Environment, Energy & Water
USAID: Counter Wildlife Trafficking in Vietnam
Despite concerted efforts to combat wildlife trafficking over the past two decades, Vietnam remains a global hub of the illegal wildlife trade and is both a major demand and supply side country. As Vietnam has grown into a middle-income country, trafficking of high-value wildlife products has increased. In the north, the Nhi Khe commune on the outskirts of Hanoi is home to key ivory trade markets, and pangolin scales, rhino horn, and big cat bone are sold for traditional medicinal purposes on Lang Ong Street in the heart of the capital’s old quarter. In the south, Hai Thuong Lan Ong Street in Ho Chi Minh City is another illegal wildlife trade center for various traditional medicine products. Across the country, online markets freely trade ivory and other collectibles.
To help Vietnam control and stop the current increasingly serious situation of wildlife trafficking, USAID will invest in a new activity to increase Vietnam leadership in countering wildlife trafficking through enhancing the commitment of Government of Vietnam (GVN) leaders at the national and provincial level and reducing demand and consumption of illegal wildlife products.
The Objectives of this activity are to:
- Engage and develop political and local champions to address CWT
- Strengthen law enforcement
- Reduce consumer demand
The objectives are intended to contribute to the following higher level outcomes: increased arrests and prosecutions for illegal wildlife trafficking and reduced consumer demand for illegal wildlife products. See the Theory of Change section and Collaborating, Learning & Adapting section for more information.
Award Size: Up to $15M
Deadline: February 18, 2021 (09:00 am, Hanoi Time)
Education & Engagement
USAID: Women’s Economic and Social Empowerment Activity Egypt
The United States Agency for International Development’s (USAID) Mission in Egypt (USAID/Egypt) is seeking applications for a Cooperative Agreement from qualified entities to implement the Women’s Economic and Social Empowerment Activity. Eligibility for this award is not restricted.
The U.S. Government has made women’s economic inclusion and empowerment a global priority through the launch of the Women’s Global Development and Prosperity Initiative (WGDP). USAID/Egypt’s portfolio aligns with all three pillars of the WGDP Initiative: 1) Women prospering in the workforce; 2) Women Succeeding as Entrepreneurs; and 3) Women Enabled in the Economy. USAID/Egypt is working in partnership with the Egyptian people to promote women’s economic empowerment, support the efficiency of public institutions, and prevent violence against women. The proposed activity aligns with USAID/Egypt’s strategy to increase inclusive economic growth by removing barriers to women’s socio-economic participation with specific focus on economically marginalized and/or unbanked women.
The goal of this activity is to promote women’s access to economic opportunities in Egypt through three integrated and mutually reinforcing objectives:
- Improve the work environment for women in the private sector economy
- Expand women’s financial inclusion
- Reduce the socioeconomic impacts of violence against women
Award Size: Up to $39M
Deadline: January 27, 2021
DoS: DRL FY2020 Global Equality Fund Programs in East Asia
The U.S. Department of State Bureau of Democracy Human Rights and Labor announces an open competition for organizations interested in submitting applications for projects that provide lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and intersex (LGBTI) communities with the tools to empower local movements and communities, prevent, mitigate, and recover from violence, discrimination, stigma, and human rights abuses, promote full social inclusion, or address critical issues of justice in the East Asia and Pacific region, with a particular focus on Burma, Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, Mongolia, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and/or Vietnam.
Award Size: $750,000 up to $1M
Deadline: February 26, 2021
Other Opportunities
NSF: Future of Work at the Human-Technology Frontier Core Research
In 2016, the National Science Foundation (NSF) unveiled a set of “Big Ideas,” 10 bold, long-term research and process ideas that identify areas for future investment at the frontiers of science and engineering. The Big Ideas represent unique opportunities to position our Nation at the cutting edge of global science and engineering leadership by bringing together diverse disciplinary perspectives to support convergence research. As such, when responding to this solicitation, even though proposals must be submitted to the Directorate for Engineering (ENG) Office of Emerging Frontiers and Multidisciplinary Activities (ENG/EFMA),once received, the proposals will be managed by a cross-disciplinary team of NSF Program Directors.
The overarching vision of this program is to support multi-disciplinary research to sustain economic competitiveness, to promote worker well-being, lifelong and pervasive learning, and quality of life, and to illuminate the emerging social and economic context and drivers of innovations that are shaping the future of jobs and work. For the purposes of this solicitation, work is defined as mental or physical activity to achieve tangible benefit such as income, profit, or community welfare. A proposal for a research grant in this program must focus on advancing fundamental understanding of future work and work outcomes for workers and society.
The specific objectives of the Future of Work at the Human-Technology Frontier program are to
- facilitate multi-disciplinary or convergent research that employs the joint perspectives, methods, and knowledge of behavioral science, computer science, design, economics, engineering, learning sciences, research on adult learning and workforce training, and the social sciences
- support deeper understanding of the societal infrastructure that accompanies and leads to new work technologies and new approaches to work and jobs, and that prepares people for the future world of work
- encourage the development of a research community dedicated to designing intelligent technologies and work organization and modes inspired by their positive impact on individual workers, the work at hand, the way people learn and adapt to technological change, creative and inclusive workplaces (including remote locations, homes, classrooms, or virtual spaces), and benefits for social, economic, educational, and environmental systems at different scales
- promote deeper basic understanding of the interdependent human-technology partnership to advance societal needs by advancing design of intelligent work technologies that operate in harmony with human workers, including consideration of how adults learn the new skills needed to interact with these technologies in the workplace, and by enabling broad and diverse workforce participation, including improving accessibility for those challenged by physical or cognitive impairment
- understand, anticipate, and explore ways of mitigating potential risks including inequity arising from future work at the human-technology frontier.
Proposals to this program should describe multi-disciplinary or convergent research that addresses technological, human, and societal dimensions of future work. Technological innovations should be integrated with advances in behavioral science, computer science, economic science, engineering, learning sciences, research on adult learning and workforce training, and the social sciences. Proposals that address the impact of large-scale disruptions such as the Covid-19 pandemic on the future of jobs and work are also of interest.
Award Size: $150,000 up to $5M
Deadline: March 23, 2021
Scholarships & Fellowships
HFSP Research Grant Program: Young Investigators' Grants and Program Grants
HFSP Research Grants support innovative basic research into fundamental biological problems with emphasis placed on novel and interdisciplinary approaches that involve scientific exchanges across national and disciplinary boundaries.
Participation of scientists from disciplines outside the traditional life sciences such as biophysics, chemistry, computational biology, computer science, engineering, mathematics, nanoscience or physics is recommended because such collaborations have open up new approaches for understanding the complex structures and regulatory networks that characterize living organisms, their evolution and interactions.
Research grants are provided for teams of scientists from different countries who wish to combine their expertise in innovative approaches to questions that could not be answered by individual laboratories. Preliminary results are not required and applicants are expected to develop new lines of research through the research collaboration.
It is understood that such research inherently contains risks and HFSP expects that teams of applicants address the risks and outline mitigation strategies for their research in case of failure and how they intend to achieve their goals.
Two types of Grant are available: Research Grants – Early Career and Research Grants – Program.
- Research Grants - Early Career*
All team members are expected to direct a research group (however small) and must have a doctoral degree (PhD, MD or equivalent). They must be in a position to initiate and direct their own independent lines of research. The HFSP award is not intended to create scientific independence, this is a decision of the research institute prior to the application.
- Research Grants - Program
Awarded to teams of independent researchers at any stage of their careers. The research team is expected to develop new lines of research through the collaboration. Applications including independent investigators early in their careers are encouraged.
Award Size: $250,000 up to $450,000
Deadline: Applications must be started by March 18, 2021
NIH: JSPS Research Fellowships in Japan (Extramural)
The Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) conducts fellowship programs for foreign (non-Japanese) researchers to promote international cooperation in and mutual understanding through scientific research in Japan. The program provides opportunities for U.S. citizen and permanent resident researchers to conduct cooperative research under Japanese host researchers in Japan.
All fields of the humanities, social sciences and natural sciences are included under this program. NIH initially reviews applications for scientific merit. NIH will forward applications of sufficient scientific merit to JSPS for additional review and funding consideration. JSPS will directly notify applicants of their awards.
JSPS conducts short-term (one to 12 months) and long-term (12 to 24 months) fellowships for postdoctoral students. These fellowships were established to assist promising and highly-qualified young researchers wishing to conduct research in Japan. The program aims to provide opportunities for such researchers, under the guidance of their Japanese hosts, to conduct cooperative research with leading research groups in universities and other Japanese institutions, permitting them to advance their own research while stimulating Japanese academic circles, particularly young Japanese researchers, through close collaboration in scientific activities. The program also intends the collaboration to serve to advance scientific research in the counterpart countries.
Award Size: $1935 up to $3501, plus research support allowance
Deadline: March 31, 2021
