Advance Research That Strengthens a Free and Open Society
IHS funds rigorous, independent scholarship on the institutional, economic, constitutional, and cultural foundations of a free society. Each RFP poses focused research questions; we fund work that best engages them. Awarded scholars retain full independence over design, analysis, conclusions, and publication.
Requests for Proposals
Agentic artificial intelligence is transforming how news and information are produced, distributed, and consumed. IHS seeks to fund research that examines these transformations with a particular eye towards emergent news institutions, journalistic innovations, and truth-seeking mechanisms in the future information ecosystem.
Liberal democracy places a number of demands on its citizens, and understanding what qualities citizens must possess and cultivate to sustain a free liberal democratic society is an urgent and timely question that calls for rigorous research.
Social and political disruptions in the United States are giving rise to new civil rights challenges. Addressing them will require bold new ideas rooted in liberal principles, informed by rigorous research, and positioned to advance both academic discourse and public conversations.
Academic research rooted in the liberal intellectual tradition has the potential to shape public discourse on matters of current concern. IHS invites applications from scholars seeking to share their research with the public in print or multimedia formats.
There is significant debate about the effect the adoption of artificial intelligence will have on work. However, more long-term research and data on this question is needed. This request for proposals aims to fill that gap.
Eligibility & Application Criteria
Eligible
Travel and Research Activities: travel for conference presentations and archival research; research collaboration such as hiring a research assistant.
Data and Research Materials: purchase of datasets; LLM subscriptions for specialized research sources.
Publishing and Dissemination: journal submission fees; book publication expenses such as copyediting or indexing; preparation of research manuscripts.
Ineligible
Living expenses, hardware purchases, retroactive expenses, conference travel without a scheduled presentation, and institutional overhead or indirect costs. If you are unsure whether a specific expense qualifies, please refer to our Funding FAQ or contact us for clarification.
Common Questions
Yes. If your research is genuinely relevant to multiple open RFPs, you may submit separate applications. Each will be reviewed on its own merits.
No. Applications are open to any eligible scholar at an accredited institution. Prior participation is not required.
Closely. Funding decisions turn primarily on how well a proposal engages the questions posed by the RFP. Proposals that reframe or sidestep the central questions are unlikely to be competitive.
Yes, if your research supports a free and open society, you may be eligible for funding. Scroll down to see other programs like Advancing the Tradition support for research strengthening a free society.
Have other questions? Check out the Funding FAQ page.
Also Consider
If an RFP isn’t the right fit for your current project, IHS offers additional funding pathways for faculty and doctoral researchers.