Mahbub-ul-Haq Award 2013 Research Grants for Collaborative Research between Young South Asians

Purpose
The Regional Centre for Strategic Studies (RCSS) invites applications for research grants under its Mahbub-ul-Haq Awards programme. There are two awards available for this year. This award is intended for a collaborative study between two researchers, one each from a different South Asian country.

This award was originally introduced by RCSS in 2001 as part of the Non-Traditional Security Project in Asia. Named after a distinguished South Asian whose vision made the UN Human Development Report a landmark of the international developmental discussion, the award encourages exploration of security issues outside the realm of traditional security. The idea behind the award is to get two young South Asian scholars of two different nationalities to work together on the same project, bringing their diverse interests and background to bear on the study. The collaborative effort has also helped younger scholars to strengthen the networking which only RCSS has been able to develop in the region.

Types of Grants:
Awards will be made on the following themes:

• Organized Crime and Criminal Networks
• Energy Security: Risks & Resilience
• Cross-border movement of people
• Comparative Perspectives on Conflict Management
• Security Sector Governance in South Asia
• Nuclear Learning in South Asia

The duration of the award is for nine months, commencing from 1st January 2013. The grantees will be expected to conduct the research in a collaborative process and will be under obligation to produce and submit to the RCSS an original research monograph in English with a 20,000 word count.

US$ 1,000 will be paid to each of the awardees (US$ 2,000 per grant).

Requirements

• Nationals of South Asian countries – Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, the Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka – are eligible to apply for these research awards.
• Candidates should have a Master's degree in International Relations, Strategic Studies, Political Science, Economics, History, Anthropology, Journalism, International law, or other related subjects and be below the age of 35.
• Women candidates are particularly encouraged to apply.

Application

• Full curriculum vitae of both researchers including details of academic records and evidence of research competence
• A joint research proposal within 1500 words describing the theme, importance, objectives, and methodology of the study, and justification for field work.
• Two copies of two publications, if available.
• Two confidential letters of academic reference should be sent directly to the RCSS

Deadline
The closing date for applications for the awards is 30th November 2012. Early submission is encouraged; there is no prescribed application form.

Contact
Further inquiries may be addressed to:

Thiranjala Weerasinghe
The Programme Officer
Regional Centre for Strategic Studies
68, Sarasavi Lane, Colombo 8, Sri Lanka.
Tel: (94-11) 2690913-4; Fax: 2690769
(94-11) 773159823
E-mail: programmes@rcss.org
Website: www.rcss.org