Scholarships

The British Council Scotland SGSAH EARTH Scholarships 2024

Published on October 15, 2023

The British Council Scotland SGSAH EARTH Scholarships is a programme run by SGSAH with funding from the British Council to enable international research collaborations between PhD and Early Career Researchers and Scottish HEIs and Scotland-based academic mentors, and external organisations, thematically focused on environmental arts and humanities and their interdisciplinary connections.

The overall aim of the programme is to promote the role and interventions of the environmental arts and humanities, and the arts and cultural sector, in addressing the climate emergency, and their capacity for interdisciplinary research within STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, the Arts, and Mathematics) contexts.

The programme will create research opportunities and international mobility which will develop and support new approaches to address the global challenge of climate crisis, and support sustainable research and cultural interchanges within and beyond the arts and, humanities and cultural sectors.

Title: British Council Scotland SGSAH EARTH Scholarships 2024

Eligibility Criteria and HEIs

Open to PhD and ECRs from non-UK universities, applicants must be engaged in environmental arts and humanities. They must be either currently registered for a PhD or should have already obtained one in Arts & Humanities subject areas, as specified by the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC).

Interdisciplinary Focus

Interdisciplinarity is heavily encouraged. For interdisciplinary projects, a minimum of 50% of the research must be rooted in Arts & Humanities.

Participating Institutions

Scottish HEIs involved in the programme represent a comprehensive spectrum of universities such as Abertay University, Edinburgh Napier University, The Glasgow School of Art, Glasgow Caledonian University, Heriot-Watt University, Queen Margaret University, Robert Gordon University, Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, University of Aberdeen, University of Dundee, University of Edinburgh, University of Glasgow, University of St Andrews, University of Stirling, University of Strathclyde, University of the Highlands & Islands, University of the West of Scotland

Pre-application Steps

Prospective candidates must meticulously read the Guidelines for the scheme and contact their chosen institution to discuss the application process.

Required Documents

Applicants must submit a comprehensive research proposal, a budget outline, a CV, and letters of support from both their PhD supervisor and the prospective host institution.

About Programme:

The principles of this programme build on SGSAH’s Internationalisation ambitions and actions, align with SGSAH’s GREEN/GRADUATE Strategy and Operational Plan, and with the British Council’s Climate Connections legacy programme. The programme will be structured around two of SGSAH’s strategic themes and priority areas; the Environmental Humanities and Creative Industries/Economies, with a focus on climate emergency themes, the interventions of the arts and cultural sector, and the legacy of COP26, held in Glasgow in 2021. The programme will enrich collaborations between Scottish and international HEIs, building on SGSAH’s Global Connects programmes, and the SFC Saltire Emerging Researcher scheme.
The programme will provide scholarships for PhD and Early Career Researchers based outside the UK to come to Scotland to undertake in-person and hybrid exchanges for up to 3 months in 2024, in the area of environmental arts and humanities. The research placements will include an in-person 2-week cohort-building core leadership programme where all recipients will come together alongside Scotland-based scholars to network and collaborate in April 2024, supported by a set of thematically and geographically oriented Clusters.
The programme ran for the first time in 2023. Profiles of the 2023 EARTH Scholars are available on the SGSAH website at https://www.sgsah.ac.uk/news/earth-scholars-2023/. Recordings of the research presentations by the Scholars are available here.