Call for Applications: Digital Policy Hub – 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 months to two years in residence at the state-of-the-art CIGI Campus and remotely, linking to CIGI’s existing network of more than 100 CIGI fellows from around the world. Participants will join common seminars and other activities that bring together innovative perspectives on research, provide an interface between research and policy, and advance career development.

Research Focus Areas and Approaches

• Transformative technologies are rapidly reshaping the world. Many are widely known — although often not well understood. For example, new, hyper-connected social media platforms such as TikTok, mRNA vaccines, electric vehicles, blockchain, quantum computing and artificial intelligence large language models. 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, centering 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
  • 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 socioeconomic 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 and Amenities

• Funding for Digital Policy Hub fellowships is as follows:
  • Undergraduate: $22.29–$25.52/hour (depending on the candidate’s current year of study).
  • Master’s: $42,000 annually/pro-rated.
  • Ph.D.: $52,000 annually/pro-rated.
  • Post-Doctoral: $60,000 annually/pro-rated.
  • Interchange (visiting) fellows: At this time, interchange/visiting fellows must have full financial support from the organization or workplace they are affiliated with during their tenure at the Digital Policy Hub. CIGI provides onsite amenities such as office space, parking, and a laptop, if needed.
• CIGI will cover core expenses for a return trip between the home institution and the CIGI Campus.

Duration of Program

The Hub will operate and host fellowships year-round. While the start date and length of fellowship can be negotiated, the general length of each fellowship is as follows:

• Undergraduate: 4 months (Fall or Spring semester).
• Master’s: 4 months (Fall or Spring semester).
• Ph.D.: 4 months (Fall or Spring semester), 8 months (academic year) or 12 months.
• Post-Doctoral: 4 months (Fall or Spring semester), 8 months (academic year) or 12 months.
• Interchange fellows: 4 months (Fall or Spring semester), 8 months (academic year) or 12 months.
• Extensions will be rare and considered on a case-by-case basis.

Value of Hub 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 have the opportunity to develop their own research, analytical and policy skills.
• The focus is on transformative and emerging technologies and issues including data, economy and society; artificial intelligence; outer space; digitalization, security and democracy; and the environment and natural resources.
• In partnership with universities, governments and the private sector, the Hub offers a collaborative, policy-relevant experience that does not exist in academic programs.

Value of Hub Participation for Academic Supervisors

• Supervisors will help enrich the fellow’s professional development and research skills through participation in this interdisciplinary Hub.
• Hub fellows are fully funded while still available to use up to 50 percent of their time to pursue research under your supervision.
• University administrators are encouraged to view the Hub experience as complementary to existing academic and research programs. As such, time spent in the Hub could be considered as a pause in university degree or post-doc programs.

Eligibility Criteria

• Canadian, permanent resident and international undergraduate and graduate students based at a Canadian academic institution who are legally authorized to work in Canada can apply. Recent graduates with a doctorate are encouraged to apply as post-doctoral fellows.
• Government practitioners and private sector professionals are also encouraged to apply and will serve as visiting fellows (interchange).
• For international applicants and Canadians based at an academic institution abroad: While CIGI intends to expand the Digital Policy Hub to be an international program in the near future, at this time, the funding only allows for applicants based at a Canadian academic institution.

For more information, visit CIGI.