Funding opportunity

Funding opportunity: Support knowledge exchange for CHANSE digital transformations research

Apply for funding to bring together Collaboration of Humanities and Social Sciences in Europe (CHANSE) funded research projects on digital transformations, by developing knowledge exchange activities.

You must:

  • hold a PhD or an equivalent qualification or experience
  • have knowledge of the European knowledge exchange landscape
  • be based at an established research organisation anywhere in the world.

The maximum cash contribution from funders is £205,000. The funded percentage of the project’s full economic cost varies depending on host organisation location.

Funding is available for three and a half years and administered by UKRI on behalf of the CHANSE consortium.

Who can apply

The principal investigator must:

  • hold a PhD or an equivalent qualification or experience
  • be based at an established organisation with the capacity to undertake high quality research. This means an institution that:
    • possesses an existing in-house capacity to host a grant and to carry out research that materially extends and enhances the national or international research base
    • is able to demonstrate an independent capability to support the conduct of the specified work.

Lead institutions that are not currently recognised to hold UKRI funding will have to complete UKRI due diligence checks before any grant can be confirmed. In these instances, it is likely to take approximately eight weeks for the appropriate checks to be undertaken before the grant could start.

The research organisation may be based anywhere in the world. However, experience of the European knowledge exchange landscape is required.

There are no restrictions regarding principal investigator affiliation with a Collaboration of Humanities and Social Sciences in Europe (CHANSE) project. For example, it is permissible for a principal investigator to be affiliated with a CHANSE project or not.

The most suitable candidate (together with their foreseen team or required external support, if applicable) for this post is expected to:

  • have established a full or emergent international reputation in the area of transformations, and have experience of working across both social science and humanities disciplines within this context
  • have a good understanding of the European and global issues around the digital transformations themes
  • have experience of transnational research projects and familiarity or experience of the European knowledge exchange landscape. This includes an awareness of equality, diversity and inclusion
  • be dynamic and innovative in their approach to new tasks
  • have very strong networking skills within the academic and transnational stakeholder communities, and have the ability to connect, and help others to connect, with the key gatekeepers in this area
  • have excellent interpersonal, team-leading and managerial skills
  • be able to work at an international level with colleagues from different cultural and linguistic backgrounds
  • have views on the expertise and skills needed in a team to deliver the expected results.

What we're looking for

The Collaboration of Humanities and Social Sciences in Europe (CHANSE) is a joint initiative of 27 research funding organisations from 24 countries.

The main goal of the CHANSE programme is to deliver an opportunity for international research projects on ‘Transformations: social and cultural dynamics in the digital age’.

The knowledge exchange facilitator will support knowledge exchange for projects funded under this opportunity. The full list of funded projects (PDF, 197 KB) is now available.

UKRI is administering the recruitment of the knowledge exchange facilitator on behalf of the CHANSE consortium.

The CHANSE programme has been co-created by Humanities in the European Research Area (HERA) and New Opportunities for Research funding Agency Cooperation in Europe (NORFACE).

HERA is a network of 26 national funding agencies committed to leading and developing funding opportunities for humanities researchers in Europe.

NORFACE is a partnership of national funding agencies in Europe dedicated to leading and developing opportunities for scientists in the areas of social and behavioural sciences.

Scope

The knowledge exchange facilitator’s role is to strengthen the overall cohesion of the CHANSE programme and coordinate knowledge exchange efforts and activities at the programme level.

As the knowledge exchange facilitator, you are expected to be an internationally well-positioned researcher with relevant expertise and knowledge of the programme themes, and supported by a research assistant.

The knowledge exchange facilitator will create added value, increasing the impact of the programme and the projects funded within it.

Knowledge exchange facilitator key objectives

Strengthen the overall cohesion of the CHANSE programme

The knowledge exchange facilitator will do this by:

  • bringing together the various teams from the transnational research projects to work synergistically, and to gain a greater holistic understanding of contributions to the broad transformations theme
  • developing sub and meta themes across the transnational research projects and facilitating the cross-pollination of research perspectives and outputs.

Coordinate knowledge exchange efforts and activities

The knowledge exchange facilitator will do this by:

  • inspiring and encouraging the various teams of the research projects into using new, effective ways of reaching out and knowledge uptake, and to stimulate the exchange of good examples to facilitate best practice
  • stimulating and facilitating knowledge exchange between the various teams of the research projects both within academia and non-academic stakeholders. This will include engaging stakeholders in events where appropriate. Stakeholders include, for example:
    • related professional organisations in government
    • policy makers
    • business
    • the voluntary sector
    • the wider general public.
  • encouraging the highest quality of outputs from the research both in terms of outputs targeting academia (for example, scholarly articles in appropriate or highly regarded peer-reviewed journals, and monographs) and non-academic stakeholders (for example, policy briefs, non-technical summaries and podcasts) to enhance the visibility of the programme.

CHANSE governance structure

The knowledge exchange facilitator will be expected to regularly report to CHANSE governance structures about the recent activities and progress of the programme. This includes:

  • engaging with project monitoring and impact assessment activities not led by the knowledge exchange facilitator
  • attending meetings of the CHANSE programme committee, steering group and knowledge exchange group to discuss this progress.

The following are key groups within the CHANSE consortium organisational structure, with particular respect to knowledge exchange activities.

Your application should explain how you will work within this structure and take account of the input of the consortium.

Steering group (SG)

The SG is the overall decision making body of the CHANSE consortium. It is comprised of all CHANSE consortium members and chaired by the coordinator.

Programme committee (PC)

The PC is the programme’s advisory body. It has six delegates, each from the HERA and NORFACE boards.

Coordination group (CG)

The CG is responsible for successful implementation of the tasks. It comprises all work packages and task leaders.

Coordinator

The coordinator is in charge of overall coordination of the programme. It is supported by the coordination office (CO). The CO is the National Science Centre (NCN) in Poland.

UK Research and Innovation (UKRI)

UKRI is task leader for knowledge exchange strategy and activities.

Knowledge exchange group (KEG)

The KEG is an executive and advisory body for all knowledge exchange activities. It is chaired by UKRI, and is comprised of:

  • the coordinator
  • representatives from the SG and PC
  • the knowledge exchange facilitator
  • key stakeholders from the area of transformations.

As task leader, UKRI has ultimate responsibility for knowledge exchange, which encompasses the work of the knowledge exchange facilitator and the KEG.

UKRI takes a strategic role in steering the overall aims of the task, and a coordinating role for both the knowledge exchange facilitator and KEG.

The KEG will provide expert input to the work of the knowledge exchange facilitator, meeting regularly every six months to:

  • steer the knowledge exchange facilitator
  • input into key documents, such as the knowledge exchange strategy
  • facilitate contact with other key stakeholders to support knowledge exchange facilitator activities, for example targeted workshops or conferences.

The KEG has overall responsibility for the work of the knowledge exchange facilitator and its outputs. The knowledge exchange facilitator will therefore report regularly to the KEG, and should be in regular contact with UKRI between KEG meetings.

Knowledge exchange facilitator example activities

The knowledge exchange facilitator is expected to propose their own knowledge exchange strategy and activities which would implement this.

Below are some example activities, given as an indication of how similar past roles in NORFACE and HERA programmes have been implemented. However, the knowledge exchange facilitator is under no obligation to provide these particular activities.

The funders appreciate that there may not be the budget to deliver all the example activities. A proposed initial strategy and activities should be set out in your application that you consider best delivers on the knowledge exchange facilitator objectives and against the assessment criteria.

If your application is successful, it would then be developed with input from the CHANSE consortium and in close collaboration with project leaders. You should expect to review and adjust it throughout the programme.

Work packages and tasks

Under the CHANSE structure, there is a distribution of responsibilities across the consortium under work packages.

Communication responsibilities do not sit with the knowledge exchange facilitator, but rather the National Science Centre (NCN) in Poland.

The knowledge exchange facilitator would be expected to work closely with other work package leaders to deliver on their own objectives.

Work packages of particular note are:

  • work package 4: follow-up and monitoring of projects resulting from the co-funded opportunity led by the Danish Agency for Science and Higher Education (DAFSHE). The work will be organised under the following tasks:
    • task 4.1 development of the CHANSE monitoring and impact assessment strategy
    • task 4.2 monitoring of the CHANSE projects
    • task 4.3 impact assessment of the CHANSE programme
  • work package 5: communication, exploitation and dissemination of the results, led by NCN. The work will be organised under the following tasks:
    • task 5.1 communication and dissemination
    • task 5.2 CHANSE online presence (website and social media management)
    • task 5.3 programme visibility and dissemination of projects’ results through events.

Where activities are led by other work package leaders, they will hold the budget for delivering this activity, not the knowledge exchange facilitator. For example, the website and key conferences (launch, mid and final) are led by NCN. This means NCN holds the budget for this and it would not be expected to be covered by the budget of the knowledge exchange facilitator.

In contrast, events led by the knowledge exchange facilitator would need to be costed into the knowledge exchange facilitator’s application. For example, stakeholder events and early career researcher-focused events.

Content activities

Example content activities are:

  • working paper series: written by projects and disseminated by work package 5, but content stimulated by the knowledge exchange facilitator through regular project contact
  • non-technical summary papers: content production led by the knowledge exchange facilitator in close collaboration with projects and dissemination leads on work package 5
  • podcasts: content production led by knowledge exchange facilitator in close collaboration with projects and dissemination leads on work package 5
  • policy briefs: content production led by knowledge exchange facilitator in close collaboration with projects and dissemination leads on work package 5
  • website and social media: led by work package 5. Knowledge exchange facilitator activities will create and stimulate content which is then disseminated through these sources.

Event activities

Example event activities are:

  • stakeholders events: such as EU stakeholder discussion events on DIAL and HERA. Led by the knowledge exchange facilitator. KEG can provide advice and work package 5 can advise on disseminating event and outputs
  • thematic workshops: led by projects, with significant knowledge exchange facilitator involvement to identify the themes and bring projects together
  • early career researcher-focused event: this may take the form of a PhD summer school or early career researcher conference linked to the aims and thematic scope of the programme
  • launch, mid and final conferences: led by work package 5. Knowledge exchange facilitator activities will stimulate content for these events, meaning the knowledge exchange facilitator will take a significant role in agenda setting and identifying potential contributors, in collaboration with the agency responsible for organising the event and the CHANSE coordinator. The launch conference is expected to be an in-person event (if COVID-19 restrictions allow) in spring 2023.

The knowledge exchange facilitator is required to operate within a specific budget, therefore activities which the knowledge exchange facilitator considers deliver the most impact and best value against the previously stated objectives, will need to be prioritised.

Projects will have their own individual knowledge exchange plans which will focus on their own specific projects. The knowledge exchange facilitator’s role is to operate at a programme level, pulling together the different projects to identify themes and complimentary threads which make the programme more than the sum of its parts.

There may be opportunity to capitalise on and adapt some of projects’ pre-existing plans to serve a programme level purpose, but the knowledge exchange facilitator should primarily be focused on developing their own programme level activities.

Team composition

You are encouraged to work with a self-appointed team that would assist in delivering the key roles of the knowledge exchange facilitator. For example:

  • a research assistant
  • junior researcher
  • supplementary external expertise.

It is therefore possible to attribute part of the total budget for external expertise. Your Proposals to the knowledge exchange facilitator opportunity should describe:

  • the skills and expertise required in the team
  • a preliminary proposed composition of division of tasks
  • names of potential candidates for the team (not mandatory at this stage).

If you are applying with a preliminary team already in place, the role of the knowledge exchange facilitator and associated personnel should be clearly set out, within the budget provision offered.

There would need to be one clear knowledge exchange facilitator identified, who is the named principal investigator on the application.

Only one grant will be issued and this will be to the institution of the knowledge exchange facilitator. This institution will then be responsible for distributing funds to the team as set out in their application.

This opportunity is funded by the CHANSE consortium, which includes a European Commission (EC) co-fund. The grant will therefore be subject to UKRI, CHANSE and EC reporting requirements.

Eligible costs and duration

The maximum cash contribution from the funders is £205,000. This is expected to support provision of the knowledge exchange facilitator role for three and a half years.

CHANSE will fund 100% of the full economic cost of your project, unless you are based in the UK. Projects based at UK organisations will be funded at 80% of the full economic cost in line with standard UK policies.

It is expected that the award be used for:

  • the knowledge exchange facilitator salary: for a minimum of 0.20 full-time equivalent (FTE) for three and a half years
  • supporting staff: other team members, for example a research assistant, to support the knowledge exchange facilitator in the day-to-day activities of the role. The budget is expected to provide for at least 0.20 FTE of a research assistant over three and a half years, and supplementary external expertise as needed (for example, expert in policy brief drafting or podcast production)
  • travel and subsistence: including travel to the relevant meetings of the CHANSE consortium, which is expected to be twice a year in European locations
  • estates and indirect costs, for example building and premises costs and basic services and utilities
  • delivery of content
  • delivery of events.

A requirement of this funding opportunity is that budgets include provision for a knowledge exchange facilitator (for example, a senior academic in the area) to spend a minimum of 0.20 FTE over three and a half years on this proposal.

You are allowed to vary the time commitment over the lifetime of the award if desired, so long as the total over three and a half years is at least 0.2 FTE.

It is anticipated the budget would be distributed approximately as follows:

  • knowledge exchange facilitator salary 45% to 55%
  • knowledge exchange facilitator supporting staff 15%
  • travel and subsistence 5%
  • delivery of events and content 25% to 35%.

This is entirely up to the applicant to propose the funding distribution which they consider best fulfils the objectives of the opportunity.

Timeline

Transformations research projects are expected to start in September to October 2022.

Projects will be 24 to 36 months in length.

Given the importance of planning for knowledge exchange from the inception of projects, and the knowledge exchange facilitator’s central role in building relationships between the projects, they are expected to start by 1 December 2022 at the latest.

This is to ensure they are in place as close to project start dates as possible.

The funders are also conscious that many outputs and much impact of a project cannot be fully realised until the end of projects. Therefore, the knowledge exchange facilitator’s role is expected to last a period of three and a half years, to allow for a six month tail after the end of projects.

Other policies

The knowledge exchange facilitator is required to ensure open access (free of charge online access for any user) to all publications of its outputs.

Read the:

How to apply

This funding opportunity is administered by UKRI on behalf of the Collaboration of Humanities and Social Sciences in Europe (CHANSE) consortium.

Applying using Je-S

You must apply using the Joint Electronic Submission (Je-S) system.

We recommend you start your application early. You can save completed details in Je-S at any time and return to continue your application later.

You should ensure you are aware of and comply with any internal institutional deadlines that may be in place.

When applying, select ‘new document’ then:

  • council: ESRC
  • document type: standard proposal
  • scheme: research grants
  • call/type/mode: CHANSE Knowledge Exchange Facilitator (KEF) 2022.

After completing the application, select ‘submit document’. This will send your application to your host organisation’s administration office.

The principal investigator and any co-investigators will need to be registered on Je-S. Please allow plenty of time to complete this process in advance of submission. We advise one week.

All proposals must be submitted in English and costed in pounds sterling (GBP). The exchange rate used to convert to GBP should be clearly stated and should be the rate at the time of submission. UKRI cannot account for changes in exchange rates between submission and award of the grant.

The deadline for the submission of proposals is 16:00 on 26 July 2022.

The proposal has two elements:

  • an online form in Je-S requesting key information
  • a series of mandatory attachments which are to be completed offline and uploaded as PDF attachments in the Je-S form.

You can find full details relating to completing the Je-S application in the ‘CHANSE Je-S guidance for applicants’ attachment which you can find in the ‘additional info’ section.

Attachments

The key attachments required include:

  • case for support
  • justification of resources
  • CVs for all named individuals
  • principal investigator research organisation letter of support.
Case for support

Maximum of four sides of A4.

This is the body of your research proposal. It must not exceed four sides of A4. This is the body of your proposal. It should describe your proposed initial strategy and activities, and identify why you and/or your wider team (as applicable) are best suited to the role. It should address the following points:

  • overall strategy for knowledge exchange and strengthening the cohesion of the programme
  • plans for potential activities which would support the implementation of this strategy
  • expected outputs
  • success indicators – how you will know your strategy has been successful
  • why you, as the Knowledge Exchange Facilitator, are suited to deliver the objectives of this funding opportunity. This should be supported by CVs
  • what additional expertise or support would be needed to deliver your proposal, and how you/your team fulfil this. This should be supported by CVs.
Justification of resources

Maximum of two sides of A4.

The justification of resources should explain why the resources requested are appropriate for the proposal, taking into account the nature and complexity of the proposal. It should not be simply a list of the resources required, as this is already given in the Je-S form. Where you do not provide explanation for an item that requires justification, it will be cut from any grant awarded.

Proposals which include co-investigators from third sector organisations that are deemed not to engage in economic activity must provide evidence of this status within the justification of resources statement.

This attachment should clearly identify what proportion of their time, the named knowledge exchange facilitator will devote to the proposal (minimum requirement 0.20 FTE for 3.5 years), the costs of this and planned activities or outputs, and why this represents value for money.

Applicants must also state clearly in the ‘justification for resources’ attachment which costs in the proposal relate to non-UK institutions and therefore attract the 100% direct cost rate. Where sufficient justification is not provided for any item it may be cut from any successful award. Please refer to the appropriate Je-S help text for further details.

Estates, indirect and infrastructure technician costs do not need to be justified within the justification of resources.

Please refer to Je-S for further guidance.

CV

Maximum of two sides of A4 per person.

A CV for each applicant, named research staff member and consultant must be included.

This should include contact details, qualifications (including class and subject), academic and professional posts held since graduation, a list of the most relevant and recent publications, and a record of research funded by the ESRC and other bodies. This should not exceed two sides of A4 per person.

List of publications

The bibliography for references cited in the proposal only should be attached. Please note publications not cited in the proposal should not be added here. A list of the most relevant and recent publications by the applicant should be included in the applicant CV.

Principal investigator research organisation letter of support

Maximum of two sides of A4 per document.

This letter should provide an assurance that the principal investigator’s research organisation will support them during the lifetime of the award and that their contract will be in place for the duration of the project (if they have a fixed term contract or are a visiting or honorary fellow).

It should be provided by the Head of Department, or whomever is the relevant authority in their organisation depending on national regulations. The letter should be a maximum of two sides of A4, and should be signed, dated and on headed paper.

The principal investigator research organisation letter of support should be uploaded as the document type ‘letter of support’.

Find out more about attachment requirements

The attachment requirements are outlined in the funding opportunity specific ‘CHANSE Je-S guidance for applicants’ attachment which you can find in the ‘additional info’ section. You must ensure that you have read and complied with the requirements set out in the guidance document.

This guidance should be used in conjunction with ESRC’s research funding guide.

Supplementary guidance on costings and how to enter them into Je-S is provided for non-UK institutions in the ‘CHANSE costings guidance for non-UK institutions and partners’ which you can find in the ‘additional info’ section below.

Where information issued in the funding opportunity specific guidance differs from the more general guidance offered in the Je-S handbook and ESRC’s research funding guide, you should adhere to the funding opportunity specific guidance.

How we will assess your application

Assessment criteria

Funding decisions will be made on the following assessment criteria.

Understanding of relevant context

Does the proposal demonstrate understanding of the Collaboration of Humanities and Social Sciences in Europe (CHANSE) programme context, including Humanities in the European Research Area (HERA) and New Opportunities for Research funding Agency Co-operation in Europe (NORFACE) partnerships?

Appropriate strategy

Is a knowledge exchange strategy proposed that addresses the core objectives of the role?

Plan for implementation

Is the proposed plan for implementing the strategy feasible?

Suitability of expertise

Is the knowledge exchange facilitator (and their team, as applicable) of strong academic standing in the area of transformations, with a full or emergent international reputation, and experience of working with both social science and humanities?

Are they dynamic and innovative, have strong networking skills, and excellent interpersonal skills?

Do they have experience of transnational research projects and familiarity or experience of the European knowledge exchange landscape, including an awareness of equality, diversity and inclusion?

Does the knowledge exchange facilitator and their team provide for the range of skills required for successful delivery?

Ability to work collaboratively

Does the application demonstrate an intention to work collaboratively with the projects and the CHANSE consortium?

Value for money

A selection committee, comprised of representatives from the CHANSE governance structure, will consider the submitted applications.

Online interviews with the candidates will take place between 12 September and 16 September 2022.

The result is expected to be announced by late September or early October 2022.

During October and November 2022, a contract will be prepared by UKRI, in close contact with the appointed knowledge exchange facilitator. The contract will start on 1 December 2022 at the latest.

Contact details

Get help with developing your proposal

For help and advice on costings and writing your proposal, please contact your research office in the first instance, allowing sufficient time for your organisation’s submission process.

Ask about this funding opportunity

Hannah Oliver, Case Officer

Email: chanse_kef@esrc.ukri.org

Get help with applying through Je-S

Email

jeshelp@je-s.ukri.org

Telephone

01793 444164

Opening times

Je-S helpdesk opening times

Additional info

Background

The knowledge exchange facilitator is funded under the Collaboration of Humanities and Social Sciences in Europe (CHANSE).

CHANSE is a joint initiative of 27 research funding organisations from 24 countries. These include:

  • Austria: Austrian Science Fund
  • Belgium: Fund for Scientific Research – FNRS
  • Belgium: The Research Foundation – Flanders
  • Bulgaria: Bulgarian National Science Fund
  • Croatia: Croatian Academy of Sciences and Arts
  • Croatia: Croatian Science Foundation
  • Czechia: Czech Academy of Sciences
  • Denmark: Danish Agency for Higher Education and Science
  • Estonia: Estonian Research Council
  • Finland: Academy of Finland
  • Germany: DLR Project Management Agency on behalf of BMBF
  • Hungary: National Research, Development and Innovation Office
  • Iceland: The Icelandic Centre for Research
  • Latvia: State Education Development Agency
  • Lithuania: Research Council of Lithuania
  • Luxembourg: The Luxembourg National Research Fund
  • The Netherlands: Dutch Research Council
  • Norway: The Research Council of Norway
  • Poland: National Science Centre
  • Romania: Executive Agency for Financing Higher Education, Research, Development and Innovation Funding
  • Slovakia: Slovak Academy of Sciences
  • Slovenia: Slovenian Research Agency
  • Slovenia: Ministry of Education, Science and Sports
  • Spain: Agencia Estatal de Investigación
  • Sweden: Forte, The Swedish Research Council for Health, Working Life and Welfare
  • Switzerland: Swiss National Science Foundation.

The programme has received a co-funding of €10 million from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme. This is under grant agreement No 101004509.

The goal of CHANSE is to finance high-quality international and interdisciplinary research projects on the theme of ‘transformations’ and inspire collaboration between researchers and various stakeholder groups, such as:

  • non-governmental organisations
  • cultural institutions
  • legislators
  • policy makers
  • schools.

The transformations opportunity (PDF, 388KB) will award up to €36 million to projects that will help to understand how digital innovations give rise to social and cultural changes, and are also influenced by society and culture.

The opportunity comprises two topics:

  • cultural transformations in the digital age
  • digitalisation and social transformation.

Projects can be in either or both topic areas.

Projects will demonstrate a strong European dimension, and will comprise at least four principal investigators from different countries participating in the opportunity. Comparison with, or investigations into, countries not participating in the opportunity is not precluded.

Knowledge exchange will be an important aspect of projects funded under the transformations opportunity.

CHANSE considers knowledge exchange a two-way process which brings together academic staff, users of research, and wider groups and communities, to exchange ideas, evidence and expertise. It is a process of working collaboratively, and is most effective when these relationships are established at the very start of a proposal.

In order to maximise the societal benefit of their research, projects are expected to develop links with stakeholders which may include, for example, the public sector, policy makers, and governmental agencies at local, regional, national and trans-national levels.

The written applications of funded projects will include concrete plans for knowledge exchange, which will have been assessed against an impact criterion.

Programme coordinators

The following scientific programme coordinators have worked on NORFACE programmes.

Professor Roger Hewitt

Re-emergence of religion as a social force in Europe
Goldsmiths, University of London

Professor Christian Dustmann

Migration in Europe: social, economic, cultural and policy dynamics
University College London

Professor Ellen Immergut

Welfare state futures
European University Institute

Dr Elina Kilpi-Jakonen

Dynamics of inequality across the lifecourse
University of Turku

Professor Sophie Lecheler

Democratic governance in a turbulent age
University of Vienna

The following knowledge exchange fellows have worked on Humanities in the European Research Area (HERA) programmes.

Knowledge exchange fellows

Professor Joanna Sofaer and Professor Tony Whyton

Public spaces: culture and integration in Europe
University of Southampton and Birmingham City University

Supporting documents

CHANSE Je-S guidance for applicants (PDF, 280KB)
CHANSE costings guidance for non-UK institutions and partners (PDF, 180KB)

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