Small Grants

K2A annually calls for proposals that support the promotion of SDGs in South Asia in the fields of ecological sustainability and social well-being. Researchers from the CLOC South Asia member institutions and researchers endorsed by network members are welcome to apply.

We are in particular looking at an activity that bases itself on available research results and involves conversion of academic research outputs into tools and processes that support awareness, advocacy and transformation of the UN SDGs. Examples are policy briefs, teaching material, seed-money to develop a social business model, proof of concept or prototype, workshops or blending research into popular media formats (websites, theatre, web-campaigns, comics, documentary films, etc).

We encourage proposals that contribute to:

• Valorising voices from the field or communities.

• Local and regional engagements.

• Science advisory mechanisms that inform policy including the arts into their outputs.

Eligibility:

Researchers from South Asian countries (Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Maldives,Myanmar, India, Nepal, Pakistan, Sri Lanka) and Switzerland.

Applicants must be from or endorsed by a CLOC network partner. The complete list can be found on https://swissnex.org/india/k2a/

We encourage collaborative applications of multiple stakeholders. These can include non-academic members, e.g. NGOs, CBOs (Community Based Organisations) and advocacy groups, communities of practice and junior professionals in any field engaged with promoting SDGs. Please keep in mind that the main applicant needs to be a network member or endorsed by the network.

• Durgesh Agrahari, SayTrees Environmental Trust – Sustainable Management of Lantana camara and Enhancing Livelihood Opportunities
• Jenia Mukherjee, IIT Kharagpur – Pathways for institutionally effective, convergant skills between dry and wet fishing industries (partnership, innovation, community well-being)
• Jenny Bentley, University of Zurich – Guide Training Manual: Sacred Landscape, Eco-tourism, and Job Opportunities
• Jiban M. Poudel, Tribhuvan University – Climate Change in the Eastern Nepal Himalaya: Voices from Yak Herders
• Malvika Kaushik, Environment Support Group – Solid Waste Management: Docufilm
• Parul Karla and Poonam Sharma, Tata Institute of Social Sciences, India – Creating a picture book that attempts to represent the voices of teachers in the changing context of globalisation and commodification of education
• Sandeep Hanchanale, Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment  – Prototype for Lantana Based Wood Polymer Composites (WPCs)
• Yamuna Ghale, Nepal Centre for Contemporary Research (NCCR) – Sensitize policy and decision makers to scale up the good practices in municipal solid waste management and finally contributing to the SDG6 and other SDGs

• Adnan Fazal, NUST – Zoonotica
• Ghulam Haider, NUST – Crop residue to revenue
• Jenia Mukherjee, IIT Kharagpur – SMART technological innovation and experimentation for dry and inland fishing
• Jambay – Groundwater recharge through community participation
• Jenny Bentley, University of Zurich – Guide Training Manual: Sacred Landscape, Eco-tourism, and Job Opportunities
• Om Katel – Synergies and Trade-offs of Managing Ramsar Site in Phobjikha
• P. Kattel, TU Nepal – Impact of climate change on agricultural productivity and food security in Nepal
• Siddhartha Krishnan, ATREE – Precarious Labour in the Biodiverse Himalayas: Porterage, Pandemic, Development, and Conservation in Darjeeling
• Venkat Ramani, ATREE – Audio visual aids for community forest rights

• Aneela Javed, NUST – My Health, My Decision: Step Ahead towards Women’s Empowerment in Pakistan
• Bindu Mohanty, RRA Network – Eccounting: A course on Natural Capital Accounting
• Najimdeen Bakare, CIPS NUST – Contextualizing Modern Discrimination, Mainstreaming SDG in Slum and Community Development: Assessment of Katchi Abadis in Urban Islamabad
• Ovee Thorat, Anthra – Toolkit for Evolving Research Strategies
• Quazi Baby, Participatory Development Action Program – An Action Research to Determine Cost-Effective Sustainable Clean Cooking Model for Urban Poor of Bangladesh
• Rakhi Mehra, Franklin University Switzerland (Lugano) – e-SPIRIT: Entrepreneurial stories from Bhutan
• Saundharaya Khanna, The Society for Technology and Action for Rural Advancement (TARA) – Toolkit Development & Capacity Building for ‘Easing Access to Climate Finance for Local CSOs in India’
• Sruthi Pillai, Technology and Governance Support Forum (TAGS) – Addressing Organic Waste Crisis through a Nutrient Circularity Program in India

• Samiya Selim, University of Liberal Arts Bangladesh – IMAGINE: Inclusive Markets Advance Growth, Inspiring New Endeavors
• Abhijit Dey, Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE), Bangalore, India – Empowering indigenous communities to conserve Mahua trees by rejuvenating Mahua-based sustainable livelihood
• Nandini Velho, Canopy Collective – Nature’s Narrative: Cultivating Conservation Through Creative Collaborations
• Nidhi Batra, Sehreeti Developmental Practices Foundation – Nurturing Ecological Kinship
• Neha Yadav, Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), New Delhi – Mental Health and Resilience in Mountain Agrarian Communities: Investigating the Climate Impact in the Himalayas (MHR-Mo)
• Asma Majeed, Islamia University of Bahawalpur – Harvesting Energy: Empowering Farmers with Agricultural Residue Briquettes
• Mohamed Esham, Sabaragamuwa University of Sri Lanka – From Waste to Plate: Empowering a Peri-Urban Community with Circular Bioeconomy