The World Bank’s Public-Private Infrastructure Advisory Facility (PPIAF) welcomes submissions on topics pertaining to private-sector participation in infrastructure, public-private partnerships, and sub-national finance for energy, water, and transportation. PPIAF is looking for knowledge products that provide lessons learned or best practices which can be applied across countries and across regions. Proposals are strongly encouraged to include co-financing. Proposals with a focus on gender or climate change are also strongly encouraged. The deadline for submissions is 10 February 2017. Link
energy
Buckminster Fuller Institute — Buckminster Fuller Challenge 2017
The Challenge is an annual prize of US$100 thousand to invite ideas to radically advance human well-being and ecosystem health. Entries in prior years include several in energy, water, agriculture, natural disasters, etc., with relevance in developing countries. The application deadline is 31 March 2017. Link
Sustainia100 — Sustainable Solutions, 2017 Edition
Sustainia100 is an annual guide to 100 innovative sustainable solutions from around the world in sectors that include energy, resources, and food and agriculture — among others. Sustainia100 invites innovative solutions that present readily available projects, initiatives, and technologies at the forefront of sustainable transformation. The finalists receive publicity online, at the awards ceremony, and in a published guide. (The deadline for submissions is not available.) Link
World Bank — WeMENA Supporting Women Social Entrepreneurs
WeMENA announces a challenge to help women advance solutions across eight cities in the Middle East and North Africa to build resilience to climate change. The cities are Alexandria, Amman, Beirut, Byblos, Cairo, Casablanca, Ramallah, and Tunis. The challenge categories include agriculture and food security; sustainable energy and the environment; water and sanitation; and several others. Participants in the challenge will receive business training, mentoring, and the chance to compete for a share of US$150 thousand in cash awards. The competition is open to women participating as individuals, as teams, or on behalf of a legal entity. The deadline for submissions is 17 January 2017. Link
World Academy of Sciences — Sustainability Case Studies
In partnership with the Elsevier Foundation, TWAS calls for case studies which present issues and challenges for sustainable development through real-life situations. The contest is open to current TWAS and OWSD PhD Fellowship recipients. The categories are green and sustainable chemistry; energy; agriculture and food security; water and sanitation; science education and the workforce; and climate change and disaster and risk reduction. The winner in each category will be awarded US$1 thousand. The deadline for submissions is 01 February 2017. Link
National Research Council of Thailand — Research Collaboration with China on Renewable Energy
The National Research Council of Thailand is partnering with the National Natural Science Foundation of China for research on renewable energy. Grants will support short exchange visits between Thailand and China on general or specific subjects related to renewable energy for a maximum of 30 days per year. Funding will be available up to a maximum of three years. Each application must designate two Principal Investigators, one in Thailand and one in China. The deadline for proposals is 17 February 2017. Link
Climate Strategies Accelerator — Breakthroughs to End the Age of Oil
The Climate Strategies Accelerator (CSA) aims to identify and support leaders with big ideas to address the complex problem of climate change. The 2017 theme is “end the age of oil.” CSA selects prototype projects and program leaders in progressive stages, beginning with a Breakthrough Lab of intensive networking and proposal development. At the end of the Breakthrough Lab, the CSA may choose to invest in one or more candidates, who would then become program leaders, receiving US$1-2 million per year for a three-year grant period to pursue their ideas. The CSA welcomes applications worldwide. The application deadline to participate in the the Breakthrough Lab is 31 January 2017. Link
MIT Center for Collective Intelligence — Climate CoLab 2017
The MIT Climate CoLab organizes contests to solicit the world’s best ideas to prevent and adapt to climate change. Some contests pose social and political questions, while others focus on issues in science and technology. Each year, the contest winners are invited to a conference at MIT’s campus in the USA, where a pool of prize funding is shared among the best ideas. Current contests include one on managing and reducing carbon contributions, with submission deadline on 20 January 2017. Another contest focuses on anticipating climate hazards, with deadline on 10 February 2017. Link
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency — Grants to U.S. Universities for Research on Global Sustainability 2017
The EPA’s 14th annual P3 Awards (People, Prosperity, and the Planet) will fund research projects in water and wastewater, energy, built environment, materials and chemicals, and reduced food waste. Grants are up to US$15 thousand for one year (Phase I). Winners in Phase I will be eligible to apply for larger grants to follow. The competition is open to U.S. institutions of higher education to support teams of undergraduate and/or graduate students. The application deadline is 03 February 2017. Link
Central European University — Visiting Fellowships 2017-2018
Central European University (CEU) announces two Visiting Fellowship Programs in academic year 2017-18. The Faculty Development Fellowship is available to applicants from selected academic institutions in Kyrgyzstan, Palestine, and Myanmar. The Research Excellence Fellowship is offered to academics employed in higher education institutions and/or academic research institutions in any country of the “Global South.” The subjects for fellows include environmental studies and energy studies — among many others. Eligible applicants should hold a PhD or equivalent, and should be nationals of eligible developing countries. Fellowships cover travel costs, accommodation, and a monthly stipend. The deadline for applications is 15 February 2017. Link