Inter-American Foundation (IAF) Fellowship
Website: Grassroots Developement Fellowship
Description
The Inter-American Foundation (IAF) was created in 1969 by the United States Congress to fund the self-help initiatives of the organized poor in Latin America and the Caribbean and the groups that directly support them. To complement its work, the IAF has reinstated its Fellowships for candidates for Ph.D. degrees from United States universities as they conduct their dissertation research. IAF's Fellowships are intended to increase awareness of grassroots development efforts while building a community of professionals and scholars knowledgeable in the subject. Fellows examine the efforts of the rural and urban poor to improve their lives, their methods of organization and production, and the policies and programs designed to alleviate their poverty. The IAF disseminates research findings of its Fellows to a broad audience concerned with development.
The Institute of International Education (IIE) has partnered with the IAF to administer its Grassroots Development Fellowship Program.
IAF’s Fellowships provide support for Ph.D. candidates to conduct dissertation research in Latin America and the Caribbean on topics related to grassroots development. Funding is for between four and 12 months.
- Round-trip economy-class transportation to the field research site from the Fellow’s primary residence (in compliance with the Fly America Act);
- A research allowance of up to $3,000, pro-rated monthly;
- A stipend of $1,500 per month for up to 12 months, with partial months pro-rated;
- Accident and sickness insurance;
- Attendance at a required “mid-year" Grassroots Development Conference to share findings and discuss progress with each other, members of the IAF's academic review committee and IAF and IIE staff.
Fellowships are available to currently registered students who have advanced to candidacy for the Ph.D. in the social sciences, physical sciences, technical fields and the professions as related to grassroots development issues. Applications for clinical research in the health field will NOT be considered.
Awards are based on both development and scholarly criteria. Proposals should offer a practical orientation to field-based information. In exceptional cases the IAF will support research reflecting a primary interest in macro questions of politics and economics but only as they relate to the environment of the poor. The Fellowship Program complements IAF’s support for grassroots development in Latin America and the Caribbean, and preference for those applicants whose careers or research projects are related to topics of greatest interest to the IAF. These include, but are not limited to, the following:
- Organizations promoting grassroots development among poor and disadvantaged peoples;
- The financial sustainability and independence of development organizations;
- Trends affecting historically excluded groups, such as African descendants, indigenous peoples, women, people with disabilities and young people;
- Transnational development;
- The role of corporate social responsibility in grassroots development;
- The impact of globalization on grassroots development;
- The impact on the quality of life of the poor of grassroots development activities in such areas as sustainable agriculture and natural resource management, housing, health care, education, urban development, technology transfer, jobs creation, LGBT, and marketing and small-enterprise development.
Please note that there will not be a Fellowship competition for the 2018-2019 cohort. Please check back in late summer 2018 for more information regarding the next competition.
Eligibility
- The applicant must be currently enrolled in a Ph.D. program in a U.S. university.
- The applicant’s research must be related to topics on grassroots development in the region.
- Successful applicants must have completed all course requirements and qualifying or comprehensive examinations for the doctoral degree before initiating IAF-funded field research. Candidacy is not required at the time of application.
- Applicants must have U.S. citizenship, or be citizens of an independent Latin American or Caribbean country (except Cuba).
- Proposals must be for research conducted in independent Latin American or Caribbean countries (except Cuba). Research in Puerto Rico or the Dutch, French and British territories is not eligible.
- Applicants must speak and read the language(s) appropriate to the research. An evaluation is required for each language. Native speakers must self-evaluate and send the required form.
- Each applicant must demonstrate at least one planned substantive collaboration during the field research period with a development or applied research institution in the Latin American or Caribbean country of the research. Past affiliations have included grassroots organizations, local government agencies, universities, or a combination. A letter confirming this affiliation is required. If research is proposed in more than one country, each country must have at least one affiliation.
- Applicants must commit to participating in at least one meeting or event organized by the IAF team in the country or countries of research.
- Applications for clinical research in the health field will NOT be considered.
- Split research periods are generally limited to circumstances where the resources required for the fieldwork are seasonally based.
- The applicant must demonstrate awareness of the IAF’s program in the country(ies) of his/he research.
- graduate
- US Citizen
Procedure
Contact Information
IAF Fellowship Awards
C/O Institute of International Education
1400 K Street, Suite 6th Floor
Washington DC 20005
tel: 202 326 7796
email: iaffellowships@iie.org