New Ladenburg Research Networks to Focus on Technologies and Methods for Participation

Programme offers up to €500,000 for interdisciplinary and cross-national research projects that investigate approaches for technology-based participation.

The Ladenburg Research Networks Programme (Ladenburger Kolleg) by Daimler und Benz Stiftung (Daimler and Benz Foundation) supports interdisciplinary research projects carried out by several working groups at a number of different research organisations in Germany and abroad. Research projects within the Ladenburg Research Networks are subsidised for a period of three years. The programme is designed to offer members of the research network the freedom to autonomously determine their own research programmes. Members of the cluster regularly meet at the foundation.

As part of the programme, Daimler und Benz Stiftung issues regular calls with different thematic focus areas.

The topic of the new call is on ‘New Technologies and Innovative Methods for Participation‘.

Funding is offered for an interdisciplinary and possibly also cross-national research project that investigates approaches for innovative, technology-based participation. These approaches should take the form of methods and instruments that can enable, intensify, improve, or expedite participatory decision-making processes in terms of various different matters and stakeholder constellations.

A possible point of departure of such a project is a decision-making situation that is to be shaped in a participatory manner through the innovative use of technology and methods. Alternatively, the project may also begin with expertise for an innovative technology whose potential for participatory processes is to be tapped in the future.

The foundation invites projects to consider different types of perspectives on the topic of participation, including approaches from political sciences, sociology, communication theory and psychology.

Proposals may be submitted by independent research group leaders at universities and non-profit, non-educational research institutions in Germany. The call is open to scientists from all disciplines.

A grant of up to €500,000 is provided for a period of three years to cover primarily positions for doctoral students and travel expenses.

The application process has two stages. Initially, applicants submit a project outline in German or English via email. Following the pre-selection process and initial review, the foundation then invites individual applicants to submit a full proposal.

The submission deadline for the current call is 14 January 2024.

(This report was the subject of a RESEARCHconnect Newsflash.)