Deadline: November 15, 2019 00:00 CET| Apply here
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Eligibility: The grant is open to any consortium or individual with the ambition to improve policies, programs or knowledge in the field of security and rule of law in fragile and conflict-affected countries. Think-tanks, (I)NGOs, academics, universities, private sector organizations, government institutions, journalists, independent researchers, data specialists, learning experts, and PhD candidates are all welcome to submit proposals. Partnerships between individuals and organizations are highly encouraged, particularly partnerships that link people from different global regions.

Knowledge Management Fund 2019

The Knowledge Management Fund is the Knowledge Platform’s instrument to financially support activities arising from its network. The small-scale grants awarded by the Fund offer a low barrier to entry for innovative, agile and experimental proposals.

The aim of proposals is to diversify thinking and evidence in the Security & Rule of Law (SRoL) field, particularly in Fragile and Conflict-Affected Settings (FCAS).

The KMF is a €300,000 annual fund that awards grants of up to €15,000 for events, research ideas and other initiatives that contribute to improving the quality of knowledge generated by the SRoL field, and its subsequent uptake.

KMF Thematic Headlines

In 2019, the KMF is changing its focus: away from topic-based headlines (such as human security or transitional justice) to focus more on how and why knowledge is generated and used.

This will help projects feed more directly into the knowledge-brokering role of the Secretariat. It will also build on learning from programs that is practically useful for practitioners and policymakers.

This new focus acknowledges the diversity of security and rule of law expertise within our
network, and offers applicants to the KMF the flexibility to develop ideas that tackle urgent and emerging issues, based on their knowledge of the many dimensions of fragile contexts.

1. Change and Learning Processes

This headline explores how change and learning happens in the field of SRoL. Specifically, this theme will help shed light on the exact mechanisms by which people, organizations and institutions working on SRoL change and learn.

This can be in a number of ways: within programs, through feedback loops between practice and policymaking, and how learning and knowledge that has been gained or generated is identified and used.

Example areas for investigation might include (but are not limited to):

• how people, organizations and institutions practically diverge from established and
  conventional practices
• how research methods and partnerships adapt more effectively to fragile contexts
• how we can combine qualitative and quantitative approaches in measuring change
• why barriers exist to more adaptive programming approaches and what can be done to overcome them or use the opportunities that do exist

Projects under this headline should produce knowledge about change and learning processes relevant for and shareable with the wider KPSRL community.

2. Examining and Improving Policy

There is an increasing focus on and demand for evidence and research in policymaking, including in the field of SRoL. While new evidence is being generated every day, there are still many evidence gaps on the assumptions that underpin policy within the SRoL field.

These might include the assumed positive effect of particular sectors, such as the private sector, on peace and stability, or the assumed positive impact of specific policies. There are also policy gaps rather than evidence gaps.

This headline aims to explore these issues by focusing on the SRoL policies of programming and policy actors. Projects under this headline could focus on (but are not limited to):

• generating new evidence or identifying ‘what works’ within the SRoL field, with the aim of informing policy
• helping programming and policy actors develop and improve their SRoL policies
• disseminating existing evidence to a wider policy and practice audience
• measuring the impact of policies
• testing the quality of evidence available for policymakers and practitioners

Projects under this headline should identify a specific policy (gap) or policy area of a SRoL
programming or policy actor where possible, and produce findings relevant for the wider KPSRL community.

Interested in applying for the Knowledge Management Fund 2019? Register your participation by following the registration link and taking the suggested steps.

For more opportunities, check our opportunities section and subscribe to our weekly newsletters.