CIB is delighted to announce the launch of the CIB Makarand Hastak Visiting Scholar Award, generously endowed by the CIB Immediate Past President Makarand (Mark) Hastak.
Overarching Goal
The overarching goal of the CIB Makarand Hastak Visiting Scholar Award is to support and promote collaboration between Early Career Researchers (ECRs) in different regions of the world in the building, construction and built environment sector. This award seeks to prioritize UN Sustainable Development Goals, early career researchers, and collaborations between different continents and regions of the world.
Award
The fund of €3,000 is available to an individual from one CIB Full/Associate Member to visit another CIB Full/Associate Member. Funds are to be utilized for travel support for the Visiting only. Funds are not intended to be utilized as salary support or for equipment.
It is envisioned the researcher will be able to spend at least 5 – 10 business days at the host institution, and the award winner is expected to acknowledge CIB in any output resulting from the visit.
Dates of the visit should be between September 2026 and end of March 2027.
Eligibility
The applicant (i.e., a researcher from a CIB full/associate member organization):
- simply needs to get in touch with their fellow scholars in another full/associate member organization of CIB and obtain their consent for being their host for this visit associated with this funding call.
- must then develop the proposal together with the collaborator (fellow scholar(s)) in the host organization.
- needs to obtain a recommendation letter from the host organization, confirming their willingness and interest in hosting him/her.
Key dates
- Applications open from: 15 April 2026
- Closing date: 31 May 2026
- Award Announcement: August 2026
Submission
The applicantion should include the following documents:
- CV,
- Support letter from the hosting organization (signed by the head of unit/school/faculty), and
- Support letter from the applicant’s own organisation to indicate their agreement with this visit.
- A two pages proposal including:
- Applicant details (name, position, years of experience, institution, website, contact information),
- Host institution research partner contact (name, position, institution, website, contact information),
- Description of the intended collaboration,
- Explanation of how the individual and the host Institution will benefit,
- Envisioned output (e.g., workshops, seminars, joint publications, jointly developed funding proposals), and
- Proposed dates of the visit.
Proposals for this award must be sent as a pdf file by email to CIB Programme Director, Dr. Sina Moradi, at sina.moradi@cibworld.org by May 31st 2026.
Evaluation process
The received applications will be sent for review by an evaluation committee formed by some of the members of the CIB Future Leaders Committee.
If the evaluation committee is not satisfied with the quality of the applications, the amount of the award will be reserved for the next year to be awarded to one or two applicants if their applications are approved by the evaluation committee.
What are we looking for
Fostering New Collaborations – we want to see evidence of new collaborations
Fostering Global Collaborations – Collaborations from different countries are required, and we would prefer to see collaborations from different continents and regions. Collaborations from within the same country will not be considered.
Type of collaborations – CIB is interested in all types of collaborations that result in some form of research output. Augmenting the visit with community and professional association lectures, and/or classroom/laboratory teaching, and student mentorship will be viewed favorably.
UN Sustainable Development Goals – A clear link to one or more of the UN SDGs is required.
