UW Seeks Proposals from Public-Serving Organizations in Washington State Interested in Research Partnerships
The University of Washington’s Center for Studies in Demography and Ecology (CSDE) is seeking brief proposals from local and state government agencies, or non-profit organizations serving the public, for practical research ideas that could be pursued in collaboration with UW faculty and staff. The goal of this effort is to offer academic researcher expertise and time to projects that will contribute to policy or practice that serves the public.
Call for Applications for CSDE Accelerate Policy and Research for Greater Impact
Public-serving organizations originate research topics that will provide insights into substantive operations or policy decisions related to their work. Academic partners will be matched based on expertise and interest in pursuing the public-serving organization’s research interests.
CSDE is keen to make matches and support proposals on any research that serves the public interest. We will look at the nature of the research proposals that emerge – and help direct you to potential funders for the work. We also recognize the challenges of funding in the current environment. We are especially interested in supporting proposals that focus on related to policy, programming, or practice on these topics:
- Criminal legal system
- Health
- Public finance
- Higher education & career pathways
- Infrastructure (i.e., housing, transportation, and energy)
We also welcome proposals on other topics. After projects have been accepted, CSDE will work to identify potential funding sources and provide guidance and support on preparing competitive applications.
Events to Build Partnerships
By mid-March, CSDE will select up to 10 proposals for which we have multiple faculty or staff at UW that could offer technical or substantive expertise. In April and May 2026, CSDE will convene two in-person live events for the potential partners to build trust, develop ideas, and write specific proposals. The goal of these partnerships is to draft a multi-year research proposal for private or public funding.
If selected, partner organizations agree to the following:
- Participate in a virtual introductory event on Wednesday, March 18, 2026 from 11am-12:30pm PT
- Send 2-4 staff to an-person event in Olympia on Friday, April 24th, 2026 from 9am-4pm, to build partnerships with UW researchers and develop preliminary research scopes of work.
- Send at least 2 staff who attended the first live event to an in-person event on the Seattle campus of the University of Washington on Friday, May 22, 2026 from 9am-4pm, to further develop a competitive research proposal for submission to a funder
How to apply?
Interested organizations should fill out this short survey by February 15, 2026. The survey asks for the following information:
- Name of organization
- Name of unit (if applicable) within organization
- Name, Title, and Email of submitting staff person
- Names of other staff members involved in the proposal (or likely to attend the meetings).
- Up to 3 research topics that would have practical value to the work of your organization and the public good.
- For each research topic, any resources (e.g., technical skills, data, staff time) that you have in house.
- For each research topic, any resources (e.g., technical skills, data, staff time) that you need from academic partners.
- (Optional) List of any UW faculty or staff that you would be interested in partnering with.
Program Support
This initiative is supported by a partnership between the University of Washington (UW)’s Center for Studies in Demography and Ecology (CSDE) and the Social Science Research Council (SSRC).
Funding for the initiative derives from an award from the Social Science Research Council’s Policy Innovation Days Program and support from the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institutes of Child Health and Human Development via the P2C HD042828 for CSDE’s Demography, Disparities, Data Science & Decisions (D4) program.
