British Academy: The UK's National Academy for the Humanities and Social Sciences
The 2006 Learned Societies Programme (LSP)
Following the Academy's Strategic Review and Forward Look in 2004, a new Learned Societies Programme was run in 2006 with funding becoming available from April 2007 for a five-year period. The societies currently supported by BASIS (i.e. those on its list that do not maintain premises overseas) were eligible to apply for continuing support, but the competition was also open to other societies conducting excellent research across the humanities and social sciences in parts of the world poorly covered by existing arrangements. Following a Call for Expressions of Interest in 2006, various area-based organisations in the UK were invited to apply and a wide range of responses was received. The allocation process was a challenging one, with some 40% more funds bid for than available, and each application was considered carefully and rigorously against the Programme's strategic objectives. List of the awards made under the programme.
Successful societies being funded by the Academy for the first time as a result include
- The African Studies Association of the UK,
- The British Society for Middle Eastern Studies,
- The Joint Initiative for the Study of Latin America and the Caribbean, and
- The British Association for South Asian Studies (in a combined application with the currently-supported Society for South Asian Studies).
The Association for South-East Asian Studies UK will continue to receive Academy funding, as will the Society for Libyan Studies.
In the case of two currently funded societies (The British School at Iraq and the Egypt Exploration Society), their applications did not meet the Programme criteria to the same extent, although their track records of quality work in their particular areas of expertise in the past were acknowledged. A decision was taken to continue their funding at a reduced level for the two years 2007-08 and 2008-09, and to cease Programme support beyond then. They are being allocated grants to enable them to bring to completion/publication existing research activities, and to assist a professional winding up of other activities for which they cannot find other sources of funding. Both will be encouraged to consider applications to other Academy programmes and to the Research Councils for funding on a project-by-project basis. Both will also be eligible to reapply to the Learned Societies Programme when future competitions are announced.