Connection Program
Goal
Context
Objectives
Funding Opportunities
Priority Areas
Goal
The goal of the Connection program is to realize the potential of social sciences and humanities research for intellectual, cultural, social and economic influence, benefit and impact on and beyond the campus by supporting specific activities and tools that facilitate the flow and exchange of research knowledge.
Context
Knowledge mobilization in the social sciences and humanities facilitates the multidirectional flow of research knowledge across academia and society as a whole, in order to inform Canadian and international research, debate, decisions and actions. Those who stand to benefit from publicly funded research results in the humanities and social sciences—diverse groups of researchers, policy-makers, business leaders, community groups, educators and the media—should, ideally, have the knowledge they need, when they need it, in useful forms.
The Connection program aims to support knowledge mobilization activities—such as networking, disseminating, exchanging and co-creating research-based knowledge—as an important element of publicly engaged scholarship, and as a means of strengthening research agendas. SSHRC also recognizes that rapidly evolving information and communications technologies provide new opportunities to engage a variety of audiences with an interest and/or involvement in social sciences and humanities scholarship.
Objectives
The objectives of the Connection program are to:
- facilitate the multidirectional flow of social sciences and humanities knowledge among researchers and between the campus and the larger community, in order to enhance intellectual, cultural, social and economic influence, benefit, and impact;
- increase the accessibility and use of social sciences and humanities research knowledge among academic and non-academic audiences;
- support the building of reciprocal relationships among social sciences and humanities researchers, and between social sciences and humanities researchers and those in a position to either co-create or use research knowledge;
- support the development of social sciences and humanities research networks and tools designed to facilitate scholarly work; and
- make such networks and tools more accessible to non-academic audiences.
Funding Opportunities
The funding opportunities in this program are intended to complement, rather than replace, activities funded through the Talent and Insight programs. Proposals for research on the “topic” or “science” of knowledge mobilization or related areas, such as knowledge translation or knowledge and technology transfer, are welcome at SSHRC, and should be directed to the Insight program.
The following funding opportunities are available under the Connection program:
For Individuals or Teams
SSHRC provides funding for research carried out by individual scholars and teams of researchers.
- Connection Events and Outreach Grants
(to be announced by 2012 or earlier)
- Connection Tools Grants
(to be announced by 2012 or earlier)
- SSHRC will continue to hold competitions for Aid to Research Workshops and Conferences in Canada and Public Outreach in 2011 as part of SSHRC’s transition to its renewed program architecture. These existing funding opportunities will be modified and transitioned into the Connection program in 2012.
For Formal Partnerships
SSHRC provides funding for research and knowledge mobilization initiatives involving a formal partnered approach. Formal partnerships
can be among postsecondary institutions, or between the academic and public, private and/or not-for-profit sectors. They can be disciplinary or interdisciplinary, and can include both Canadian and international partners.
- Partnership Development Grants
provide support to foster new research and/or related activities with new or existing partners; and to design and test new partnership approaches for research and/or related activities.
These grants are valued at $75,000 to $200,000 over one to three years.
The total budget for new awards in this competition is approximately $15 million disbursed over three years. This budget may be adjusted subject to the volume and quality of applications received in the competition. These, along with the size of the budgets requested and awarded, will determine the number of new grants awarded in spring 2012.
- Partnership Grants
provide support to new or existing formal partnerships for initiatives that advance research and/or knowledge mobilization in the social sciences and humanities.
These grants are valued at $500,000 to $2.5 million over four to seven years. Requests outside this range will also be considered.
The total budget for new awards in this competition is approximately $30 million disbursed over seven years. This budget may be adjusted subject to the volume and quality of applications received in the competition. These, along with the size of the budgets requested and awarded, will determine the number of Letter of Intent applicants invited in spring 2012 to prepare formal applications, and the number of new Partnership Grants awarded in spring 2013.
Infrastructure Funding
Insight Grant and Partnership Grant applicants requiring infrastructure funding to support their research activities may be eligible for support from the Canada Foundation for Innovation’s (CFI) Leaders Opportunity Fund. SSHRC and the CFI will jointly review proposals submitted to the Leaders Opportunity Fund.
For more information, please visit the CFI website, or contact the CFI liaison officer at your institution.
Priority Areas
Most SSHRC funding is awarded through competitions accessible to all disciplines, areas, themes and approaches eligible for SSHRC funding. However, applicants should note that priority will be given to open-access and open-source approaches to knowledge mobilization. In certain cases, priorities have been identified for either additional support, a more tailored adjudication, or both.
Please read the following descriptions carefully to determine whether one of SSHRC’s priority areas is relevant to your proposal: