The International Network for Governmental Science Advice – Asia (INGSA-Asia) in collaboration with the ISC Regional Focal Point for Asia and the Pacific (ISC RFP-AP) is proud to announce that thirteen recipients will be receiving seed grants under the 2026-2027 Seeds of Science, Asia-Australia initiative. For the first time, out of thirteen grantees, six grantees will be implementing the projects in collaboration with Australian counterparts.

Each project will receive seed grants of up to AUD 10,000 – AUD 15,000 along with expert mentorship to run workshops, dialogues and advocacy activities that strengthen the science policy nexus and promote science engagement in their respective home countries. The successful proposals span ten countries and reflect a wide range of science-policy themes from disaster risk reduction, biotechnology, women’s health, water governance, to Gender Equity and Socially Inclusive (GESI) electric mobility transitions. 

 The winning projects are:

1. Science-to-Policy Platform for Transboundary Air Pollution Governance in the Thailand–Myanmar– Lao PDR Border Region (in partnership with Water Sensitive Cities Australia, Monash University)- Thailand
2. Scoping Workshop on Improving Climate Resilience and Predictive Capacity for Bhutan’s Key Economic Sectors (in partnership with College of Sciences, Adelaide University) – Bhutan
3. Empowering Community First Responders: A Training of Trainers Model for Disaster-Induced Isolation (in partnership with School of Architecture and Built Environment, University of Newcastle) – Sri Lanka
4. Strengthening Capacity for Development and Adoption of Innovative Water Management Solutions (in partnership with International Water Centre, Griffith University) – Vietnam
5. Strengthening Capacity and Informing Policy on Personalized Plant-Based Therapeutics for Women’s Health (in partnership with Sydney Medical School, University of Sydney) – Sri Lanka
6. Science Communication for Society: A Research-to-Implementation of Biotechnology and Health Convergence (in partnership with University of South Australia)  – Cambodia
7. Citizen Science Seed Bank: Women Farmers as Partners in Climate-Resilient Seed Conservation and Science-Policy Linkages in Southwest Coastal Bangladesh – Bangladesh
8. Strengthening Evidence-Informed Community Water Governance Through Textile Dye Wastewater Treatment Innovation for Ikat Weaving Communities in Lamongan, Indonesia – Indonesia
9. Pantura Flood Watch: Co-producing Compound Flood Science for Coastal Policy in Northern Central Java – Indonesia
10. From Pilot to Policy: Embedding GESI in Pakistan’s Electric Mobility Transition – Pakistan
11. Strengthening Mpox Policy Decision-Making in Thailand through Stakeholder Mapping and Science–Policy Dialogue – Thailand
12. USTC x MARA Action: Policy Dialogue for Smallholder Market Access – China
13. Geo-Policy Brahmaputra: A Training Workshop on Geospatial Flood Intelligence for Evidence-Informed Disaster Policy in Northeast India – India

INGSA-Asia and ISC RFP-AP extend their heartfelt congratulations to the winning recipients and look forward to supporting them in organising impactful activities that promote innovative science engagement and strengthen evidence-informed policy making in the region.