IITD-NZ Center Seed Fund
To support the academic collaboration necessary for the establishment of a New Zealand Centre in India, the Industrial Research and Development Unit (IRD) of IIT Delhi is funding a matching grant programme for developing research collaboration with New Zealand universities. The jointly-funded Research Collaboration Development Fund would foster collaborative, sustainable, self-supporting research programmes by providing seed monies to New Zealand universities to develop plans for long-term programmes integrating academics, students and researchers from both universities. The program is funded and implemented by IRD under its MFIRP (Multi-Institutional Faculty Interdisciplinary Research Programme) initiative.
This competitive programme is open to faculty members affiliated with one of New Zealand’s eight
universities in all disciplines. Successful proposals will be those which will
(i) demonstrate an immediate potential to be sustainable through external funding sources and
(ii) involve a clear collaborative effort between faculty members from both their university and IIT Delhi.
IIT Delhi would provide up to ten matching fund grants of up to US$5,000 each for collaboration projects. New Zealand universities applying for funding would be required to provide an equal funding match as part of their application.
This Seed Fund is one of the Initiatives for the newly setup IIT Delhi New Zealand Centre for cooperation between IITD and 8 New Zealand Universities. Learn more about the centre here
Ten awards are expected to be made.
It is a one-time award with no opportunity for renewal.
A 50% cost share is required from IIT Delhi and a New Zealand university for each project.
A maximum of US$10,000 may be requested for each project.
The seed grant funds cannot be used for faculty salary or stipend, indirect/administrative costs, to hire a consultant or contractor, or for general equipment expenses (laptops, ipads, printers, etc.). Please inquire with your university contact for clarification if an expense is allowable.
Allowable expenses include travel, lab supplies and other expenditures in support of the long term project development
Applications are open to all IIT Delhi full time faculty.
Applications require a minimum of one New Zealand university academic and one IIT Delhi academic.
Funding priority will be given to projects that:
• Advance a self-supporting collaborative research concept with the potential to produce scholarship of high academic value.
• Strengthen the connectivity and relationship between New Zealand universities and IIT Delhi.
• Creates a team with faculty members from both universities.
The evaluation criteria and weighting:
• A visible strategy to create a self-supporting, sustainable collaboration program after the seed money expires (50%)
• Research/Academic excellence (25%)
• Project idea and quality (25%)
Key programme dates:
• Deadline for submission of Proposals: May 20, 2022
• Communication of Results to Applicants: June 24, 2022
• Announcement of Awards: July 5, 2022
To identify potential collaborators at the participating institutions/Universities click on link below or send mail to the International Office.
Indian Institute of Technology Delhi
Victoria University of Wellington
Proposals are to be prepared and submitted with agreement from all participating researchers.
Proposals are to be submitted through an MFIRP online form by the IITD lead investigator. Therefore, it is crucial that collaborating NZ academics, liaise closely with their IITD counterparts. A copy of the MFIRP online form can be found here.
The IITD Principal Investigator will be responsible for submitting the final proposal on/before the deadline.
Click here for the Call for Proposals