Research

Matching Research Fund Program

The Polson Institute announces a new funding mechanism directed toward increasing research productivity and publications of Development Sociology (DS) faculty (professorial and research associates). To achieve this objective, the Polson Institute will provide matching funds to DS faculty who have obtained a grant that already includes funding for graduate research assistants or postdoctoral associates. The underlying rationale for this program stems from recognition that many faculty do not include line items for postdoctoral associates or graduate assistants in budgets because of their high costs. By lowering the effective cost of research assistant positions, the Polson Institute hopes to encourage faculty to include budget lines for research assistants in all of their grant applications, including small and mid-sized grant applications; and, in turn, increase the number of externally funded Development Sociology grants.

This program will provide matching support for a small number of graduate students and postdoctoral associates working on faculty funded research projects. Our premise is that graduate students engaged in collaborative research projects with faculty members will benefit professionally from the close working relationship and be more likely to complete their degrees in a timely fashion.

Program Priorities: Faculty seeking matching funding for a junior researcher should speak to the Polson Institute Director about their proposed project. The Polson Institute’s Steering Committee will review requests for matching funds and give priority, in the following order, to faculty projects that are (1) externally funded by government or private funding agencies; (2) refereed internal Cornell funded projects (e.g., ISS, Bronfenbrenner, etc.); (3) other grants and contracts.

The deadline for the first cycle of matching funding requests was October 15, 2007. While Cycle 2 awards will not be made till the next fiscal year, after July 1 2008, faculty considering submitting an application who have already submitted an external grant proposal or are in the process of preparing an external proposal should contact the Polson Institute Director, Doug Gurak, as soon as possible. It is important that we be kept informed of potential funding needs in order to be able to meet needs in a timely fashion.

For the formal application, faculty should submit the full externally funded project proposal and budget (with confidential faculty salary details removed) and a one-page statement describing the type of junior researcher they propose to hire, the amount of matching funds requested, and the period of support. In addition, the statement should briefly describe the research objectives and work that the junior researcher will carry out in collaboration with the faculty member.

The proposed research assistant/associate need not be a Development Sociology graduate student and, under exceptional circumstances, could be an undergraduate student. The total amount of matching fund requests cannot exceed $20,000 nor cover more than 50 percent of the cost of the position. The amount allocated for this program will vary from year to year both because the Institute’s budget will vary considerably over the next few years and because we will be assessing the effectiveness of the program. Graduate students and non-DS faculty may not submit requests for matching funds.

Research Working Groups

Polson Institute research activities are grounded in Research Working Groups (RWGs) formed through collaborations among Development Sociology faculty and graduate students, as well as with colleagues and practitioners in development at Cornell and beyond. RWGs concentrate research activity, promote special seminars and lectures, and collaborate with colleagues to build knowledge and capacity in the field of development through intellectual exchange, outreach and external funding. RWGs link to one or more of the institute themes (see Mission). Current Research Working Groups are described at the links below. The process for forming new RWGs is described in the Programs section of this website.

» Changing Rural Societies in North America and Europe
» Displacement
» Food Systems in the Global Economy
» International Agriculture Trade Policy
» Migration Issues Group
» Social Movements