• Climate and Conservation: Addressing ecological knowledge, environmental change, conservation practices, and the intersections of science, policy, and local experience in Latin America and the Caribbean.
• Arts and Cultures: Exploring how creative expression, cultural practices, and forms of representation shape understandings of Latin America/Caribbean and its peoples.
• Politics and Peripheries: Considering Latin America and the Caribbean in political terms and also in relation to borderlands and margins, with a focus on geographic, social, economic, and conceptual frameworks for how these “edges” connect to broader regional, international, and global dynamics.

We especially welcome projects that center Indigenous, Afro-Latin American and/or Afro-Caribbean, and other marginalized perspectives (linguistically, economically, etc.) on these questions.

Proposals should include a minimum of two Brown faculty sponsors from different departments (multi-year appointed visiting faculty and teaching-track faculty are also welcome to apply) and (ideally) should list an interdisciplinary group of interested faculty, postdoctoral associates, and graduate students. Brown undergraduate or graduate students and faculty at other institutions may also be involved. Proposed projects may include conferences, workshops, speaker series, reading/writing groups, exhibitions, performances, publications, or digital initiatives. Faculty sponsors may request up to $1,000 in research funds.

The strongest proposals will be transdisciplinary and transgeographical, ideally spanning a semester or full academic year. Final awards will reflect proposal quality and available CLACS resources.

Proposal Guidelines

Proposals should include a 150-word abstract of the overarching goals of the project in addition to a statement of up to 750 words (max. 3 pages) that articulates the following elements:

• Theme and significance: The theme of the proposed research/programming and its relevance to Latin America and the Caribbean.
• Activities and outcomes: What the research/programming will do and the anticipated scholarly, pedagogical, or public outcomes of the initiative. Please include key events and deliverables.
• Collaboration and participants: Provide information on co-organizers, collaborators, and other key participants. Include a description of how each department and participant will contribute to the project, emphasizing interdisciplinary engagement across at least two (and ideally three) Brown departments.
• Accessibility and inclusion: Explain how the initiative will ensure accessibility and engagement for diverse participants and audiences.
• Budget: Include estimated expenses and any additional funding sources, confirmed or projected (e.g. co-sponsorship). Please note that CLACS will provide administrative support (e.g., space scheduling, publicity, reimbursements) for successful projects.

Submission Deadlines

2026-2027

• For Fall 2026 Projects: On a rolling basis but no later than November 1, 2026.
• For Spring 2027 Projects: November 1, 2026
• For Fall 2027 Projects: April 30, 2027 
• For Spring 2028: November 1, 2027

Submission Details

• Upload your proposal via this Google Form
• If you are unable to submit via the form, email your complete PDF proposal (max. 3 pages) to: maria_isabel_marin@brown.edu ; clacs@brown.edu
• Use the subject line: “Date of Submission_Interdisciplinary Research Grant Proposal”
  • Note: Your PDF proposal should include a 150-word abstract and a statement of up to 750 words addressing theme and significance, activities and outcomes, collaboration and participants, accessibility and inclusion, and budget.