RSTMH Small Grants 2020- ideas we would like to see
We’re now a short time into the submissions window for ideas for our small grants programme for 2020.
This programme aims to support those early in their careers, based anywhere in the world, to undertake their own clinical or scientific research or fieldwork, as stand-alone projects or distinct elements within a larger project. They are ideally for those who have not received funding in their own name before.
The grant awards are up to £5,000 each and can be used for research in tropical medicine or global health in the lab, at translation, in implementation or at policy level.
The hope is that these grants are able to inspire early career researchers with their first taste of delivering research of their own – testing out an idea or concept they think will make a difference to this field of work. We have made the process for applying and reporting straightforward, so these grants are a relatively easy introduction to research.
We have been running the small grants programme in this way for a few years and we recognise they have become more and more popular. We have been unable to keep up with demand in past years, meaning we didn’t have enough funds available to award grants for all ideas that were deemed high standard. Having said that, last year we were able to secure support from DHSC and ITI and support 3 times as many grants than in past years. We want all high-quality applications to be funded and are doing our utmost to secure additional funds for these.
Watch this space for announcements around support this year, so we can fund even more grants in 2020.
What would we like to see coming through as ideas?
There are many areas of research we would like to see as ideas for small grants, and a few of them are listed below. We have also been asking partners what they would like to see and they have also added their ideas to this list.
This does not mean that research into other areas of tropical medicine and global health are less valid or likely to be selected, the grants are open for ideas in research across the field of work and from those in any sector, discipline and approach.
The areas we hope to see some ideas for research into are:
- Coronavirus and other emerging diseases – any studies that can help with preparedness, improved PPE for health workers, treatment, monitoring and evaluation, lessons learned
- Our strategic priority areas
- Snakebite, in particular around the role of traditional healers, education and community
- Mycetoma, other skin NTDs and other deep mycoses
- Co-morbidities and health challenges for the elderly
- Non-communicable diseases
- Chikungunya: mapping of countries that have been affected since 2005; burden estimation
- Cutaneous leishmaniasis: estimation of prevalence; delineation of geographical distribution, access to treatment and outcomes; and exploration of psychological impact of disease; particularly in Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya
- Equity, gender and human rights issues in NTD control and elimination
- Guinea-worm disease: vector control, use of innovative technologies to map stagnant water bodies in endemic areas, use of innovative technologies to apply temephos to stagnant water bodies in endemic areas, transmission dynamics in animals, particularly in dogs in Angola, Chad, Ethiopia, Mali
- Health system strengthening contributions of NTD programmes
- Human African trypanosomiasis: socio-anthropological aspects, how to ensure good collaboration with local communities and their representatives, how to integrate programmes in resource limited settings
- Reduction in costs of NTD surveys through the use of geo-statistical approaches
- Visceral leishmaniasis: identifying the driver for cases in Nepal and Bangladesh
Want to apply? Take a look at the guidelines and complete your application here by 27 April 2020.