SPRITE+ Global Partners Programme
- spriteplus
- Oct 30
- 5 min read
Background
Much of the current research on digital Trust, Identity, Privacy, and Security (TIPS) takes place in the context of developed western economics. Yet globally, countries with rapidly developing digital economies face significant research challenges in these areas. As digital transformation accelerates, especially in regions across Africa, South Asia, and Latin America, there is a growing gap in understanding how local contexts respond to challenges related to TIPS in digital systems. There is a need for nuanced, context-specific studies that explore how historical, political, and socio-economic factors influence people’s attitudes and behaviours in digital economies.
To address this gap, SPRITE+ is inviting UK based SPRITE+ members to submit proposals for our “TIPS in Global Context: Identifying Untapped Research Opportunities” programme. The objective of the programme is to enable new scholarly collaborations between UK researchers from the SPRITE+ network and researchers from low and middle-income economies.
Programme objectives and outcomes
The objective of the programme is to enable researchers in low and middle-income economies and UK researchers from SPRITE+ to kickstart new research collaborations via sponsored visits for the purposes of identification of untapped research opportunities in digital TIPS.
We are inviting UK-based SPRITE+ Members to submit proposals for short, pilot projects and exploratory work that will build relationships and generate new research ideas. Our scope is broad, but proposals must focus on context-specific ways in which digital TIPS challenges are managed, and harm is mitigated. For instance:
Historical, political, socio-economic, and cultural influences on perceptions, attitudes, and behaviour relevant to TIPS;
Issues of data sovereignty, particularly for indigenous or marginalised communities;
Approaches to cybersecurity challenges, such as access management, that might suggest novel approaches for the UK;
How small and microbusinesses establish trust in and secure digital services;
Approaches to mitigate online harassment and harm, financial cybercrime or similar online crimes;
Approaches to harnessing advances in AI to mitigate TIPS challenges;
TIPS issues that arise when advances in AI are integrated in work or leisure contexts, and what strategies are used by individuals / organisations to manage these;
A regionally or culturally specific TIPS challenge that is managed in a creative way.
Funded grants are expected to lead to the below outcomes:
In person meetings between partners (i.e., SPRITE+ Member[s] and overseas partner[s]) to advance the collaboration.
Production of a white paper/ report outlining specific research opportunities identified by the partners that address the “TIPS in Global Contexts” theme of the program.
Submission of an article to an appropriate media outlet (e.g. The Conversation or equivalent) in each partner country that highlights the main findings/insights from the collaboration, the partners and SPRITE+,
And/or a research plan for submitting a grant proposal.
Outputs will be published on the SPRITE+ website alongside a short report outlining the promising areas of research you identified during your collaboration for the benefit of the community. Successful applicants will also be required to produce an end of grant report. SPRITE+ will provide letters of support for promising projects applying for further funding.
Funding purposes
Applicants can request up to £20,000 (100% fEC, of which SPRITE+ will fund 80% [i.e., £16,000). Funding is primarily aimed at costs associated with outbound travel of UK-based academics to partnering institutions. Part of the funding may be used to secure buy-out time for the duration of the visits.
Additional funding from SPRITE+’s International Visitors Fund will be made available for the overseas partner to visit the UK and participate / run workshops associated with the research. These costs should not be included in the total amount applied for, but should be included in the application so that SPRITE+ is aware of additional travel resources you may require to enable the overseas partner to visit the UK.
Further funding will be available for both the UK and overseas partners to attend the SPRITE+ end of grant conference in 2027. The current expectation is that this will be in person, and SPRITE+ will cover reasonable travel and subsistence costs.
Eligibility
The funding is available to SPRITE+ academics in UK-based organisations eligible to receive UKRI funding. Please see here for eligibility.
Funding will be available to proposals for collaborations with, and visits to, researchers based in countries currently classified by the World Bank as low- and middle-income economies, sometimes referred to collectively as the Global South. For more information on eligible countries please see here: World Bank Country and Lending Groups – World Bank Data Help Desk.
Application Process and Selection
Live Q&A Session:
There will be a live Q&A session on Tuesday 18th November from 1pm to 1:30pm GMT. A recording of the session will be made available on SPRITE+ website and YouTube channel.
Submit your Expression of Interest
We are currently accepting expressions of interest until 31st January 2026. Download the Expression of Interest form below:
Selection process:
A. Expression of interest.
Applicants from UK SPRITE+ members and overseas partners should discuss common interest/areas of joint activity. A joint EOI is submitted by the UK SPRITE+ member (the recipient of the funds) outlining:
the nature of collaboration
topic of common interests
expected outcomes
proposed timeline
indicative budget
CVs of applicants (no more than 2 pages per CV)
B. Shortlisting.
An expert panel will shortlist expressions of interest based upon fit to call, feasible timeline and justified resources. All applicants will receive feedback on their proposal.
C. Informal interview.
Shortlisted applicants will be invited to meet with members of the panel to discuss the intended project and scope of the activities. This may lead to suggestions about development of the idea.
D. Decision on the proposal.
If an applicant is successful at interview, an informal statement of intent to fund including any conditions of the funding and an outline of expectations (on both sides) will be issued. This will be an in-principle decision, and confirmation of funding will be dependent on a satisfactory full proposal and full breakdown of costs.
E. Final proposal and project start.
Those progressing from stage (D) will be required to submit an updated proposal and full breakdown of costs before funding is confirmed.
Selection criteria
Applications will be assessed against the following criteria:
Has high potential for identifying important new research avenues for research on TIPS in global contexts.
Provides an opportunity to establish a new working relationship.
Quality of realistic expected outputs (e.g., possible development of joint grant proposals, joint publications, further events etc).
Potential for supporting SPRITE+ key objectives.
Outputs
Outputs will be published on SPRITE+ website alongside a short report outlining the promising areas of research they identified during their collaboration for the benefit of the community. Successful applicants will also be required to produce an end of grant report. SPRITE+ will provide letters of support for promising projects applying for further funding.
