The Irish Research Council (IRC) and the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) are pleased to announce a call for Research Grants as part of their UK-Ireland Collaboration in Digital Humanities.

Overview 

This call aims to support large, collaborative UK-Ireland projects that achieve a transformational impact in the digital humanities through innovative, multidisciplinary research that engages extensively with wider partners. 

Specifically, the call aims to support a diverse range of projects that:

• Build on the momentum of the research networks around defined thematic areas which generate new lines of enquiry and stimulate new debate;
• Build and consolidate new, inclusive partnerships between researchers and stakeholders in the UK and Ireland through collaborative research projects;
• Deliver innovative, interdisciplinary and integrated research projects that are appropriately tailored to the themes being addressed;
• Are genuinely inclusive and collaborative and involve a balance of Research Organisations and stakeholders in both countries which will result in a transformational impact;
• Promote the sharing of best practice and knowledge exchange between institutions in the UK and Ireland, and clearly demonstrate the specific added value of enhanced collaboration in the Digital Humanities.

The projects should take innovative, interdisciplinary approaches to explore the following broad and inclusive themes:  

• Digital Humanities, Emerging Technologies and Research Practices  
• Digital Humanities and Social Innovation 
• Digital Humanities and Cultural Heritage  
• Digital Humanities and the Creative Industries 

Please note that attendance at the Digital Humanities Networking Workshop (October 2019) and/or an award from the Research Networking Call is not a pre-condition of application to this call.

Budget and Grant Sizes
The AHRC expects to provide up to £400,000 full economic cost (fEC), paid at 80% (up to £320,000), for the UK costs of each funded research project. The IRC will provide up to €270,000. Each award must start by 1st August 2021 and should have a duration of up to 36 months. 

Process and Timetable 
The call is expected to be open through Je-S (the online system used by UKRI) for applications from early January and to close in mid-March 2021. Outcomes will be announced in early July 2021 following a joint moderation panel. An outline timeline is presented below: 

For further details please contact:

Irish Research Council (IRC):

Dr Chiara Loda, Programme Manager
Brenda Blake, Research Support Officer
Enquiries: digital.humanities@research.ie

UKRI Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC):

Dr Jamie Davies, International Partnerships Manager
Enquiries:  fic@ahrc.ukri.org

Further Information 
The Research Grants Call is part of a collaborative funding programme between the AHRC and the IRC which aims to deliver a transformational impact on digital humanities research in the UK and Ireland. The programme will exploit complementary strengths in the digital humanities between institutions in the UK and Ireland, leading to new partnerships and cross-disciplinary projects, building capacity and enhancing the integration of humanities and technology in digital humanities development. 

It builds on the UK-Ireland Collaboration in the Digital Humanities scoping workshop that took place in Dublin from 22nd-23rd October 2019 and the UK-Ireland Collaboration in the Digital Humanities Research Networking Call.