17 September 2019, 23:00 GMT+1 obligatory Intention to Submit via online survey
15 October 2019, 16:00 BST joint Full application via Je-S
16 October 2019, 17:00 AEST Australian budget through RGMS
UKRI-NHMRC Built Environment and Prevention Research Scheme
~ £4M funding from MRC / Australian National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) / ESRC for approx. 5 collaborative research projects of 3 years’ duration, commencing on 15 May 2020 (£2M for UK components and $4M AUD for Australian research collaborators) focused on improving population health through the primary prevention of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) associated with the built environment. This joint funding scheme with NHMRC will extend MRC and ESRC’s research portfolio on prevention, which includes the UK Prevention Research Partnership (UKPRP).
This scheme is being run under the umbrella of the Fund for International Collaboration (FIC).
The objectives of the funding call are to:
- invest in competitive and innovative collaborative research projects between researchers from Australia and the UK that will enable the pursuit of shared research interests on preventing NCDs associated with the built environment. The investment will strengthen collaborations between academic researchers in institutions across both countries.
- to deliver multidisciplinary approaches to preventing NCDs that address the influences of the built environment on NCDs.
There is a need both in the UK and Australia to improve our understanding of the factors that work to shape and support healthy, liveable and resilient built environments, and to develop approaches for improving the built environment to prevent NCDs. The areas listed below are given as examples of aspects of the built environment in which multidisciplinary research proposals are welcomed. Applicants should note that proposals need not be restricted to the examples cited as applications across the breadth the built environment are encouraged. Examples include:
- urban planning and regeneration
- city design, including increasing conditions that promote health such as ‘active travel’ and access to green space
- housing
- transportation systems
- air quality, both indoor and outdoor, and noise
- the indoor environment
- neighbourhood diversity, including social regeneration and social cohesion, and access to health services
- the relationship between the built environment, extreme weather events, and their impact on health.
It is also important that we learn how to best use the instruments available to us, including policies, programs, design and technology, to promote and maintain health and wellbeing.
Developing multidisciplinary approaches to improving the built environment and preventing NCDs requires links between a range of academic researchers (for example public health, biomedicine, engineering, social science, atmospheric chemistry and climate science) and end users such as policy makers, practitioners, health professionals, the public and industry (where appropriate to the research question). Diverse teams, with a mix of skills that are appropriate to the research questions are strongly encouraged under this funding scheme. Both the UK and Australia recognise that drawing on the expertise from different disciplines and users, including across both countries, brings opportunity to deliver new knowledge on how best to address the influences of the built environment on NCDs. Research proposals should include mechanisms for translating their outputs into policy and practice, and for building long-term relationships between academics and users.
Research proposals must sit within, or across, the remits of the participating funders, with interdisciplinarity encouraged. Proposals must seek to generate research outcomes relevant to the prevention of NCDs in the UK and Australia.
UK PIs/Australian CIs may only submit one application to this scheme as PI/CI but may be involved in more applications if listed as a UK co-investigator/Australian associate investigator.
Please let Gwen Averley know gwen.averley@ncl.ac.uk if you are thinking of applying to this call in case we can help with linking to relevant interdisciplinary research groups.