environmental degradation and violence.

[6] The spatial dimensions of new ecologies and territories, such as the production of refugee encampments, no fly zones, safe havens, nature reserves, protected sites, etc.

[7] Political processes which create and manage environmental policies and approaches to sustainability.

[8] Transborder and global aspects of environmental change, environmental hazards and socio-ecological movements.

[9] The human relationship with the non-human world.

[10] Connections between work, labor and the environment with particular interest in the gendered nature of these relationships.

[11] Perceptions of science, technology and nature and the ways in which these perceptions affect understandings of risk and trust.

[12] Ecojustice education and the development of pedagogies that serve to conserve and sustain cultural diversity and the biodiversity of ecosystems.

[13] Changing urban and rural environments, including changing forms of land tenure and property ownership.

[14] Tangible and intangible cultural heritage and its relationships with environmental sustainability and economic well-being.

[15] Representation of environment, poverty, and social justice movements in expressive culture, literature, art, music, and performance.

Eligibility Guidelines:

[1] Applicants must be citizens of an Arab country or nationals of an Arab country.

[2] Applicants must hold a PhD degree in a social science field. Individual researchers in the early stages of their professional post-PhD careers are especially encouraged to apply.

[3] Researchers with a master’s degree may only join research teams as co-investigators, but may not apply individually.

[4] This program is open to any social science field and allied fields.

Online Application:

In addition to uploading the project narrative and appendices described above, applicants will need to provide the following information using the online application form:

[1] Project Details (250 word).

[2] Project History (if relevant).

[3] Proposed Outputs of the Project.

[4] Project Budget Request Form.

[5] Personal and professional details on each researcher.

[6] The name and contact information for one academic referee who can attest to the significance and feasibility of the proposed project.