Deadline: 2-Jan-22
The Social Science Research Council (SSRC) is seeking applicants for the inaugural cohort of its Just Tech Fellowship to support and mobilize diverse and cross-sector cohorts of researchers and practitioners to imagine and create more just, equitable, and representative technological futures.
Fellows will identify and challenge injustices emerging from new technologies, and identify solutions that advance social, political, and economic rights.
2021 Fellowship Theme: Crisis and Reparation
From Katrina to the Covid-19 pandemic, crises exacerbate social inequalities and have disproportionate effects on historically marginalized populations. Differences in available infrastructure, long-term support, and economic security are made starker amid crises such as disasters, pandemics, violence, and social unrest. And while disasters and other crises are often imagined as singular events, their effects can endure for generations.
This call invites applicants to explore questions like the following:
- How do new technologies mitigate or reinforce long-term inequities during and after crises? How does technology diminish or enhance community resilience in times of crisis?
- How can different ways of creating and communicating knowledge—from art to data science to community-based research—help them better understand the relationship between crisis and technology? How can these explorations enable them to imagine alternative futures in the aftermath of a crisis?
- How can the lived experiences of marginalized peoples—such as ethnic and religious minorities, gender nonconforming and disabled communities, and those living in poverty—inform the design of just technologies, especially in the face of crisis?
Award Information
Fellows receive two-year awards of $100,000 per year, robust supplementary funding packages to subsidize additional expenses, and seed funding to work on collaborative projects with other Just Tech Fellows. The fellowship will provide the space and time necessary for deep reflection, as well as an engaged community and opportunities to facilitate ambitious co-creation.
Benefits
The Just Tech Fellowship supports the whole person
- Health
- Dependent Care
- Project Funds
- Equipments & Materials
- Community
What other support should Just Tech Fellows expect?
- Along with competitive compensation and a robust supplementary funding package, Just Tech Fellows also become part of a vibrant community working to solve critical social problems at the intersection of technological development and social justice. Fellows will have the opportunity to meet regularly and have fruitful exchanges to share their work and learn together.
- At the beginning of the fellowship, Just Tech will conduct a virtual onboarding workshop that will include details on how fellows will work with the Just Tech program, how Just Tech supports collaboration, and Just Tech’s method of disseminating the fellows’ work. The workshop will also include introductions of all the fellows and their previous and current work plans and projects.
Eligibility Criteria
- Education: Applicants must hold either a college-level credential, such as a bachelor’s degree in the arts, fine arts, sciences, or a demonstrated track record of success in their respective fields.
- Residence: Fellows are expected to reside primarily in the United States during the term of their fellowship. Anyone residing in the US is welcome to apply regardless of citizenship or immigration status. The SSRC will not sponsor fellows for visas.
Selection Criteria
Fellows will be selected on the basis of a rigorous review process. They will be looking for the following criteria in reviewing all applications:
- Critical Research Question: Applicants must state clearly what question(s) they seek to answer with a Just Tech Fellowship.
- Clarity of Purpose: Applicants should communicate how they would use their time as a fellow to systematically uncover evidence, build understanding, and shape public interest solutions to advance the goals of Just Tech.
- Commitment to Program Themes: Applicants should demonstrate a commitment to research that engages purposefully with questions of technology, inequity, and social justice, especially as they relate to the cohort theme of “Crisis and Reparation.”
- Public Impact: Applicants should communicate how their proposed work will contribute to equity and social justice. Applicants should also demonstrate a track record of successful, public-facing work that engages broad audiences through different forms of media.
- Collaboration: Applicants should demonstrate a track record of successful collaboration, as well as a willingness to share, learn, and create with others.
For more information, visit https://www.ssrc.org/programs/just-tech/just-tech-fellowship/