Call for Applications: ACCESS Flexible Fund – UK

The aim of the ACCESS Flex Fund is to test and develop new ways of thinking, new approaches and new networks that will advance the impact of the social sciences to address the transition to a sustainable and biodiverse environment and a net zero society.

Funding Information

• The total cost of your project must be between £200,000 and £240,000.
• Projects must be completed by the end of September 2026.

Outcomes

• They are looking to make awards to projects that contribute to the ACCESS project’s main goal to enhance the visibility, use and impact of climate and environment social science. Projects will be expected to deliver at least two of the following outcomes:
  • New ideas or frameworks
  • New methods of translating evidence or insights (e.g. communication tools)
  • New networks
  • Development of new skills or capacities
  • Increased use of social science amongst specific target groups, for example people in diverse sectors (business/industry, civil society, public sector, journalists and media actors) or non-social scientist disciplinary experts (e.g. natural scientists, engineering and physical scientists).

What they are looking for?

• They encourage applications that are high-risk, high-reward. Generating useful lessons learnt from innovative approaches that may not work is more important to them than the successful implementation of project plans that reproduce conventional approaches.
• They encourage applications from people with a diverse range of backgrounds. ACCESS is committed to advancing equality, diversity and inclusion in climate and environment social science and they recognise that many groups may be under-represented in these areas.
• They encourage projects that cross boundaries – either discipline or sector.
• They encourage applications involving non-academic organisations. The origin and development of proposal ideas suggested by non-academic partners is particularly welcome.
• Applications involving non-academic partners must demonstrate co-production. This could include having representatives of those organisations as Co-Investigators on the project team, and the allocation of budget resource to non-academic organisations, while following ESRC eligibility rules. These measures will be viewed as stronger evidence of co-production than letters of support submitted by non-academic partners.
• They encourage applications from across the UK, particularly from Wales, Scotland and N. Ireland.

For more information, visit Advancing Capacity for Climate and Environment Social Science.