Deadline: 15-Apr-2023
Does your research aim to promote and advance Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in South Asia? Especially, in the fields of ecological sustainability and social well-being? Then Knowledge2Action program is actively looking for projects based on academic research, converted into tools / processes that support awareness, advocacy and transformation of the UN SDGs, while aiming to convert research into action.
Your research can take the form of policy briefs, teaching material, seed-money to develop a social business model, proof of concept or prototype, workshops, popular media formats (websites, theatre, web-campaigns, comics, documentary films, etc.).
The project is funded by the swissuniversities Development and Cooperation Network (SUDAC) programme and includes pre-existing collaborations in ES&SW between renowned knowledge institutions in Switzerland and South Asia and covers (for now) the countries: India, Myanmar, Nepal and Sri Lanka.
Knowledge2Action aims at bridging the gap between scientific research and the potential users and implementers of the knowledge, namely: policymakers, activists, journalists, educators and community workers. They focus not only on conventional forms of knowledge dissemination, but also on dialogue, imparting particular skills and collective learning across professions.
Opportunities
- In recognition of these challenges, the objective on the research front is to include a variety of disciplines and knowledge partners from Switzerland and South-Asia. On the education front, the project will focus on disseminating ‘actionable’ knowledge (E.g.: recommendations, data-based results), tools and skills to communicate in a customized way to different stakeholders and SDG promoters.
- A range of activities are planned which would either correspond to the facilitation of research and education or maintain and nurture the cluster network.
Challenges
- The project aims to address the following four challenges on the interdisciplinary topics of environmental sustainability & social wellbeing (ES&SW).
- The lack of comprehensive interdisciplinary teaching curricula at the university level in Switzerland and in South Asia.
- The mediation requirement between scientific knowledge and people’s place-based perception and expertise.
- The requirement of very different forms of knowledge outputs for different Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) actors that can be communicated through a wide array of tools and skills.
- The need for the knowledge of the regulatory environment in the involved countries, and tactical skills to facilitate appropriate promotion of recommendations to decision makers.
Eligibility Criteria
- Researchers, including senior, early-career, postdoctoral and PhD researchers, from South Asian and Swiss research institutions and artists, NGOs, CBOs, etc., engaging with sustainability are invited to apply.
Please note that this call does not fund any conventional research, including data collection. Also, conventional academic dissemination (scientific publications and conferences) does not count as impact. The involvement of stakeholders and concerned communities is highly advisable.