Global Initiatives Grant

We will ask you to tell us about yourself.

Your abstract is a very important component of your application.  In language that an interested layperson could understand, you need to convey what’s at the heart of your project. Your abstract should convey the “why,” “what,” and “where” of your project while giving the reader a sense of the “how”—that is, the methods you and your collaborators will use to address the problem you’ve posed. Your abstract will be the shortest part of your proposal, but it will also be the hardest to write. You and your collaborators will need to have a very clear idea of your plans to do a good job. You probably should write it last.  [Limit: 200 words]

You will be asked to submit a detailed budget with your online application. The total should be at or near $80,000.

It is important to include a detailed breakdown, showing how you estimated expenses in each category. Please explain in detail why you need what you are asking us for. We will not consider items that aren’t fully justified for funding. Please note: the Wenner-Gren Foundation does not cover institutional overhead for any of its programs.

We will ask you to answer six project description questions. To make the best possible case for your work, it’s a good idea to use all the space provided. 

Question 1: What do you hope to accomplish through this project?  How will your project enhance the ability of anthropologists to have a greater impact on the wider world?  How will it expand anthropology’s footprint by providing a new platform for public communication, while building the skills anthropologists need to reach non-academic audiences? (Limit: 1000 words) 

We are looking to support ambitious projects, as opposed to more modest efforts.  You may have particular issues you wish to highlight and specific audiences you hope to reach.  If so, you should be aiming high and thinking broadly.  More narrowly framed community education projects may be better suited for one of Wenner-Gren’s other funding programs, such as the Engaged Research Grants or the Conference and Workshop Grants.  

Question 2: Which public audiences are you targeting and how will you reach them? What obstacles to the growth of public anthropology exist in your country or region with these audiences? What specific challenges is your project addressing and how? (Limit: 1000 words) 

In answering this question, you’ll want to place your project in the context of other similar endeavors.  Have others launched initiatives like yours?  What lessons have you learned from these previous attempts?  You may have in mind an entirely novel strategy: a new approach to social media, for instance, or a platform directed at a non-academic audience that hasn’t been exposed to anthropological ideas.  Why hasn’t anyone undertaken this kind of work before?  Does anthropology play a prominent role in public conversations in the context where you are working?  If not, why not, and how will your project address these constraints?  

Question 3: Introduce your team and describe what each member will bring to the project. What collaborations will be involved in helping you reach your goals? (Limit: 500 words) 

Think carefully about the different skillsets you’ll need to succeed.  For instance, will you work with professional journalists, policy makers, filmmakers, podcasters, or social media influencers?  Colleagues with a strong track record of public communication?  Marketing and social media consultants? Tech experts who can help you maintain the back end of a platform?  The leadership of professional associations? Activists, university administrators, and non-profit staff?  Describe your team and the broader networks you’ll bring into play. Please be specific. 

Question 4: Describe your methodology. What steps will you and your collaborators take to achieve your goals? Please describe in detail the activities supported by this grant and provide a timeline for the project. What are the specific outcomes you envision and how will you measure success? Who will provide oversight and accountability? What mechanisms will you and your collaborators use to respond to problems and opportunities that arise in the course of this work? (Limit: 1000 words) 

Here, you’ll want to clearly and explicitly detail the steps you will take to reach your goals.  What steps have you and your collaborators already taken? What remains to be done? If your work requires the cooperation of universities, government agencies, the media, or local communities, what commitments do you have in place? Come up with a feasible plan and timeline to achieve specific outcomes with clearly defined procedures and measures. Demonstrate that you can complete your planned activities in the allotted time and with the available funds. 

Question 5: Is this initiative designed as a targeted short-term high-impact intervention responding to emerging crises and opportunities? If so, explain why. Or is this effort to create lasting infrastructure capable of sustaining public engagement well beyond the grant period? In that case, how will this project secure ongoing financial, technical, and administrative support?  (Limit: 500 words) 

Consider carefully if this is a short-term project or a long-term one. If the former, what justifies such a large investment for a narrow period? If the latter, by the end of the grant, you should be in a position to sustain your project financially, technically, and administratively.  How? Explore a range of strategies, from grants to partnerships to individual subscriptions to donations. Be creative. You’ll need to develop a business model, and it’s necessary to plan ahead.   

Question 6: Through this award, the Foundation aims to support projects that extend and deepen its longstanding investments in public-serving anthropology. In alignment with the mission to amplify anthropological insights in service of a more just and sustainable world, how will your project communicate trusted, compelling, and relevant anthropological knowledge to broad public audiences? (Limit: 500 words) 

Here is a place to describe how plans, goals, and dreams relate to the Foundation’s previous investments in public communication of anthropological ideas and stories.  How will your project contribute to the building of a more just and sustainable world?  How is this project not just anthropology in public spaces but anthropology for public audiences? 

Demonstrate that you have the expertise and wherewithal to implement your project. For example, if you are proposing podcasts, provide a sample episode. If you are proposing an exhibit, provide mockups of panels. These samples do not need to be completed or fully polished. But, they should be convincing evidence of your technical ability to translate your project idea into successful products and outcomes. 

You will have a chance to upload charts, maps, or graphs that you refer to in your response to the project description questions. Please use this option sparingly. Only include figures that are essential for communicating your plans and goals.

You should tailor your bibliography specifically for this proposal. Focus on the project’s objectives and and the broader conversations and debates that have inspired you and your collaborators.

You’ll have a chance to upload your bibliography on our online system. Please use a format compatible with Microsoft Word.