Cultivating Humanities Grants Fall 2019
Call for Proposals
We are delighted to announce a call for proposals for innovative faculty research projects in the humanities and affiliated social sciences as part of The Changing Human Experience, an initiative that emerged from the university’s Long-Range Planning process. The goal of the initiative is to ensure that the humanities flourish at Stanford and to engage research in the broader public conversation.
The Cultivating Humanities Grants will be awarded to faculty research projects, up to $50,000, that relate to four broad areas:
- changing bodies
- changing minds
- changing globe
- changing political communities
We seek deeply humanistic perspectives that place these developments in historical, cultural, and literary contexts, and intend to communicate and interpret the findings to broader audiences at Stanford and beyond.
Applications are due by 5 pm on Monday, December 16, 2019. Please fill out the online application and include the following:
- 2-3 page project proposal
- a detailed budget
- CV
These grants are open to Stanford Academic Council faculty (of any rank) and senior lecturers.
Information Sessions
The Cultivating Humanities Grants directors, Professors Anna Grzymala-Busse and Gavin Jones, will host two informational sessions to answers questions about this initiative and the application process. Please RSVP. Wine and cheese will be served.
- Tuesday, October 29, 4:30-5:30 pm, The Terrace Room, Margaret Jacks Hall (Building 460, 4th Floor)
- Thursday, November 21, 4:30-5:30 pm, The Terrace Room, Margaret Jacks Hall (Building 460, 4th Floor)
Questions
Who is eligible to apply?
- Stanford Academic Council faculty (of any rank) and senior lecturers
What is Stanford looking for? Applications that include the following priorities will be prioritized:
- demonstrate a clear problematic that ties to themes of significant changes in the human experience, whether in the events of the past, the conditions of the present, or the promises of the future
- relate to areas of contemporary public concern (please note that we are not seeking policy-oriented proposals)
- show the unique values and contributions of humanistic research
- can attain visibility and engage an audience beyond the academy, through popular publications or events
- build communities of scholars, whether at Stanford or beyond
How can I use the funding? Amounts will depend on the budgets of individual projects and may be used for:
- organizing symposia, workshops, conferences, or other collaborations
- bringing scholars and public intellectuals to Stanford
- faculty summer travel and salary support
- technological support: website development, archival collections, etc
- hiring research assistants
What will I gain from the Changing Human Experience Fellowship?
- new opportunities to pursue big, innovative projects that might otherwise seem out of reach
- new possibilities for outreach and influencing the public debate
- workshops to help you develop your project and publish in the public sphere
- opportunity to develop your ideas among a new community of scholars at Stanford that crosses disciplines, historical eras, and experiences
Overview of the Changing Human Experience
The Changing Human Experience (CHE), part of Stanford’s Long-Range Planning, seeks to advance innovative faculty research in the humanities and affiliated social sciences that is critical to the understanding of our rapidly changing human experience. Technology, religion, and medicine are transforming our bodies and our minds. The human impact on the planet is becoming ever more apparent as we face climate change. Globalization is creating webs of interdependence even as economic inequality grows, and democratic institutions and values that expanded in the twentieth century seem precarious in the twenty-first. Understanding the past and each other has never felt more urgent as we confront the risks and opportunities of the future.
CHE seeks to catalyze innovative research in the humanities through its Cultivating Humanities Grants. The goal is to ensure that humanities research at Stanford continues to flourish, by supporting new ways of thinking about and engaging the transformations that are upending our world, and to translate the exciting research to the broader public.
