Small grants to promote growth of new connections between scholars, practitioners, educators, and/or communicators working to understand, spread the word about, and mitigate the impacts of climate change on human health.
Proposals accepted with a rolling deadline between September 1, 2021 and August 30, 2023
AT A GLANCE What is of interest?
Linking basic/early biomedical science to climate-focused thinking Sustainability in health care systems, health care delivery outside institutions, and biomedical research Health impacts and health systems impacts of extreme weather events and other crises Outreach, communication, and education around climate and human health CLIMATE CHANGE AND HUMAN HEALTH SEED GRANTS 3
The Burroughs Wellcome Fund aims to stimulate growth of new connections between scholars working in largely disconnected fields who might together change the course of climate change’s impact on human health. Over the next two years, we will dedicate $1M to supporting small, earlystage grants of $2,500 - $50,000 toward achieving this goal. We are particularly but not exclusively interested in activities that build connections between basic/early biomedical scientific approaches and ecological, environmental, geological, geographic, and planetary-scale thinking, as well as with population-focused fields including epidemiology and public health, demography, economics, and urban planning. Also of interest is work piloting new approaches or new interactions toward reducing the impact of health-centered activities, for example, developing more sustainable systems for health care, care delivery, and biomedical research systems. Another area of interest is preparation for the impacts of extreme weather and other crises that can drive large scale disruptions that will immediately impact human health and delivery of health care. Public outreach, climate communication, and education efforts focused on the intersection of climate and health are also appropriate for this call.
PROGRAM BACKGROUND Proposals will be accepted on a rolling basis from September 1, 2021 through August 30, 2023. Review will be conducted quarterly. After each quarterly review, we will support, decline, or send proposals back to applicants for revision, but may hold some proposals over for a future review. Recommended revisions may include suggestions that separate groups of applicants submitting similar proposals work together to develop a single proposal or that applicants consider becoming involved in efforts aligned with work funded in earlier quarters. BWF is a foundational supporter of the National Academy of Medicine’s Grand Challenge on Human Health and Climate Change. One element of the National Academy of Medicine’s Grand Challenge on Human Health and Climate Change will be development of an innovation competition, expected to launch in Spring 2022. The BWF opportunity described here may help groups lay the groundwork for entries into that competition.
For further information, please contact program officer Victoria McGovern.
