Kuwait Program accepting proposals for one-year grants

Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government (HKS) has announced the 14th funding cycle for the Kuwait Program Research Fund. With support from the Kuwait Foundation for the Advancement of Sciences, an HKS faculty committee will consider applications for one-year grants (up to $30,000) and larger grants for more extensive proposals to support advanced research by Harvard University faculty members on issues of critical importance to Kuwait and the Gulf. Grants can be applied toward research assistance, travel, summer salary, and course buyout.

Priority will be given to the following subjects: technology transfer; water resources and management; oil and petrochemicals; small country security; governance and transparency issues; government subsidies policy; vocational training models; human resources development; applied research, education, and training related to the environment and pollution; public health policy including disease treatment (especially diabetes) and prevention; and financial growth and foreign investment. Please note that applications in other areas will also be considered.

In addition, the program is seeking more extensive and ambitious proposals on the topics of small country security, and climate change and its impact on the Gulf. The Kennedy School is prepared to provide greater funding over a longer period of time for research in these two areas.

Proposals will be evaluated based on the direct involvement of Harvard faculty; the relevance and transferability of the research to Kuwait and the region; and the quality of the work plan, which should include an outreach component. Collaborative research with Kuwaiti academics and educational institutions is strongly encouraged.

Please submit inquiries and research proposals (not exceeding five pages), budget, other sources of funding, and the curriculum vitae for senior researchers to Director, Middle East Initiative, HKS, 79 JFK St., Cambridge, MA 02138. The deadline for the receipt of grant applications is April 15. Decisions will be announced by May 15. Call (617) 495-5963 for more information.