We are delighted to have awarded £71,832 to support four inclusivity initiatives and interventions put forward by the Academy’s member social science societies, as part of our equality, diversity and inclusion programme of work in partnership with our member societies and ESRC (UKRI).
In the 2026/2027 round of our EDI Small Grants Fund, an independent external assessment panel awarded funding to the British International Studies Association (BISA), the Political Studies Association (PSA), the Royal Economic Society (RES), and a joint programme between the University Association for Contemporary European Studies (UACES) and the Political Studies Association (PSA).
Dr Lizzy Norman-Sargent, the Academy’s EDI Programme Manager, said, “Once again, we were pleased to receive a competitive number of bids to the Academy’s Small Grants Fund from our member learned social science societies network to support their inclusivity initiatives. We hope the learnings from these interventions will provide useful insights to fostering inclusivity in the social science higher education community, especially in relation to widening opportunities and enriching teaching and learning.”
Stian Westlake FAcSS, Executive Chair of ESRC (UKRI), said, “I am pleased that ESRC is supporting these four initiatives through the Academy of Social Sciences. A thriving research and innovation system depends on drawing on the broadest possible pool of talent, ideas, and perspectives. Ensuring that everyone with the potential to contribute can do so is fundamental to maintaining the excellence for which UK research is recognised around the world.
“It is particularly encouraging to see the breadth and ambition of the activities being funded through these awards. They reflect the vital role that learned societies play in developing talent, widening participation, and creating the conditions in which excellence can flourish, regardless of background or circumstance.”
BISA received funding to drive forward their EDI strategy in relation to AI for BISA members and to produce a helpful toolkit for use across the social science disciplines. These initiatives aim to draw on expertise within international studies and host conversations about how to take inclusivity seriously as an ethical dimension of how AI is used (or not) and then share this knowledge and expertise with other disciplines.
Juliet Dryden, CEO/Director of BISA, said, “We are absolutely delighted to have received funding from the Academy of Social Sciences for this groundbreaking research looking into the intersection of AI ethics and EDI in international studies.”
Funding was awarded to the PSA to lead a collaborative project, with the Political Studies journal team at the University of York and Sage publishing, to support 25 politics and international relations scholars from under-represented backgrounds. The scholars will be leading their first funded research project in a Principal Investigator role. Learnings from the programme will be captured via a series of workshops and shared through openly available practical resources for other individuals and organisations to use.
Upon hearing the news of receiving funding for their initiative, the team at PSA commented, “We’re delighted to receive this funding, enabling us to support under-represented scholars to overcome barriers, build confidence and take the next step towards leading research and shaping our discipline’s future.”
RES received funding for the dissemination of a ‘Culture Toolkit’, which has been designed to provide Heads of Economics Departments in higher education (HE), and departmental staff more broadly, with actionable tools and practical guidance to improve the professional culture and inclusivity within their teams, and therefore the discipline as a whole. The project will work with economics departments, wider schools and related social science disciplines to support an inclusive culture and strengthen the research and HE pipeline.
Joe Grice, Chair of the RES Standards of Conduct Committee, said, “We’re delighted to have secured this funding to support the dissemination of our Culture Toolkit project. By providing practical guidance for economics departments, led by their Heads of Department, we aim to help universities create more inclusive and supportive working environments. This funding will enable us to reach more institutions across the UK and share our learning with colleagues in other social sciences, helping to embed inclusive practices more widely across higher education.”
Finally, UACES and the PSA were awarded funding to deliver ‘Pathways into Social Science’, a joint UACES-PSA doctoral pipeline initiative designed to widen access to postgraduate research in politics, political science and European studies. The programme will target prospective PhD applicants who face structural barriers to academic careers and who may lack access to academic networks, mentoring and information about doctoral funding opportunities. This initiative directly supports inclusivity in the research and higher-education pipeline through collaboration between two learned societies.
Dr. William Daniel, UACES EDI Officer, said, “We are delighted to receive this funding. Working with the PSA, we will open doors to doctoral research in Politics and European Studies for people who face structural barriers.”
The Academy’s work on equality, diversity and inclusivity aims to encourage and facilitate greater action to support inclusivity across member social science societies and their higher education communities. We do this by working together to share resources, learning and to maximise the potential to innovate and effect real and positive change. Currently, the programme is focusing on fostering inclusivity in research, training and innovation, and encouraging collaboration both within, but also beyond, social science societies and their communities. You can find out more about our work in this area here.