The Forum On Health, Environment and Development (FORHEAD) is pleased to announce its fifth Summer Institute on Researching Environment and Health: Concepts, Methods, and Cross-Disciplinary Collaboration.
 
Concern about the impact of environmental change on public health in China is mounting and there is a pressing need for high quality research to inform government and public responses. Because many health risks stem from complex interactions between the natural and social environments, collaboration between researchers with different disciplinary expertise is essential if they are to be addressed effectively. But capacity to design and carry out such research is limited.
 
The FORHEAD Summer Institute offers a series of intensive workshops to assist researchers in developing proposals for interdisciplinary projects to be submitted to the Social Science Research Council (SSRC) China Environment and Health Initiative (CEHI) Collaborative Grants Program or other funding opportunities. The Institute 1) introduces researchers to different frameworks and disciplinary approaches to researching environmental health issues, including key concepts and methods; 2) evaluates a number of previous and ongoing studies, highlighting the strengths and weakness of various approaches to interdisciplinarity; and 3) provides feedback on participants’ preliminary research designs.
 
Following the Institute, applicants will be expected to revise their proposals for submission to the SSRC Collaborative Grants Program. However, selection will be through a competitive review process and applications will also be accepted from teams that have not participated in the Institute. A maximum of 15 Collaborative Grants will be awarded.
 
Workshops will be led by experts in the field with different disciplinary expertise, including: Epidemiology, Medical Geography, Risk Management, Economics, Social Psychology, Public Policy, Sociology, and Anthropology.  See the Collaborative Grants RFP for details of this year’s themes. 
 
The Summer Institute will take place from July 21– July 27, 2013 in Shantou, Guangdong Province. Applications are invited from individuals based at Chinese academic institutions (including government research centres) and non-governmental organizations. Applicants should have at least a Master’s degree or equivalent work experience. They should have demonstrated
 
training and/or experience that prepares them to study environment and health problems.
 
The workshop will be held predominantly in Chinese. Applicants will be expected to read a volume of background materials (about 250 pages) before the meeting.
 
Applicants should apply online through the FORHEAD website by May 15th 2013. Please complete the online application forms for both Summer Institute and Collaborative Grants Program, and provide the following materials as required:

1. C.V.
2. An application letter indicating your current research interests, reasons for wanting to participate in the Institute, and how you expect it to inform your future work. Please also provide the names, disciplinary backgrounds and relevant education or training of other team members, including both those who will attend the workshop and those who will not; and the names of two professional references.
3. An outline of your research interests relating to environment or the proposal you want to develop through participation in the workshop (no more than 3 pages). In developing this proposal please refer to the Request for Proposals for the SSRC Collaborative Grants Program.

 
Accommodation, meals and domestic travel costs will be covered by FORHEAD for Chinese participants.    
 
Please direct any questions to forhead@forhead.org.
 
Funding for the FORHEAD Summer Institute is provided by the Rockefeller Brothers Fund. 
 
Please click here for Summer Institute online application; click here for Collaborative Grants online application.