From January 2009 the AHRC (Arts and Humanities Research Council) will introduce a new scheme to support interdisciplinary collaborations between groups of researchers around a specific topic. This collaboration could take the form of a series of workshops, seminars, forums or other events, but the key is to exchange ideas and develop a research agenda which may lead to future, larger scale bids.

The Research Networking scheme will replace Research Networks and Workshops and it is similar in focus, but there are several key differences:

• Supports proposals of up to £30,000 FEC for up to two years
• An additional £15,000 can be sought solely to cover international networking activity (e.g. costs of travel and subsistence for international participants, events in other countries)
• Unlike the old Research Networks and Workshops scheme, international collaborations can be formed between any countries, not just those targeted by the AHRC’s international strategy
• Interdisciplinarity is a key part of the Research Networking scheme and proposals which focus on only one discipline are unlikely to be considered a priority
• You can use this scheme to develop EU consortia and collaborative networks which may then support a future bid to the Framework Programme

The scheme will run from 5th January with an open deadline, so you can apply (via Je-S) at any time. The Research Office intends to promote the scheme across faculties through targeted brainstorming events in the new year. In the meantime, please let us know if you have any questions or ideas.