Call for Applications: Bridging Narratives Grant Program

Bridging Narratives Grant: A Convergence of Journalism and Research Perspectives is an intersectional research and journalism project funded by the International Institute of Social Studies (ISS) of Erasmus University Rotterdam, and invites pitches from independent journalists and social scientists (researchers, scholars, and early-career academics) from around the world. The project aims to combine the strengths of academic research and journalism by strengthening collaborative engagement.

The stories would first be disseminated entailing a textual, audio-visual, or illustrative form and will be mainly disseminated through The Contrapuntal digital magazine.

Selected authors will be invited to participate in a workshop on journalism-research collaborations and to reflect on their collaboration in short essays. Further information on the workshop’s aim, timeline, and location will be announced following the selection of pitches. The selected essays will then be gathered in an edited volume focusing on the challenges and opportunities of linking scientific research and journalism.  This research aims to strengthen practice-based grounds-up participatory research.

Funding Information

• The project will offer financial support of €400 per story, which will be shared between the journalist and researcher, principally for fieldwork related expenses such as logistics, travel, insurance etc.

Eligibility Criteria

• They invite both individual and group applications for this project, which fosters collaboration between journalists and researchers. Please note that the application processes differ for individual and joint submissions, as outlined below:
  • Individual Applications:
    • They accept individual applications from journalists and researchers (including Academic staff, Independent Researchers, PhDs, and MAs). After receiving the pitches, they will pair each journalist with a researcher who specializes either in the relevant subject matter or geographic region. This team will then collaboratively develop the selected pitch into a final project.
  • Joint Applications:
    • They also encourage joint applications from journalist-researcher teams who wish to collaborate on a pre-selected theme.
  • Journalists and researchers, regardless of their career stage, are invited to apply for this project. They particularly encourage reportage on critical issues related to migration, ecology, political economy, and culture (other relevant themes also welcome).

Application Requirements

• All applicants must provide:
  • A short CV of max. 1 page
  • Submit a story/research pitch of up to 300 words. Applicants can submit up to two pitches, of which one will be selected for development.

For more information, visit The Contrapuntal.