Ethics Small Grants for Graduate Students
The McCoy Family Center for Ethics in Society offers graduate students two funding opportunities to either support their research or build collaborations in ways that meaningfully engage with ethical questions.
The Community Building Grant supports creating events or programs that encourage reflection on the ethical dimensions of research, professional commitments, and career choices.
The Research Grant provides funding to support research activities that broadly connect to ethics.
Funding amount
Up to $1,000 for Community Building Grants and up to $2,000 for Research Grants. If you have an idea that requires more funding, please send it our way anyway. We will still consider it and may be able to connect you with other funding opportunities.
When are the proposals due?
Proposals are evaluated on a rolling basis.
Who can apply?
Stanford graduate and professional students.
Questions?
Please contact the Associate Director of Graduate & Undergraduate Programs, Collin Anthony Chen (canthony [at] stanford.edu (canthony[at]stanford[dot]edu)) if you have any questions.
See below for more details and to apply.
Community Building Grant
The Community Building Grant supports creating events or programs that encourage reflection on the ethical dimensions of research, professional commitments, and career choices.
Potential programs could include: the development of a new ethics workshop for grad students, hosting an event about the ethical issues in your field, organizing an ethics working group, among many other possibilities. The grants are intended to support programs or events that will engage the Stanford community and/or other graduate students, but not for individual research or projects.
Funding amount: up to $1,000. If you have an idea that requires more than $1,000, please send it our way. We may have other suggestions for funding sources.
How can funds be used? Possible expenses include but are not limited to: travel costs or fees for guest speakers, food expenses for events, creating marketing materials, or to purchase other materials needed for the program (books, software, printing, etc).
Who can apply? Stanford graduate and professional school students
Proposals are accepted on a rolling basis. Please try to submit your grant at least one month in advance of your event/program. For larger events/programs, please allow six weeks or more.
Summer Proposals are permitted.
Research Grant
The Research Grant provides funding to support research activities that broadly connect to ethics.
Potential uses for funding include: conference travel and fees where you are a presenter, paying research subjects, or data collection costs.
Funding amount: Up to $2,000. Proposals for larger than $2,000 may be considered in exceptional circumstances. Students cannot receive multiple sources of funding for the same expenses.
Who can apply? Stanford doctoral students, master’s students, or professional school students
Application Requirements:
- 2-3 page Project Summary
- CV
- Unofficial Transcript
- Budget Spreadsheet
- IRB Certification (if applicable)
- Letter of Acceptance for Conference Travel
When are the proposals due? Proposals are evaluated on a rolling basis.
Recipients will be notified within three weeks of submitting their proposal.
Funding can take up to six weeks to be transferred.
Students cannot receive funds multiple times from the grant.
Applications for summer research or travel are permitted.
All Grants are treated as taxable income.
Past Grant Recipient: The Caribbean Studies Reading Group
The Caribbean Studies Reading Group (CSRG) Recipient: Kengthsagn Louis (Psychology grad student), 2022-23 academic year. The Caribbean Studies Reading Group (CSRG) organized Stanford University's third annual Caribbean Studies Symposium (CSS) from May 17-18, 2023, in honor of Haitian Flag Day (May 18). The theme of the symposium focused on “Caribbean Epistemologies,” to commemorate Stanford's legacy of Caribbean Studies rooted in the scholarship of Sylvia Wynter, who taught at Stanford from 1977 to 1997 and served as chair of the Program in African & African American Studies. The symposium consisted of a virtual keynote address by Tao Leigh Goffe and Eddie Bruce-Jones and three virtual panel discussions featuring an interdisciplinary array of visiting scholars (e.g., Dr. Nathalie Pierre).
Past Grant Recipient: Ethics and Politics of the Clean Energy Transition in Indigenous Communities
Ethics and Politics of the Clean Energy Transition in Indigenous Communities Recipient: Sergio Sanchez Lopez, (E-IPER grad student), 2022-23 academic year. The clean energy transition presents a once-in-a-generation opportunity: equitable and inclusive decarbonization. Scaling renewable energy will lower carbon emissions and will be profitable for businesses. But at the same time —if not done correctly— it will exacerbate the complex societal and environmental justice issues created by fossil fuels. Indigenous communities across the Americas will have added pressure on their lands during this transition. With the Center's support, we explore the political and ethical components of the clean energy transition. We are planning a conference for students, staff, and academics who are interested in the intersection of justice and the clean energy transition.
Past Grant Recipient: Ethics in Authorship
Ethics in Authorship Recipients: Caroline Ferguson, Kristen Green, and Meghan Shea (E-IPER grad students), 2021-22 academic year. Authorship is the currency of academia. Thus, the approach taken to authorship and author order is a crucial ethical problem facing academics across disciplines and at every career stage. Scholars have taken many creative approaches to authorship, including games, outright parody, and circumvention. Others have attempted to “stay with the trouble” of authorship, advancing feminist, decolonizing, and anti-racist approaches. We will explore the ethics of authorship in a 4-week series with guest lectures open to all, paired with amore intimate journal club comprised of diverse students to dive deeper.
Past Grant Recipient: A Participatory Approach to Cuttlefish Population Monitoring
Recipient: Marina Luccioni (Biology), 2023-24 Cuttlefish are one of the most important species for small scale fisheries in the Mediterranean Sea, however their stock is potentially overfished and data-deficient. Understanding spawning trends and indicators of cuttlefishhealth is especially important on the island of Corsica, where food sovereignty is of social and political importance.