Be part of the growing network to advance human rights and peace research and education in Southeast Asia.

Research Opportunities

Research Grants Schemes 2026

The Research Grant Schemes (RGSs) is tailored to serve a critical role contributing to the vision and aims of SHAPE-SEA through its component that is specifically targeted towards knowledge production and increasing research capacities of scholars in the region. The research grants enable students, scholars, researchers and academics in the region to conduct empirical research on issues of marginalized and vulnerable communities that continue to remain underrepresented in the regional human rights and peace spaces, discourses and narratives.

Research Themes

RGSs will provide research opportunities, including financial, substantive and technical support, to students, scholars and academics in Southeast Asia to conduct research on relevant issues. The research grants will be disbursed under the categories of a) Students (M.A & PhD), and b) Emerging Scholars.

Students Category (M.A. & PhD) This category is open to Southeast Asian citizens who are currently based in the region and enrolled in a Master’s (M.A.) or Doctoral (PhD) program at an institution or university within Southeast Asia/ASEAN. Emerging Scholars (ES) Category This category is intended for scholars and academics based in Southeast Asia/ASEAN. For individual projects, applicants must be Southeast Asian citizens residing in the region. For collaborative projects, the lead researcher must be a Southeast Asian citizen affiliated with an institution or university in the region, while co-researchers must also be scholars or academics affiliated with institutions or universities in Southeast Asia. Collaborative teams may consist of up to a maximum of three members, including the lead researcher.

Submit Proposal Today
Digital Rights and Technology

Research topics under this theme can be around the growing concerns over digital surveillance; digital dictatorship; rights based digital economy; Artificial Intelligence (AI) ethics and accountability; and technology-facilitated disinformation, conflict and peacebuilding in the context of ASEAN/Southeast Asia

Environmental Justice and Climate Change

National and regional frameworks, mechanisms and accountability; the right to a healthy environment; vulnerable groups and inclusive adaptation; gendered dimension of climate justice; digital and physical protection mechanism particularly for environmental human rights defenders (EHRDs); green transitions and land rights; and intersections of climate change with displacement/ethnic and resource tension/conflict and climate-related security risks in the context of Southeast Asia

Democracy and Civic Spaces

Repression and SLAPP; intergenerational and grassroots activism and movements; digital democracy; youth-led movements; and academic freedom in the context of Southeast Asia

Migration, Displacement and Development

Labour migration and the rights-based development; scam centers and forced labour; human rights of climate refugees and climate migrants; gendered impact of environmental migration and human trafficking; and nexus of conflict induced migration, displacement and trafficking; and demand-side aspects of human trafficking]

Peace, Conflict and Human Security

Rise of transnational organized crimes; Myanmar crisis; ethnic and religious polarization; self-determination movements; Women, Peace and Security; and peacebuilding and conflict transformation in the context of Southeast Asia

Gender, Intersectionality and Inclusivity

Rights of marginalized and vulnerable groups- indigenous communities and women, and LGBTQI+ and ethnicity and disability; and inclusive digital spaces/citizenship in the context of Southeast Asia

Application Form and Information Package

Application Form and Information Package

Please ensure that you carefully read the RGS 2026 Concept Note, which can be downloaded below, before completing the application form. The information package provides full details on the research grants, including eligibility criteria and application guidelines, and will help you better understand the scope and requirements of the program. Applicants are responsible for ensuring that all submitted documents are complete and accurate. The committee will not be responsible for reviewing, correcting, or redistributing any files that contain errors or mistakes prior to the selection process or at any stage thereafter.

RGS 2026 Concept Note [Must Read] FAQs and Infokit [Must Read] MA/PhD Proposal Template Emerging Scholar Proposal Template

RGSs Application Period 20 April – 15 May 2026 (11:59 GMT+7)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Do not miss this year’s research grant opportunity!

 

Submit Proposal Today

Be part of the growing network of scholars and advocates.

Join our efforts to advance human rights and peace research across Southeast Asia.

Join Our Network Collaborate With Us

© 2026 SHAPE-SEA Program, Mahidol University. All rights reserved.