CATIE launches competitive research fund to boost Inclusive Green Development

• This is an internal fund to promote the development of research led by researchers at the Center.

May 2, 2022. Investment in scientific research is fundamental to achieving economic and social progress, which many countries recognize through substantial government investment in science; however, financial constraints often impose severe restrictions on the ability of governments and institutions to fund research; this situation is especially relevant for international institutions such as CATIE (Tropical Agricultural Research and Higher Education Center), which relies on various sources of funding. In order to address these challenges and develop the research and innovation needed to address global challenges such as climate change and COVID-19, CATIE created its Competitive Research Fund for Inclusive Green Development to support its scientific community.

The objective of this fund is to promote the development of research at CATIE, which contributes to position the institution, not only in the scientific field, but also in international cooperation, generating knowledge and identifying strategic areas of work in order to meet the strategic objectives of the institution.

Leida Mercado, director of CATIE's Division of Research for Inclusive Green Development (DIDVI, its Spanish acronym), explained that CATIE researchers attached to the DIDVI can apply for this fund, as well as teams made up of researchers from the Center and external institutions. In addition, applications must be endorsed by the head of the research unit to which the researcher is linked.

The fund will have an annual allocation of USD 100,000, which could be increased to USD 125,000, depending on the relevance of the proposed projects.

Mercado explained that the fund will be used to finance three projects up to a maximum of USD 30,000 and for a maximum of two years. At the same time, USD 10,000 will be allocated to support the research of three CATIE graduate students working on the winning research projects. Finally, the fund will allocate resources to defray the costs of the review by external experts.

How to apply and important dates

To be selected, the proposal must meet eight criteria: fall within CATIE's own lines of work; meet criteria of scientific rigor; explicitly incorporate aspects of inclusion and gender equality; produce at least one article publishable in an indexed journal; incorporate more than one discipline or line of work of CATIE and interactions beyond the research groups; focus on addressing key social challenges; capacity of the proposed research team; and co-funding or other collaborative contributions.

CATIE researchers interested in applying can send their proposal to fondo_investigacion@catie.ac.cr from May 2 until June 6, 2022. Research personnel from other institutions should contact CATIE researchers to join the team proposing the project.