The Fund can be used to support a broad range of projects, including travel, workshops, meetings, hackathons, networks and other activities that explore research directions. 

The goal is to support Imperial academics to initiate and pursue collaborations which may lead to new science and to future applications for external funding. 

Proposals that align with areas that are likely to prioritised for future bilateral funding schemes are encouraged. Some of these areas are outlined in the 2030 UK-India Roadmap for Future Relations (May 2021) and the UK-India Technology Security Initiative announced in July 2024. These areas will also be key pillars for engagement under Imperial Global India, due to launch in Spring 2025. They include: 

Emerging Technologies:

• Telecoms
• Critical minerals
• AI
• Quantum
• Health/bio tech
• Advanced materials 
• Semi-conductors

Climate & Sustainability: 

• Green hydrogen
• Clean energy
• Disaster resilience
• Extreme weather
• Adaptation and resilience
• Aquaculture
• Marine pollution and deep-sea biodiversity

Health:

• One Health
• Digital health
• Pandemic preparedness
• Antimicrobial resistance 
• Non-communicable disease

A grant of £3,500-5,000 will be awarded to successful project teams to develop and reinforce lasting contacts with the very best researchers and educators in their field.

Budget requests should not exceed £5,000 per project. Funds can only be spent on activities that fit the purpose of this call. Applicants should itemise their budget using the tables in the application form. All expenditure should be completed by 31 July 2025.

Please refer to the list of fundable/ non-fundable items below:

•  The Fund is open to permanent Imperial College staff members only and one proposal per principal applicant per call is permitted. 
• Each application should have one principal investigator based at Imperial and one principal investigator based at the partner institution in India.
• There are no restrictions on choice of partner institution, but the applicant should clearly demonstrate the benefits and rationale for working with the proposed partner institution in relation to their academic field*.

*Please note that where the College has an existing institutional agreement in place for a joint seed fund, the partner will not be eligible for the India Connect Fund. 

• The application should contain a written case for support to address:

1. Proposed activities: A description of the project and collaboration proposed, and a brief description of the intended use of the fund.

2. Sustainability and strategic value: A description of the long-term impact and development of the project and how it has potential to lead to further collaborations and leverage future funding. A description of the benefits and rationale for working with the proposed partner institution based on the academic field.  

3. Equitable partnership: A description of how the project team will collaborate throughout the project and an explanation of how the activities proposed will generate demonstrable added value to the PI / Research Group / Department / Faculty / College and counterparts in India.

• Proposals must be submitted to globalseedfunds@imperial.ac.uk. Only applications submitted to this email addresses, and before the deadline, will be considered.

Deadline for applications: 23:59, Sunday 8th September 2024.

Results will be announced by 30th September and awarded by mid-October. 

All expenditure should be completed by 31 July 2025.

Principal Applicants who are successful in receiving an award are required to provide a report within 2 weeks of the end of the award period to globalseedfunds@imperial.ac.uk using a template provided. The narrative element of the report should provide details of the relevant activities supported and how these have addressed the objectives of the call. The financial element of the report serves as a Final Expenditure Statement and should detail the award amount and the award spent. Responsibility remains with the PI to ensure all spend has been charged to the correct award code.

 Imperial is a proud signatory to the San-Francisco Declaration on Research Assessment (DORA), which means that in hiring, promotion and research funding decisions we will evaluate applicants on the quality of their work, not the impact factor of the journal where it is published. More information is available at https://www.imperial.ac.uk/research-andinnovation/about-imperial-research/research-evaluation/