Deadline: 15-Sep-22
The American Society of Interior Designers (ASID) Foundation is pleased to announce the Transform Research Grants to provide essential funding to address critical gaps in industry knowledge, advance design understanding, and transform the practice of interior design for improving the human experience.
Topics of Interest
The ASID Foundation Research Committee has prioritized three (3) topics of interest (see below). These topics align with the objectives of the ASID Foundation, engage ASID members and the profession, and offer an opportunity for continued research on topics previously funded, yielding greater breadth, depth and longevity of the work.
- Adaptive Environments Designed For Change & Resiliency: We constantly make adjustments as we deal with erratic changes in our day-to-day lives. We saw these adjustments become increasingly critical as COVID-19 required rapid shifts personally and organizationally at both residential and commercial scales. Given that we rely on the built environment to support our activities and behaviors, and at times, require spaces to quickly transform according to these varying demands, how can we design physical environments that are adaptive, flexible and supportive of human resilience, as needed to meet the changing demands of the day? What design attributes and/or strategies are conducive to human resilience?
- Designing Humanizing Environments For Imperiled People: ‘Imperiled people’ includes those fleeing not only natural disasters like earthquakes, floods, wildfires, and drought, but also economic and political upheaval. Well-designed spaces, temporarily occupied by this population in the midst of natural, financial, or political crises, can support this population and ensure greater resiliency during times of tension, disruption, disorder and confusion. Given that design should be used to positively impact lives, how can design create more humane spaces for populations of imperiled peoples? What attributes of environments can propel more humane alternatives?
- Activating Diversity, Equity & Inclusion In Design Solutions: Interior design continues to play a critical role in impacting the human experience. The COVID-19 pandemic unearthed many discrepancies in society, including economic and social inequalities. Given that interior environments have the power to positively, or negatively, impact our quality of life, how can interior design and its positive impact be available, accessible, and achievable to the larger population? What needs to be considered when designing environments to be more equitable and inclusive to diverse occupants? How can organizations use interior design as a tool to increase engagement of diverse populations of employees, clients and customers for greater diversity, equity, and inclusion?
Researchers are asked to develop research questions rooted from one of these topics and propose a project that empirically investigates potential solutions, generates measurable results on the impact of design, and translates the findings into actionable design recommendations, guidelines, and/or tools that designers can apply in their design projects. The foundation invites you to submit your research proposal to the ASID Foundation and use transformative research to help ensure that all people benefit from the power of design.
Funding & Duration information
Up to $100,000 may be awarded annually between two types of research studies:
- GRANT A: Seed/Start-Up FundsUp to $30,000 to support the exploration or pilot phase of broader research initiatives; to be completed in nine months or less (not including dissemination).
- GRANT B: Research ProjectUp to $70,000 to investigate how design can transform lives; to be completed in 15 months or less (not including dissemination).
Funding Criteria
These grants are intended to provide essential funding to:
- Address critical gaps in industry knowledge
- Advance design understanding
- Transform the practice of interior design to improve the human experience.
Eligibility Criteria
- To expand knowledge about how interior design impacts the world around us, the ASID Foundation is seeking research projects that generate outcomes with practical applications for design practitioners and their clients. Proposed research should be directly relevant, easily translatable, and of keen interest to both practicing designers and their clients.
- Completed research projects are to be developed into an educational resource that will be shared with the design community and others, as applicable.
- The Foundation is not seeking proposals for theoretical research, historical research, or literature reviews.
- Submissions must be from a multi-disciplinary team, with at least one team member in the interior design discipline.
- Previously submitted, but not awarded, proposals may be edited or modified, as necessary, for resubmission and reconsideration for this year.
- Proposed research should be directly relevant, easily translatable, and of keen interest to both practicing designers and their clients.
For more information, visit ASID Foundation.
For more information, visit https://asidfoundation.secure-platform.com/a