Deadline: September 19, 2025
Proposals are being accepted for the Global Empowerment Meeting (GEM) Incubation Fund 2025. The GEM Incubation Fund supports emerging research that strives to find solutions to the pressing development challenges of our time. Each year, the fund will support research proposals relevant to the changing key theme highlighted at the Harvard Center for International Development’s (CID) annual Global Empowerment Meeting (GEM) that show clear potential to advance knowledge and generate innovations in practice with direct impact in developing economies.
2025 Fundng Round
At GEM25: Catalyzing AI for Inclusive Change participants addressed critical technical, governance, and ethical questions surrounding AI, exploring its transformative potential to drive – or setback – the next generation of economic growth and sustainable development. While the focus of this year’s meeting was on AI, they explored how AI has the potential to drive innovation, increase productivity, and contribute to economic growth and well-being in emerging economies—or further exacerbate socio–economic divides.
The 2025 GEM Incubation Fund will give special attention to research that stems from conversations in the Incubation Rooms but welcomes research on any relevant topic. It will financially support new research which seeks to incubate solutions, recommend policy action, and develop tools to address what successful development of AI technologies in emerging country contexts looks like.
There will be funding allocated for research proposals focused on Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, and Sri Lanka. Preference will be given to proposals aiming to generate evidence and evaluate the impact of AI use cases in agriculture, education, health, air quality, firms & productivity, and governance. This funding is made possible by the World Bank South Asia Digital team.
A portion of the funds awarded will be reserved for research proposals by Harvard Kennedy School faculty working at the intersection of AI, gender equity, and development, made possible by a gift from Christina Bai-Chen to support collaborations between WAPPP and CID.
Grant
- These grants will cover incubation and/or seed funding related to preliminary research ideas, such as conducting background research, developing collaborations, travel to collect data or visit field sites, materials, data purchase, and research assistant time. Funds may not be used to cover tuition, faculty salaries, or stipends. Indirect costs are capped at 20%.
- The average grant size is expected to be around $20,000. Smaller grants with demonstrated value for money will be more competitive. The suggested period of performance is six to twelve months.
Eligibility
- Faculty with PI rights at their university are eligible to apply to the GEM Incubation Fund.
- Preference will be given to applicants who attended GEM and to proposals that include academic and practitioner collaborations focused on what successful development of AI technologies in emerging country contexts looks like for developing economies.
- This funding will support research projects ready to begin work immediately, with demonstrated buy-in from relevant researchers and practitioners.
- Faculty are allowed to submit one application per round.
Application
Researchers should submit their proposals through CID’s Online Application Portal. Any questions may be directed to [KL1] at [email protected].
The application will include the following materials:
- Applicant information
- Two-page PDF CV for all PI’s and Co-PI’s
- Project summary
- Policy problem & motivation
- Project contributions
- Research methodology & design
- Project viability & risks
- Project timeline
- Budget and Budget Narrative (budget template can be accessed here)
- Letter of support from recipient institution (required for external applicants only)
- Letters of support from any policy partners/local collaborators (optional)
For more information, visit GEM Incubation Fund.
