*Fill out the Expression of Interest Form in order to join the Belmont Forum’s Migration Hub where communication and workshop activities will be shared. 

This announcement is intended to inform interested individuals and groups of the upcoming research funding opportunity focused on integrated systems approaches to accurately characterize migration and mobility and its intersection with Global Change, both closely related and intersecting phenomena. This Announcement outlines the key areas of interest for this Call, the timeline, and presents an opportunity for all to participate in a series of Workshops and Networking activities to prepare strong proposals and Consortia to submit.

This Research Call is being offered by the Belmont Forum, a group of funding agencies from around the world that support transdisciplinary, globally-representative research groups and coproduction/participatory methods to address various Global Environmental Change topics. Topics are addressed through a “Collaborative Research Action” (CRA) and the Migration / Mobility & Global Change CRA is the next research call that will launch. This call is co-branded with Future Earth and managed by the National Research Foundation as the Thematic Programme Office. A partnership with the Global Development Network will offer early opportunities for networking and proposal strengthening before the submission deadline, with a chance for in-depth learning on the goals of the Call, how to meet the Call requirements, what will make Consortia successful, opportunities to identify collaborators and participate in existing Consortia. Awarded projects receive opportunities to participate in coordinated activities throughout the award lifecycle to enhance networks, stakeholder engagement, transdisciplinary, and dissemination of findings.

Theme and Key Areas:

Successful proposals should focus on illuminating the determinants of migration – why people move, do not move, from and to where and when, and on what time scale, in relation to Global Change processes like environmental and climate change, demographic changes,  consumption patterns, energy use, and land-use. Exploration of dependencies, linkages, and/or impacts between Global Change, migration and mobility,  human constructs, social science, and humanities approaches, and other studies are encouraged. Within this theme, there are three areas to consider including (1) data and methodology, (2) policy, and (3) human-centric approaches that integrate human perspectives and needs in all steps and aspects of a project and beyond.

Migration and mobility inherently involve people and their wellbeing. Early studies have demonstrated a differential impact of gender, geography, and age, on migration and mobility factors which differs in many situations and reduces the ability to predict movement, address negative impacts, and develop sound, well-considered policies. It has the potential to allow people to adapt to global change, and yet global change is expected to create further barriers to mobility among the most vulnerable, leaving people further at risk for displacement or trapped in untenable situations. In this call, we solicit projects that put human well-being at the center of the analysis of migration and mobility determinants, under conditions of Global Change.

Approaches for investigating migration and mobility span environmental and climate science, development studies, political science, international relations, behavioral research, and other social sciences. Bringing together experts from these areas to research the complex system of Global Change and migration and mobility is critical to developing integrated systems approaches that improve evidence production, public and policy debate, and decision-making.

Area 1 involves developing, sharing, and combining innovative efforts for synthesizing, integrating, and supplementing data and models to better understand complex relationships among the many factors influencing migration/mobility and its relationship to Global Change.

Area 2 focuses on studying and creating integrative governance and legal and policy frameworks around migration/mobility and Global Change.

Area 3 focuses on human-centric approaches to studying and integrating data and frameworks on vulnerable communities under a variety of contexts, with perspectives inclusive of the Global South and understudied groups such as women, the elderly, persons with disabilities, Indigenous people, and Small Island Developing States (SIDS).

Requirements:

This call will likely be able to provide support for the participation of researchers and stakeholders from around the world. Proposals must be submitted as a group, or “Research Consortium” to be deemed eligible for this call. Research Consortiums require three or more Consortium participants, representing at least three different countries, each requesting support from at least three participating funding organizations (which will be finalized in the coming months). Proposals submitted by a Research Consortia should include a strong and deliberate linkage between the societal and environmental aspects within Global Change to ensure that they meet the Belmont Challenge for international transdisciplinary research by providing knowledge for understanding, mitigating, and adapting to global environmental change. Research Consortia must be truly transdisciplinary, thus including researchers from: a) social sciences/humanities/economics, b) natural sciences/physical sciences/technology, and c) societal partners (i.e. citizens, industry, civil society organizations). Projects should use participatory, co-design, co-development and co-implementation approaches. Successful proposals must address the Call Theme and deliver on at least two of the three Areas, with cross-cutting linkages across all three areas encouraged.

Prepare a strong proposal by attending the Migration / Mobility & Global Change Workshop and Networking opportunities. All you have to do is fill out the Expression of Interest!

Workshop and Networking Activities Beginning Before the Call for Proposal Opens:

The Belmont Forum recognizes that building a Research Consortia that meets all requirements, the Belmont Forum Challenge, and the goals of this research Call will take time to develop. In partnership with the Global Development network, we are offering a series of Migration / Mobility & Global Change Workshops and Networking events tailored towards this call to prepare the community to meet this challenge. This opportunity is open to all individuals looking to find Consortium members, as well as groups that already have established Consortiums. Workshops and networking opportunities will be offered between February and April, 2022, and will include thematic sessions, methodology sessions, as well as sessions on how to create and manage diverse research consortia equitably and successfully. A networking platform will allow interested researchers to identify and know potential partners, or to join existing consortia.

Filling out the Expression of Interest and participating in these activities is not mandatory to submit a full proposal. Those that participate in these activities are under no obligation to submit a full proposal.

Expression of Interest:

To find out more information about the workshops and networking events, fill out this quick Expression of Interest form. Preferential access to the workshops and networking opportunities will be given to those that fill you the Expression of Interest form by February 1, 2022.

Timeline:

Week of Dec 13, 2021

• Pre-Announcement published.
• Expression of Interest form opens on the CRA Belmont Forum website.

April 11, 2022

• Annexes from each participating funding organization outlining the type of support being offered will be published on the Belmont Forum website. Additional Annexes can be added on a rolling basis.
• The full Call Text will be published.
• The Call for Proposals will open on BFgo, the proposal submission portal.
• The Workshop activities will begin.

April – June, 2022

• Workshop and Networking Activities will continue through this time

• A Workshop activity will take place at the Sustainability Research and Innovation Congress June 20-24, 2022

July 29, 2022

• Full Call for Proposals will close.

Months of Aug – Sept, 2022

• Panel of Experts will review proposals and recommended projects will be chosen.

Months of approximately Oct, 2022 – Mar, 2023

• Awarded projects will receive funding during this time.