Apply for grants from SLU Future Food

Last changed: 14 March 2023

SLU Future Food periodically offers grants for projects and activities that strengthen knowledge production for a sustainable food system. Those seeking the grant must be based at SLU, but people who do not work at SLU are welcome to participate in projects and activities. However, projects and activities must have SLU as the sender.

Current calls

We have three current calls:

  1. Seed funding for Food & Cities projects. Deadline for applications 14 April 2023.

  2. Seed funding for writing cross-disciplinary applications to external research funding bodies. Deadline for seed funding applications to SLU Future Food is 26 May 2023.
  3. Apply to Interdisciplinary Academy (IDA) at SLU for the project period 2023-2024. Application deadline is June 1, 2023.

Read more about how and when to apply below. Follow the instructions carefully.

1. Seed funding for Food & Cities projects

The call is made in collaboration between the future platforms SLU Future Food and SLU Urban Futures.

Three projects are granted SEK 50,000 each.

Application deadline: 14 April 2023

The purpose of the Food & Cities seed funding call

The purpose of the call is to support cross-disciplinary research that examines the systemic relationships between food systems and urban development and how these relationships affect the transformation to sustainable communities.

In 2023, Food & Cities seed funding wants to encourage and will give priority to projects investigating aspects of food planning, but applications addressing other subjects will also be considered. Uttermost it is the quality of the application that is the decisive factor for the application to be granted.

Read more about how to apply and find the application form on the Food & Cities web page.

 

 

2. Seed funding for writing cross-disciplinary applications to external research funding bodies

This call is made by SLU Future Food.

Six projects are granted SEK 50,000 each.

Application deadline: 26 May 2023

Purpose of the seed funding

The purpose of the seed funding in this call is to support the application work for a cross-disciplinary application to an external research funder of your choice.

Examples of external calls that this seed funding call can be linked to are:

However, the applicant is free to propose a suitable call to link the seed application to. Applications for other external calls than those suggested above may thus be relevant.

Keep the following in mind

The application should be concise and adhere to the criteria below.

  • The application for seed funding from SLU Future Food is submitted using a special form no later than 26 May 2023 (see below).We do not consider any application documents (e.g. CV, publication lists or the like) beyond the application form.
  • An acknowledgement of receipt proving that an application has been submitted to the external research funder must be sent to SLU Future Food no later than 26 May 2023.
  • The main applicant for the external funding, as well as for the seed funding, must be employed at SLU. However, external partners, academic or non-academic, are welcome to participate in both planning and implementation of the project.
  • The project must address a long-term sustainability challenge for the food system
  • The project must be cross-disciplinary (see definition below). Describe in what way the various proposed competencies are important for the project.
  • Applications with a Swedish, Nordic or EU perspective, but preferably in relation to global sustainability challenges (environmental, economic and social), are prioritised.

What can the seed grant be used for?

In the event that SLU Future Food grants the seed funding, the main applicant decides for themselves how the seed funds are best used to support the application process. The seed funds may be used for e.g. salary for the main applicant and co-applicants, travel or other expenses that are connected to applying for the external funding.

How and when should the seed funding application be submitted?

Apply using this form (pdf). Download the form, fill it in without editing the form's properties, then save the form on your computer and attach it in an email to futurefood@slu.se no later than 26 May 2023.

An acknowledgement of receipt proving that an application has been submitted to the external research funder must be also be sent to SLU Future Food no later than 26 May 2023. The main applicant's name and the project title must be visible in the receipt.

Decision on allocation of seed funds

Decisions from SLU Future Food will be announced before the Midsummer holidays 2023.

3. Apply to Interdisciplinary Academy (IDA) at SLU 

The call welcomes groups of 5-7 researchers (maximum 12 in total) who are employed at SLU, regardless of faculty affiliation or subject specialisation, to submit proposals for themes that consist of questions about a scientific problem area of a complex nature and that need a cross-disciplinary approach to be managed and develop solustions.

For example, a theme may concern sustainable land and water use; animal husbandry and its relationship with humans; land for forestry, food production, carbon sequestration, or biodiversity; global food security or digitalization for the green transition on an increasingly urbanized planet. The theme can be focused on scientific challenges in Sweden or other parts of the world.

Application deadline: 1 June 2023

Read more and apply here.

Facts:

What do we mean by cross-disciplinary research?

Multi- inter-, and transdisciplinary research is here defined as research that comprises theory, method or research approaches from more than one scientific discipline or fields of research. In multidisciplinary research the different theories, methods or approaches are used side by side, and in interdisciplinary research they are, at least to some extent, integrated. Transdisciplinary research is distinguished in its recognition and inclusion of other types of knowledge than scientific knowledge, such as practice and experience based knowledge and knowhow.

What do we mean by food systems?

By Food systems we mean all processes and infrastructure needed to provide the population with food. It includes land use, primary production, processing, packaging, distribution, marketing and sales as well as cooking, consumption and waste management. Food systems operates and is influenced by social, political and economic contexts. Sustainability refers to ecological as well as economic and social sustainability.