A second round of the NEH/AHRC New Directions for Digital Scholarship in Cultural Institutions grant program seeks to advance digital tools and methods used by museums, libraries, archives, and galleries to bring the humanities to global audiences

 

WASHINGTON, D.C. (April 15, 2021) — The National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) today announced that it is now accepting applications for the second round of the NEH/AHRC New Directions for Digital Scholarship in Cultural Institutions. This international grant program was designed to have a transformational impact on digital methods and digital research in cultural institutions. Recipients are eligible to receive grants of up to $150,000.

The program is a joint initiative between NEH and the United Kingdom’s Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC), a component body of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), and funds teams of researchers and cultural institution professionals in both countries. 

The NEH/AHRC New Directions for Digital Scholarship in Cultural Institutions program seeks to advance digital scholarship in cultural institutions such as museums, libraries, galleries, and archives. Successful projects will develop new methods of sharing culture and heritage with global audiences, open new research frontiers, and advance collections-based research methods for the twenty-first century.

Reflecting the collaborative nature of this enterprise, applications must be submitted by bilateral teams with at least one cultural institution from each country. Previously funded projects include an international effort to develop digital methods for identifying and analyzing watermarks on manuscripts by Isaac Newton, and research on using artificial intelligence to enhance access to archival music collections at the Institute of Jazz Studies at Rutgers University–Newark and the Scottish Jazz Archive.

“The past year has changed so much about how we use technology to interact with each other and with our cultural institutions and collections,” said NEH Acting Chairman Adam Wolfson. “This new round of funding aims to tap into that potential by promoting the development of innovative digital methods for studying and sharing the rich contents of the world’s museums, libraries, and archives. We are pleased to be able to partner once again with the UK’s Arts and Humanities Research Council to help spur international cooperation in digital research.”  

“Cultural institutions the world over have demonstrated remarkable resilience and ingenuity throughout the pandemic,” said AHRC Executive Chair, Professor Christopher Smith. “AHRC is delighted to be working again with our friends and colleagues in NEH to bring our joint resources and brilliant researchers together to ensure that they can continue to innovate in the face of a rapidly changing world and bring vital cultural and heritage research to a global audience.”

The application deadline for the NEH/AHRC New Directions for Digital Scholarship in Cultural Institutions grant program is July 8, 2021. Funding opportunity guidelines are available here. Prospective applicants should direct questions about grant proposals to odh@neh.gov or 800-877-8399.