Opportunity profile: Arriving at carbon-free transport

The DecarboN8 network’s first scheme targets pilot projects in social, engineering and physical sciences

• Applications from early career researchers are welcome as the aim is for around half of the projects to be led by academics in this group. 
• Applications will be reviewed ‘blind’ (where the reviewers will not know who the applicant is) so the emphasis is on the quality of the project itself.
• Bids do not have to focus on the north of England but should be applicable there.
• Projects can focus on ways to reduce travel and bids are as welcome from social scientists as physical scientists.
• Explain where your proposal could lead: this is just seed funding so your project must have potential for further growth.

In 2018 the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council put out a call for new transport networks to focus on decarbonisation, and the DecarboN8 Network Plus was created as a result. It is made up of the N8 universities, a group of eight universities in the North of England.

DecarboN8’s first funding scheme is for pilot projects in any discipline (but logically the social sciences and engineering and physical sciences are especially implicated) that engage with DecarboN8’s mission. Projects should last for a maximum of six months and should use a place-based approach towards decarbonising travel. As this is for seedcorn funding, projects should demonstrate that they have a credible path towards higher value funding applications to other funding bodies.