Early-career researchers can now apply for the 2025-2026 Kick-Starter grant. The grant, totalling between 5.000 and 35.000 euros per selected project, is offered by the Resilient Delta initiative to support innovative, transdisciplinary and impact-driven projects.

The Resilient Delta initiative welcomes proposals by early-career academics (PhD candidates and those with up to 5 years of post-PhD experience) at TU Delft, Erasmus University or Erasmus MC. They may apply for 5.000 – 35.000 euros to spend between October 2025 and August 2026.

The purpose of this grant is to encourage early-career academics to pursue innovative projects, and to build a community of transdisciplinary researchers and educators who are in the early stages of their careers.

This grant can be used in a wide variety of ways. The selection procedure for the kick-starter grant works through a stepped approach described below in further detail. We invite pre-proposals that focus on (at least) one of the three key domains of impact. Read more about the three impact domains and the application procedure ¬below the video.

The impact domains

 The domain(s) of your choice should be a point of departure for impact. Focus your impact by (1) getting involved with actors in meaningful places, (2) exploring out-of-the-box methods of doing research and education, and/or (3) developing tangible and impactful outputs.

1. Place-based approaches to accelerate climate justice

This domain invites ideas that take a specific place (such as a street, a neighbourhood or an area) as the starting point to address place-based transition challenges related to climate change and inequality, and work towards novel forms of value identification, creation and recognition. Ideas should ideally align with an existing stakeholder network (preferred), or by initiating one (when well-justified). For this domain, we specifically invite you to show how academic work may strengthen what is already happening locally and connect local struggles to broader societal challenges. Research approaches should consider and safeguard reciprocity, equality and legacy with local communities, civic organizations and residents.

2. Advanced transdisciplinary methodologies and education to strengthen shared learning

This domain invites ideas that scope out new ways to foster knowledge integration between disciplines and find creative ways to appreciate different forms of value creation, in education, research and engagement. For this domain we specifically invite you to build on existing transdisciplinary work and expand integrative practices by facilitating a transfer between practices, audiences and outputs.

3. Tangible prototypes, assets and infrastructures to (re)generate resilience

This domain invites ideas that develop innovative prototypes, tools and measuring techniques for the social and environmental effects of city/delta/port development. Your idea should be concrete enough to be prototyped and should include the involvement of non-academic stakeholders, for example using citizen science methodologies. Consider to prepare, craft and leave a ‘functional prototype’ at the community/actors involved, for example being ‘investigative’ (measuring), ‘contributing’ (functioning solution), ‘experimental’ (such as a collaborative sketch-design).

Procedure

Step 1: Submit your preproposal: Write a preproposal using the attached template and taking into account the call criteria. Deadline for preproposal submission: March 21^st  2025. Please submit your preproposal to resilientdelta@convergence.nl and use the attached template. We welcome you to reach out to resilientdelta@convergence.nl for your queries before submitting a preproposal.

Step 2: Selection of preproposals for full proposal development: RDi selects the most promising, inspiring and relevant proposals for further development. You will receive a “reject” or “pass” result. Please note that a “pass” is not a full guarantee that your project will be awarded. You will hear from us regarding this pre-selection before April 5^th.

Step 3: Co-develop a full proposal with a route to impact and a transdisciplinary method: If you have received a “pass” in April , you are allowed to develop a full project proposal. RDi will provide feedback to your idea and facilitate one afternoon to help you with (1) your desired route for impact, (2) project design and feasibility and (3) opportunity to include student-led support by Erasmus Verbindt. A collaborative working session is hosted at the RDi office in Rotterdam to develop on full proposal in the week of the  21^nd of April. From the 5^th of May onwards, we facilitate optional bi-lateral conversations with our academic leads, business developers and/or project management support to refine your proposal. Full proposal application deadline: July 11th 2025

Step 4: Awarding of full proposals and kick-off : Each project will have its own trajectory towards a full proposal. However we aim for each project to kick-off before December 2025. Celebratory collaborative RELAY-day with all awarded projects at the start of the academic year 2025-2026. Project can formally start end of September at earliest.

Application Criteria

• Specifies a clear explorative impact idea with deliverable(s) and outcome(s) in a maximum of 500 words using the attached template addressing the domain(s) of impact.
• Strengthens Convergence: builds a transdisciplinary link between at least two of three Convergence partners. At least 1 co-applicant needs to be from the other institution[1].
• Initiates a new domain of societal impact of academic work, while being honest, modest and realistic towards its impact-outlook. Ideas should be Rijnmond region-oriented, have a learning by doing approach and employ an action-research-based rationale.
• The maximum RDi in-cash contribution is 35K per project. Including a budget and project planning is not yet required for the preproposal. Please consider that RDi funds cannot be used to compensate hours within existing contracts and your department needs to provide the required administrative support.
• Only PhD students or those with up to 5 years of post-PhD experience can apply as main applicant. Each researcher can only apply as main applicant for one Kick-starter grant and for one as co-applicant. Positive credits for a duo-application consisting of two early career researchers from different institutes. Main applicants who have not received any form of Resilient Delta funding in the past are favoured.
• Commits to becoming part of the RDi-community for example by joining the kick-starter community events, collaboratively developing integrated deliverables, methodological innovation or aligning with a specific larger grant or consortium.

[1] Researchers affiliated with internal research institutes such as DRIFT, Erasmus UPT and AMS Institute are allowed to participate as co-applicant at cost rate tariffs. The same holds for the Rotterdam University of Applied Sciences (Hogeschool Rotterdam).

What does becoming a member of the RDi kick-starter grant community mean?

• Receiving a maximum of 35.000 euro in-cash to execute your impact-idea;
• Workshop series for cross pollination on engagement, ethics, advanced transdisciplinary methodologies and dissemination;
• Kick-off and closure individual coaching conversation with Resilient Delta academic lead(s) and business developer(s), focused on methodology and societal impact;
• Support in spreading and linking your proposal to other (funding) initiatives and/or calls;
• Upon request, potential to use RDi research infrastructures, for example the Rotterdam Atmospheric Monitoring Network, Maptionnaire, LISA, Bos op Poten and WijkWijs and free use of co-working, experiment and meeting space at Resilient Delta’s office (“the Yellow Shack” Galileistraat 33, Rotterdam).;
• Options to setup links/collaborations with local stakeholders and researchers from other disciplines within the Convergence partners, City of Rotterdam, and other public and private partners (subject to capacity) via our research theme communities;
• Access to our podia for your sharing your research and impact ideas and access to new networks.