Grants for Student-Organized Events & Projects
In addition to fellowships and research grants, we provide student groups with grants to support conferences, events, and service projects that, at least in part, focus on issues related to housing and community development.
This funding has supported a variety of activities including:
- Architecture as a "Learning" Living Machine: DDes 2020 Conference, a February 2020 conference addressing emerging concepts in the field of adaptive and intelligent architecture, such as machine learning and smart homes, organized by GSD Doctor of Design students.
- Black Policy Conference, a policy-driven forum held in April 2019 that addressed issues affecting Black communities, with the hope and intent of finding sustainable solutions for issues facing Black communities. (Pictured above, photo by Pratik Panchal)
- Towards a More Just World: Strategies for Increasing Opportunity and Mobility: Conference on Poverty and Inequality, a February 2020 conference focused on extreme poverty that was organized by Students for the Alleviation of Poverty and Inequality (SAPSI), an HKS student group.
- Planning the Green New Deal, a February 2020 student-run conference exploring how activism, policy and design can work together to bring about the societal transformations needed to ensure a just and habitable future.
The Center also has provided funding to help graduate students acquire data on a variety of topics such as evictions of families with young children and how chronic nuisance ordinances impact individuals with disabilities. We have also provided funds that helped cover travel expenses for students presenting housing-related research at a variety of academic and professional conferences and supported the Harvard Community Development Project, which brings public policy, planning, and architecture students together to with work as consultants on projects that seek to empower traditionally underserved populations. Our support for events comes with a requirement that we be listed as a co-sponsor. If requested, we may also be able to provide assistance with planning and/or publicizing the event.
How to Apply
Send a cover letter and the application form to David Luberoff, Director of Fellowships and Events: [email protected]. You can also reach out to him if you have questions about these grants or if you need other assistance in planning student-run activities. There is no deadline; applications are considered on a rolling basis throughout the year.