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Funding Opportunities

With the generous support of our funders, the Global Philosophy of Religion Project (GPR-2) offers a range of funding opportunities to support research, public engagement, teaching, and travel. These grants aim to empower scholars, educators, and practitioners from diverse backgrounds and regions, fostering a truly global and inclusive approach.


1. Research Funding

We provide funding streams addressing key themes in global philosophy of religion, with a total overall value of £300,000:

Postdoctoral Research Fellowship

Call ended

  • Eligibility: Specialist in Philosophy of Religion with a doctorate (or near completion) in Philosophy, Theology, Religious Studies, or a related subject or equivalent qualifications
  • Duration: Full-time, 2 year (to June 2027)
  • Start date: July 2025 or as soon as possible thereafter
  • Deadline: 01/04/2025
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Science-Engaged Research

Call ended

  • Funding Amount: Up to £30,000
  • Use: Events and publications
  • Eligibility: Teams must include one philosopher/philosophical theologian and one empirical scientist
  • Encouraged: Projects that are led or co-led by researchers from underrepresented religious traditions or underrepresented countries
  • Deadline: 31/03/2025
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Theoretical and Conceptual Research

Call ended

  • Funding Amount: Up to £30,000
  • Use: Organize events, produce publications
  • Encouraged: Projects that are led or co-led by researchers from underrepresented religious traditions or underrepresented countries
  • Deadline: 31/03/2025
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2. Public Engagement and Impact Funding

Funding totalling £50,000 is available for public-facing dissemination of global philosophy of religion research, focusing on diverse traditions and regions. Details will be announced in the coming months.

Public Engagement and Impact

Call ended

  • Funding Amount: Up to £10,000 (lower request amounts encouraged)
  • Use: Activities and content aimed at non-academic audiences
  • Aims: To stimulate interest in and impact of research in global philosophy of religion
  • Encouraged: Projects that are led or co-led by researchers from underrepresented religious traditions or underrepresented countries
  • Deadline: 19/09/2025
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3. Teaching and Training Funding

We support innovative teaching and training initiatives through several schemes, with a total overall value of £100,000:

Dharmanath Scholarship in Jain Studies (2025/26)

Call ended

MA by Research in Theology of Religion

  • Amount: up to 100% tuition fees covered (£5,006 UK. £22,600 international)
  • Eligibility: Students applying to a MA by Research in Theology and Religion at the University of Birmingham, with a dissertation on Jain Studies. Applicants must be accepted on the course beforehand. Apply to the MA here: https://www.birmingham.ac.uk/study/postgraduate/subjects/theology-and-religion-courses/theology-and-religion-phd.
  • Availability: 2 grants for 2025-2026
  • Deadline: 30/04/2025 > extended to 10/05/2025
  • Application to the grant: See details in "Read More"
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Dharmanath Scholarship in Jain Studies (2026/27)

Call open until 30 April 2026

MA by Research in Theology of Religion

  • Amount: up to 100% tuition fees covered (at a home fees rate, i.e. £5,181)
  • Eligibility: Students applying to a MA by Research in Theology and Religion at the University of Birmingham, with a dissertation on Jain Studies. Applicants must be accepted on the course beforehand. Apply to the MA here: https://www.birmingham.ac.uk/study/postgraduate/subjects/theology-and-religion-courses/theology-and-religion-phd.
  • Availability: 1 grant for 2026-2027
  • Deadline: 30/04/2026
  • Application to the grant: See details in "Read More"
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William Paton MA Stipends

Call open (last starting date for the MA program being September 2026)

  • Amount: £2,000
  • Eligibility: Students on the Global Philosophy of Religion Pathway at the University of Birmingham
  • Availability: 10 stipends for 2025-2027
  • Deadline: rolling, but applicants need to be accepted on the course before applying (contact gpr@contacts.bham.ac.uk for more details)

 

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Junior Scholar Coaching Stipends

Call open

  • Amount: £1,000
  • Purpose: Pairs of junior and senior academics collaborate through one-on-one coaching sessions.
  • Timescale: Three one-on-one meetings by the end of May 2027.
  • Deadline: Considered on an ongoing basis until all are awarded.
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Book Stipends

Call open

  • Amount: £2,000
  • Eligibility: Academics at underfunded institutions to purchase books for library collections.
  • Deadline: Considered on an ongoing basis until all are awarded.
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Course Development Stipends

Call closed

  • Amount: £2,000.
  • Purpose: Develop or revise courses that diversify philosophy of religion curricula.
  • Deadline: Considered on an ongoing basis until 31/01/2026 or all are awarded.
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4. Travel Bursaries

Travel Bursary 2 - Calabar

Call open until 15 March 2026

  • Purpose: For participants delivering talks at international conference in Calabar, Nigeria (2026)
  • Details: Bursaries to cover travel, lodging, and meals for selected speakers
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Travel Bursary 1 - Manila

Call ended for Manila

  • Purpose: For participants delivering talks at international conference in Manila, Philippines (2025)
  • Details: Up to £1,500 per bursary, with 8 bursaries available.
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Grant Holders

Theoretical and Conceptual Research

Grants for projects that address issues relevant to our GPR-2 themes from theoretical or conceptual perspectives.

Modesty and Worship in Islam

Fatema Amijee

University of British Columbia, Canada

Bringing Contemporary Philosophy of Religion to Latin American Scholars II: The Problem of Suffering and the Meaning of Life

Carlo Rossi

Universidad de Santiago, Chile

Robert K. Garcia

Baylor University, USA

Recognizing the Real behind Phenomena: A Recognition-First Epistemology from Chinese Islamic Philosophy

Qiu Lin

Simon Fraser University, Canada

Janice Jeong

Simon Fraser University, Canada

Animistic Variations: Philosophy and Religion in and beyond the Pacific

Michael Mawson

University of Auckland, New Zealand

Joanna Leidenhag

University of Leeds, UK

The Afterlife and the Purposeful Life in African Thought: Exploring a Conventionalist Model

Oritsegbubemi Oyowe

University of the Western Cape, South Africa

Simon Beck

University of the Western Cape, South Africa

Sanelisiwe Ndlovu

University of South Africa, South Africa

Spiritual Hierarchies, Relationality, and Flourishing: Brazilian Contributions to Philosophy of Religion

José Eduardo Porcher

Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil

Marciano Adilio Spica

Universidade Estadual do Centro-Oeste, Brazil

Science-Engaged Research

The Spiritual Significance of Trait Connectedness for the Spiritual But Not Religious

T Ryan Byerly

University of Sheffield, UK

Farhood Malekzad

Technical University of Munich, Germany

The Philosophy of Brazilian Indigenous Shamanic Religion: Contact with Spiritual Beings as a Path for Human Flourishing

Renato Matoso

Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Daniel Mograbi

Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

The Nature of Conceptual Coherence in Religious Thought: Ontology, Ritual, and Meaning

Mousa Mohammadian

American University of Beirut, Lebanon

Tamer Amin

American University of Beirut, Lebanon

Zainab Sabra

Erasmus University, Rotterdam, Netherlands

Maliki Ghossainy

Boston University, USA

Spiritual Realities and Human Meaning in the Indigenous Amazon

Miguel Farias

University of Oxford, UK

David Newheiser

Florida State University, USA

Mental Representation of Supernatural Agents and Emotional Regulation: A Cross-Cultural Framework for Experimental Philosophy of Religion

Nastassja Pugliese

Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Jesus Landeria-Fernandez

Pontifical Catholic University of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Is There a Place for Religious Value?

Ara Norenzayan

University of British Columbia, Canada

Davide Andrea Zappulli

University of British Columbia, Canada

Matt Billet

University of California, Irvine, USA

Lok-Chi Chan

National Taiwan University, Taiwan

Department of Philosophy

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