Call for Applications: Digital Policy Hub Academic Year Cohort (Canada)

The Hub, in partnership with universities, governments and the private sector, offers a highly collaborative space for undergraduate and graduate students, post-doctoral fellows and visiting fellows.

Hub fellows will spend periods ranging from four to 12 months in residence at the state-of-the-art CIGI Campus and participating remotely, linking to CIGI’s existing network of more than 100 CIGI fellows from around the world. Participants join common seminars and other activities that cut across research, analysis and policy, while advancing their career development.

Research Focus Areas and Approaches

• Transformative technologies are rapidly reshaping the world. Many are widely known — although often not well understood. In parallel, the digitalization of almost everything has created a more interdependent, data-driven world.
• While broad technological change is nothing new, many current developments are moving at an accelerated pace, on a global scale and with little or no coherent governance framework nationally or internationally. There is, therefore, a pressing need for transdisciplinary understanding on governance issues across the range of technologies and digitalization.
• The Hub’s research focuses address this need, centring on digital ethics and rights frameworks that assist in identifying and mitigating the gaps between rapid technological disruption and diffusion, and the lack of governance frameworks at the national and international levels.
• Core research areas include:
  • data, economy and society;
  • artificial intelligence;
  • outer space;
  • digitalization, security and democracy; and
  • the environment and natural resources.
• The Hub is founded on transdisciplinary approaches (i.e., research that cuts across disciplines and engages fellows with policy makers and industry professionals) that seek to increase understanding of the socio-economic and technological impacts of digitalization, to improve the quality and relevance of research. Such an approach also broadens the capacity of participants to conduct work across disciplines.

Funding Information

• Funding for Digital Policy Hub fellowships is as follows:
  • Undergraduate: $11,500 per academic year (8 months).
  • Master’s: $12,500 per academic year (8 months).
  • Doctoral: $52,000 annually/pro-rated.
  • Post-Doctoral: $60,000 annually/pro-rated.
  • Visiting fellows: At this time, visiting fellows must have full support from the organization or workplace they are affiliated with during their tenure at the Digital Policy Hub. CIGI provides on-site amenities such as shared office space and parking. CIGI does not provide funding for visiting fellows and there is no charge to participate.
• What amenities are offered?
  • For all fellows, shared office space with Wi-Fi access and parking is available at the CIGI Campus.
  • Please note: All participants in the Hub are required to spend some part of their fellowship at the CIGI Campus, to include the end-of-term research conferences. However, the mix of hybrid and remote work is negotiable to facilitate geographic diversity in the cohort.
• Are travel expenses covered by CIGI?
  • CIGI will cover core expenses for one return trip between the home institution and the CIGI Campus. Generally, this will be for the research conference at the end of the term, unless a fellow is relocating to Waterloo for the length of the fellowship and wishes to travel earlier. They will consider other options on a case-by-case basis.
• What housing/accommodations are offered?
  • All fellows are expected to arrange their own accommodations should they wish to live in Waterloo during their fellowship. There is no additional funding for local accommodation or living expenses beyond the fellowship remuneration levels.

Value of Participation for Hub Fellows

• Hub fellows will be part of a diverse group of emerging, innovative thinkers from the social, natural and applied sciences, and will have opportunities to develop their own research, analytical and policy skills.
• In partnership with universities, governments and the private sector, the Hub offers a collaborative, policy-relevant experience that does not exist in academic programs.
• The Hub’s interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary environment will help build broader capacity for a new generation of emerging researchers, including an alumni network.
• Hub fellows will benefit from exposure to CIGI’s global research and policy community (with more than 100 CIGI experts from around the world).

Value of Participation for Supervisors

• Supervisors will help enrich the Hub fellows’ professional development and research skills through participation in this interdisciplinary Hub.
• Supervisors will be invited to participate (unfunded) in Digital Policy Hub events hosted by CIGI, such as the end-of-term research conference, either in person or online.
• University supervisors and administrators are encouraged to view the Hub experience as complementary to existing academic and research programs.
• Hub fellows will return to their home institutions with new capacities and perspectives with which to pursue their degrees and academic work.
• Academic supervisors will have opportunities to build connections between their home institution and CIGI’s global network of fellows, as well as to connect to decision makers in the private and public sectors associated with the Hub.

Eligibility Criteria

• Students: Canadian, permanent resident, and international undergraduate, master’s and doctoral students based at a Canadian academic institution and with existing eligibility to work in Canada are welcome to apply.
• Graduates: Recent graduates with a doctorate are encouraged to apply as post-doctoral fellows (must have graduated within the past four years at a Canadian academic institution to be eligible for funding). Please note that post-doc applicants will be asked to provide documentation verifying post-doc status at their academic institution to qualify for funding.
• Students and post-doctoral applicants must have a supervisor at their academic institution who is willing to supervise them on this project and administer the funds through the home institution (they must be eligible to hold tri-council funding, as funding from the Digital Policy Hub’s external funding partner qualifies as a research grant).
• Government and private sector professionals: Government practitioners and private sector professionals are also encouraged to apply and will serve as unfunded visiting fellows.
• All academic disciplines will be considered.
• International applicants and Canadians based at an academic institution abroad please note: At this time, the funding only allows for applicants based at a Canadian academic institution and with existing eligibility to work in Canada.

For more information, visit CIGI.