Deadline: 19 May 2022.

The World Academy of Sciences have opened the Call for Applications for their Project Grants for Gender Equity and Climate Action, funded by the Elsevier Foundation.

This is a new programme aiming to support women involved in concrete science-based projects, with the aim of sustainably improving, through the promotion of women's well-being, the livelihood of their entire community. The grants will enable application and/or delivery of science knowledge, promoting tangible change related to climate action.

I. Eligibility

• Submission of an action-based project with a direct impact on the impact on the community of scientifically and technologically lagging country, with a primary focus on climate action (SDG 13) and secondary focus on gender equality (SDG 5).
• The principal applicant and project leader must be a woman scientist, holding a PhD, living and working in a scientifically and technologically lagging country, employed at a university or research institute. The programme does not require a direct involvement of the university or of the research institute in the project. Proof of current employment will be asked to shortlisted candidates.
• There is no age limitation for this programme.
• The principal applicant will work in group with up to four (4) additional secondary applicants, also women, who are either scientists or technical experts in a field relevant to the project, from any developing country. The technical expertise would complement the work of the scientist(s) and thus enhance the potential of the team. The team must not include more than five (5) members in total.
• Projects in any area with enough relevance to climate change and gender equality are eligible.
• Interdisciplinary approaches are welcome.

II. What does the programme fund?

• The programme will award three grants to Collaborative Teams composed of 3–5 members. These members will be either scientists or technical experts, or a mixture of both.
• The team leaders from the three awarded groups will be invited to an initial training workshop. In case travel restrictions due to the global COVID-19 pandemic allow it, the training will be held face to face in Europe: the programme will cover the costs for flights, accommodation and food. This cost does not need to be included in your application’s project budget.
• The project grant is designed to be flexible and modular, with a total value in the USD 24,000-25,000 range. It will allow for a variety of expenses within a three-year timescale, as long as these are clearly justified by the work tasks.

III. Examples Of Areas/Projects Relevant To Climate Action

The topics listed below are only examples and the list provided is not an exhaustive one.

• Irrigation methods for better water conservation
• Employment of drought-tolerant crops
• Virtuous and sustainable agriculture
• Waste fermentation and biogas for cooking
• Photovoltaic installations and storage batteries
• Better crops for plant-based diets
• Post-harvest food conservation
• Improving processes based on carbon-footprint assessments
• Tree-planting projects with fast-growing species
• Sustainable soil management
• Addressing methane emissions from ruminant livestock
• Carbon stocks: crops for carbon capture
• Setting up and training for solar thermal units
• Restoration and protection of mangroves
• Afforestation and reforestation
• Assessment of land use and increasing protected areas
• Water purification using solar technologies
• Sustainable cities and smart transportation/traffic management
• Waste and plastic management
• Reduction of emission through internal carbon fees
• Carbon-offsetting community projects
• Planning for mitigation and disaster reduction
• Training for disposal of and extraction from e-waste
• Community climate literacy courses

IV. How To Apply?

• The application must be submitted through the online form
• A scientist may only submit one application at a time and for only one kind of grant (i.e. individual, research unit, IsDB-TWAS Research Grant or OWSD Early Career Women Scientists (ECWS) Fellowship) for consideration by TWAS.       
• When submitting the application via the online form the principal applicant needs to upload all required documentation as attachments to the form.
• Candidates who are selected for this programmeshould expect to be notified of the outcome of their application by the end of2022.

For more information, Please visit the grant’s webpage

For questions about this programme, please contact [email protected]