SSHRC Exchange

Description

SSHRC Exchange Grants support knowledge mobilization activities such as workshop/seminar organization, conference travel, publications, digital resource creation, exhibitions, and other knowledge dissemination initiatives.

Eligibility

You are eligible to apply if you meet the following criteria:

• Hold a full-time faculty appointment (tenured or tenure-track) or postdoctoral affiliation at the U of L and the appointment does not end within 12 months from the date of application.
  • If you hold a limited-term appointment or are a postdoctoral fellow, you must maintain your affiliation for the grant period. Please note that while postdoctoral researchers may apply, their supervisor must be listed as the co-applicant and funds will be held in their supervisor’s name.
• Conduct research in a discipline supported by SSHRC.
• Do not hold an active Explore or Exchange grant as of the application date and have held no more than 2 SSHRC Exchange or Explore grants in the last 3 fiscal years.

Eligible Expenses

Expenses must be eligible under the Tri-Agency Guide on Financial Administration and can include the following:

• Knowledge Mobilization activities (e.g. conferences, workshops, events, forums, etc.) and products (e.g. digital resources, databases, adaptation of texts, policy briefs, etc.)
• Stipends to students and postdoctoral fellows
• Salaries of technical and professional staff
• Speaker travel and accommodations
• Materials, supplies and services, including technical services
• Rental of equipment and space (e.g. for workshops, meetings)
• Open access publication costs, to maximum of $750. Note that this is restricted to those who have not already received open access funding through the Library’s CURIE Fund for the same project.
• If requesting funding for non-traditional publications, please note that the overall application must address all of the evaluation criteria listed below.

Expenses that are NOT eligible include the following:

• Research activities (e.g. field work, clinical trials, data gathering, etc.)
• Traditional scholarly publication costs (book, journal article, etc.), except open access publication costs
• Teaching Release
• Collection or preparation of material primarily intended for personal classroom needs or teaching purposes
• Purchase of equipment
• Technology transfer costs (e.g. patent filing)
• Alcoholic beverages
• Projects requesting retroactive funding prior to the application deadline or requesting funding for teaching development will not be considered.

Funds cannot be used as matching on any external SSHRC Grant because they are awarded through the SSHRC Institutional Grant. SSHRC funds cannot be used as a required contribution to any SSHRC program.

Conditions on Internal Funding

Regardless of the project, applicants can only hold one of the following grants at any given time: University of Lethbridge Research Fund, SSHRC Explore, or a SSHRC Exchange. 

Value and Duration

Applicants may apply to one of two streams:

• Stream 1. Costs associated with disseminating research or artistic work at a scholarly conference or other dissemination venue (maximum award is $2,000).
• Stream 2. Costs associated with organizing or creating a knowledge mobilization activity or output. (maximum award is $7,000) Eligible activities include:
  • Organizing workshops and seminars
  • Preparing or creating knowledge mobilization “products” such as digital resources (websites, databases); book preparation costs (subventions, translation fees, indexing fees, copyright and image fees); open access fees; policy briefs and reports; media events; summer schools/institutes; speaker series; artistic exhibits, performances or festivals; and podcasts.

*Note: Applications submitted to Stream 1 or Stream 2 will be reviewed together. If the total ask exceeds the available budget, the applications will be ranked as a group. There will not be separate rankings for the different streams.

How to Apply

A complete application consists of an application form and attachments appended to the Internal Grant Application Form found under the Research Services tab in the BRIDGE system. The attachment must be prepared in accordance with the instructions found here.

Complete applications require the following components:

1. Application Form - SSHRC Exchange Form
2. Abstract and Key Words (max 1 page): Provide a succinct project description so that a non-expert in the field of study can understand the proposed activities, scope and objectives of the project. Also, outline the potential significance of the knowledge mobilization to the University, discipline, researcher, students, and/or society at large. Key words: At the end of your Abstract, provide a list of up to 10 key words which describe your project.
3. Dissemination Proposal (max 5 pages): Organize the detailed narrative under the following headlines:
   • Background: Define the problem clearly and concisely, providing any background information essential to understanding the importance of the work.
   • Target Audiences, Activities and Proposed Outcomes: Identify the target audience(s), explain why it is important to connect with the target audience(s), the activities to be undertaken and the proposed outcomes. For collaborative applications with multiple applicants, indicate each applicant’s unique role in ensuring the proposed outcomes. Describe how the anticipated outcomes will contribute to each applicant’s knowledge mobilization.
   • Significance and Dissemination: Include statements of the potential significance, future use, relevance or application of the outcomes. Explain how the proposed project is situated within the PI’s larger research plan.
4. References (max 2 pages): Include references, where appropriate, to work cited or related work.
5. Publications and Prior Research (max 5 pages): Provide an Academic CV (any format) including only recent (last six years) and/or relevant publications, and prior research activity.
6. Student Training (max 1 page): Describe plans for involving student research assistants. If the project does not include student training, please explain why. 

Terms and Conditions

1. Use of Funds: Expenditures may be made only for those cost elements identified in the application or as limited in the Request for New Fund Form. Special conditions may include human subject research or animal welfare approval, expenditure limitations, etc. Minor transfers of funds from one budget category to another are permitted. Expenditures included in the application budget may be eligible if incurred between the application deadline and the Notice of Decision of the SSHRC Exchange Competition if prior approval is granted by ORIS. Major transfers or the use of funds for a previously unspecified expense or a new budget item requires approval by ORIS.
2. Term: The term of an award is twelve (12) months or less, in accordance with the applicant's request. No extensions will be granted. Projects must commence within six months of the notice of award.
3. Reports: A final report on the work funded by the SSHRC Exchange must be submitted within six months of the termination date. Subsequent applications can be considered only after receipt of satisfactory final reports and/or progress reports for previous or existing grants.
4. Acknowledgement: Support from the SSHRC Exchange Grant must be acknowledged in any resulting publications or presentations.
5. Equipment & Library Acquisitions: Equipment or library materials acquired with grant funds remain as property of the UofL in accordance with university policy.
6. Research assistants: Research assistant employed with grant funds are not regular University employees and are not covered by the provisions of the collective agreement with support staff.

Application Evaluation

1. Assessment of the Application (pass/fail) – applications are reviewed to determine if they are (a) complete, and (b) are a match for this program.
2. Challenge – The aim and importance of the endeavor (40%):

• originality, significance and expected contribution to the preservation of, access to and/or mobilization of research knowledge;
• quality of the proposed project and the appropriateness of the approach;
• quality and significance of the research being mobilized;
• quality of training and mentoring to be provided to students, emerging scholars and other highly qualified personnel, and opportunities for them to contribute; and
• potential for the project results to have influence and impact within and/or beyond the social sciences and humanities research community.

3. Feasibility – The plan to achieve excellence (30%):

• appropriateness of the proposed timeline and probability that the objectives will be met;
• appropriateness of the requested budget and justification of the proposed costs;

4. Capability – The expertise to succeed (30%).

• quality, quantity and significance of past experience and published and/or creative outputs of the applicant relative to their roles in the event or activity and the stage of their career;
• evidence of past knowledge mobilization activities (e.g., films, performances, commissioned reports, knowledge syntheses, experience in collaboration / other interactions with stakeholders, contributions to public debate and the media) and of impacts on professional practice, social services and policies, etc.; and
• quality and quantity of past contributions to the training and mentoring of students, postdoctoral researchers and other highly qualified personnel.