ACSS Grants for Arab Scholars and Professionals (Up to 4,000 USD)

The Arab Council for the Social Sciences (ACSS) launched in 2017 the Small Grants Program (SGP) on the themes of “Youth” and “Urban Spatial Inequalities.” The ACSS Small Grants Program is a funding opportunity that aims to support scholars and professionals in the Arab region in undertaking five kinds of activities: conference presentations, internships, pilot studies, dissemination events, and organizing workshops. The Small Grants Program is a competitive grant, and thus the ACSS is particularly interested in innovative, cutting-edge proposals that question existing paradigms, or contribute to establishing and advancing new paradigms and move them forward.

Themes of Grant

The Arab Council is particularly interested in proposals that work at the intersection of both themes of the program, which are:

• Youth: This topic encompasses topics related to youth (defined roughly as those between the ages of 14 and 25) in the Arab world, and issues related to this age group (health, education, family, employment, civic engagement, etc.).
• Urban Spatial Inequalities: This topic focuses on systems, processes, and policies that increase or mitigate unequal access to housing, land, property and services in urban settings.

Amount of Grant

This competition is funded by grants provided to ACSS by the Ford Foundation and the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida). Small grants of $4,000 on average will be available to individual Arab researchers and activists residing in the Arab region, and whose work focuses on Arab societies.

Program Activities

The aim of the program is to provide small amounts of funding in a timely manner. The program funds five kinds of activities:

[1] Travel grants (conferences/workshops)

The ACSS accepts applications to fund travel to present a paper at academic conferences organized inside and outside the Arab region, namely disciplinary conferences (e.g. the Middle East Studies Association, the American Sociological Association, or the European Educational Research Association, to name only a few) or conferences that are not disciplinary but focus on the Arab region or issues related to the Arab region. Please note that the Arab Council will not fund attendance without presenting at a conference. Travel grant applications to attend training workshops in special methodologies, skills, and approaches are welcomed. Applications to attend workshops that are designed to explore the intersection of theory and practice are particularly encouraged.

[2] Internship support

Internships provide opportunities to gain meaningful hands-on experience or to immerse oneself in an intensive research environment. The ACSS will welcome applications for supplemental funding for those who have already secured an internship at an NGO/research organization/university within the Arab region. The Council welcomes applications for internships outside the applicant’s country of residence. Funding should mainly be used to cover costs of travel and accommodation. Other expenses may also be eligible.

[3] Organizing workshops

Workshops bring together participants to engage on a particular theme, to explore new topics, exchange ideas, influence policy, or to plan future activities. The selection committee is particularly interested in proposals that introduce or explore innovative methods and approaches in research and activism. The ACSS will only fund workshops held and organized in the Arab Region.

[4] Pilot studies

The Small Grants Program will provide seed funding to conduct pilot studies (no longer than 6 months) that will lead to larger projects or collaboration. A pilot study is a small-scale preliminary study conducted in order to evaluate the feasibility, time, cost, and effect size in an attempt to predict an appropriate sample size and improve upon the study design prior to performance of a full-scale research project.  The ACSS will only fund pilot studies in the Arab region.

(Please note: For funding of larger, longer-term projects, please consider applying to our Research Grants Program, if your proposal fits within the theme of the RGP.). The ACSS will only fund pilot studies in the Arab Region.)

[5] Dissemination events

Dissemination events are ones in which findings of a completed research are presented. These are not conferences at which a paper or research are presented. Dissemination events are targeted at a wide audience ranging from policymakers, teachers, industry workers, schools, colleges, universities, students, parents and more. Members of the public are also invited to attend the events. The ACSS will only fund dissemination events held and organized in the Arab region.

Eligibility Guidelines

[1] Nationality/Residence

• Applicants must be citizens of an Arab League member state or nationals of an Arab country (defined as long-term residents, even if they do not hold citizenship as in the case of refugees or stateless residents).
• Applicants must reside in the Arab region.  This program does not fund applicants who reside, work, or study outside the region. 
• Priority will be given to scholars and professionals who are marginalized, at risk or dispossessed.

[2] Educational Degree

• Applicants must hold at least a Master’s degree in a core social science or a field allied to the themes of the Program. The core social science fields are anthropology, demography, economics, education, political science, psychology and sociology. Allied disciplines include architecture, cultural studies, development studies, gender studies, geography, law, and urban planning/studies. 

[3] Age

• Preference will be given to applicants under the age of 40. 

Please note that: 

ACSS grantees (principal and co-investigators) who have benefited previously from another ACSS grant are only eligible if their grants were closed one year prior to submitting their application for the Small Grants Program.

Grant Conditions

Awarded individuals are expected to abide by the following project requirements:

• Submit the final narrative and financial report within 30 days of the end of the grant term (Financial reports should include the original receipts for all project expenses).
• Produce project-related content for the ACSS website (such as project descriptions and profiles of researchers).

 The ACSS Secretariat encourages prospective applicants to get in touch with any questions or queries concerning proposal preparation, the selection process or conditions of the grant. Kindly read the list of Frequently Asked Questions carefully before contacting the ACSS with queries.