Smogathon aims to fight air pollution through technology. Start-ups will compete for $25 thousand in cash and $75 thousand as a contract to implement their innovation in Krakow, Poland. Smogathon welcomes participation from any group worldwide that works as a registered company, start-up, foundation, or research group with a legal entity. The best submissions will compete in regional semi-final competitions in Berkeley, London, Warsaw, Bangalore, and Hong Kong. The finalists will compete in Krakow during the Global Clean Air Summit in November 2017. The deadline for applications is 15 August 2017. Link
research
UK Met Office — Research on Tropical Waves in Southeast Asia
The Weather and Climate Science for Service Partnership for Southeast Asia, supported by the UK’s Newton Fund, aims to provide knowledge and capacity to address high-impact weather and climate events in Southeast Asia. The program aims to advance the understanding of tropical meteorology for both research scientists and forecasters in the UK and partner institutes in Southeast Asia. The current call for proposals will focus on the role of tropical waves on the weather of Southeast Asia. The grant is expected to be up to £300 thousand for two years. The deadline for UK scientists to submit expressions of interest is 16 August 2017. Link
Indo-U.S. Science and Technology Forum — Water Advanced Research and Innovation Fellowships
The Water Advanced Research and Innovation Fellowships fund Indian participants to gain exposure and access to research facilities in water resources at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and the Daugherty Water for Food Institute. Fellowships of three to twelve months are for Indian scientists holding a PhD in water science and engineering. Internships of three to six months are for individuals currently engaged in their PhD studies in water sciences in India. The application deadline is 31 August 2017. Link
UK Department for International Development — Postdoctoral African Fellowship in Hydro-Economics
REACH is a 7-year programme funded by the UK’s Department for International Development, and led by the University of Oxford, to promote research in water science, policy, and practice. REACH will fund a postdoctoral African to develop a hydro-economic tool or model that can be used by Ethiopia’s Ministry of Water, Irrigation and Electricity to address water economics in the important Awash Basin. Applicants must be nationals of a Sub-Sahara African country and should hold a PhD at the time of application.The available funding is up to £60 thousand through March 2019. The deadline for applications is 11 September 2017. Link
Partnership for Economic Policy — Policy Analysis on Growth and Employment
With funding from the governments of UK and Canada, PEP has launched a new call for proposals addressing “Policy Analysis on Growth and Employment” (PAGE II, Round 2) in developing countries. The issues to be examined span a broad spectrum of development policy, including themes related to labor productivity in agriculture, entrepreneurship, and others. PAGE targets teams of researchers in developing countries — with preference for applicants from low-income, fragile, and/or conflict states. Applying teams will generally need university-level training in economics or equivalent experience. PAGE positively encourages teams with a female researcher as project leader. The deadline for applications (English, French, Spanish) is 13 September 2017. Link
British Council — Researcher Links Workshops, UK/Russia
Researcher Links Workshops bring together early-career researchers from the UK and a partner country to make international connections that can improve the quality of their research. There will be nine awards in total under this call – five awards for workshops in Russia, and four for workshops in the UK. All workshops must be held in 2018. Each proposal must have one Principal Applicant from the UK and one Principal Applicant from Russia. The submission deadline is 19 September 2017. Link
British Council — UK-China PhD Placements
The UK-China Joint Research and Innovation Partnership Fund is a sponsorship opportunity for UK and Chinese PhD students and their supervisors to spend three to twelve months (for PhD students) and up to three months (for supervisors) at higher education institutions in China or the UK. The focus is on research areas that include food and water security, environmental technologies, and energy — among others. Applicants must find a host institution in their target country, and placements must start between January and December 2018. The application process closes on 20 September 2017. Link
Research Councils UK — Interdisciplinary Research Hubs to Address Intractable Challenges
Research Councils UK invites proposals from eligible UK research organisations to establish research hubs addressing currently intractable challenges faced by developing countries. Examples might include but are not restricted to achieving economic growth in an environmentally sustainable way while also ensuring social cohesion and adequate access to safe food, water, and services; development of resilient infrastructure and energy production in the context of climate change; achieving food security in ways that make agriculture, food production, and consumption more environmentally and economically sustainable; and urban development that fosters diversity whilst tackling air pollution and other environmental hazards. The intention to submit must be completed by 29 September 2017. Link
UK Economic and Social Research Council — Sustainable Tropical Agriculture in Colombia
The UK’s ESRC is partnering with other UK research councils and the International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT) to launch a a new UK-Colombia programme in sustainable tropical agriculture. The focus is on pulses and tropical forages. Proposals for the pump-priming phase of this call will be developed at a scoping workshop to be held at CIAT headquarters in Cali, Colombia (October-November 2017). Participation in the workshop is mandatory for leading an application. The deadline for expressions of interest to participate in the workshop is 06 September 2017. Link
Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund — Protecting Biodiversity in Madagascar and the Comoros
The CEPF invites applications for small (under US$20 thousand) and large grants in support of conserving biodiversity in Madagascar and the Comoros. Eligibility for funding extends to community groups and associations, NGOs, private enterprises, universities, research institutes, and other civil society organizations. CEPF posts the ecosystem profile, and a list of key biodiversity areas, in the announcement. The deadline for letters of inquiry (English, French, Malagasy) is 29 September 2017. Link