The International Collaboration Programme of the ICSSR provides an opportunity to both Indian and foreign scholars in the field of social sciences to interact and research. It has been envisaged to promote academic links among the social scientists in India and abroad. The Council is one of the implementing agencies of the social science component of the Cultural Exchange Agreements (CEPs) and Educational Exchange Programmes (EEPs) signed between the Government of India and the governments of other countries.
The ICSSR has ongoing Cultural Exchange Programmes with Thailand, France and China. Under these CEPs, the ICSSR has institutional collaboration with National Research Council of Thailand (NRCT), Bangkok, Foundation Maison des Sciences de L’Homme (FMSH), Paris and Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS), Beijing.
ICSSR has established bilateral collaborations with Vietnam Academy of Social Science (VASS), Vietnam; National Science Foundation (NSF), Sri Lanka; Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC), UK; The Netherlands Scientific Organization (NWO), The Netherlands; German Research Foundation (DFG), Germany; UNIL-ALH (University of Lausanne – Associated Leading House), Switzerland; Japan Society for Promotion of Science (JSPS), Japan; and National Institute for the Humanities and Social Sciences (NIHSS), South Africa, Swedish Research Council for Health, Working Life and Welfare (FORTE), Sweden, Academy of Sciences and Arts of Bosnia and Herzegovina (ANUBiH), Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina. Within the framework of bilateral collaboration, the concerned organizations undertake activities such as exchange of scholars, joint seminars, joint research projects, exchange of books and periodicals, etc.
The ICSSR has also engaged itself in the multilateral collaboration like Bonn Group under Indo-European Research Networking Programme in Social Sciences with the participating agencies like ICSSR, India; ANR, France; DFG, Germany; ESRC, UK; and NWO, Netherlands. The objective of this networking was to promote the strengthening of the social sciences within and between the five countries by providing top up funding to allow joint research activities for internationally excellent research in relevant areas. It has been a part of EU-India Platform for the Social Sciences and Humanities (EqUIP), which brought together research funding and support organisations in Europe and India in order to develop a stronger strategic partnership. Through this partnership, the EqUIP has launched first research funding call on "Sustainability, Equity, Wellbeing and Cultural Connections"
Besides, the ICSSR has been participating in the activities of international social science organizations, such as, International Federation of Social Science Organizations (IFSSO), International Social Science Council (ISSC), Science Council of Asia (SCA), UNESCO, etc.
Financial assistance is provided to Indian social scientists, who have been invited to contribute and present a paper at conferences abroad.
ICSSR also provides financial assistance to social scientists who intend to visit abroad for the purposes of Data Collection or consulting Archival Material in connection with their research work. This Scheme is aimed at providing financial assistance only for cases where data collection abroad is fully justified in the approved original proposal of the research study under which this assistance is sought.
The ICSSR is its endeavor to encourage dialogue and discussion on important issues of social science relevance, promotes and provides financial assistance to organize national & international conferences/ seminars in India. The ICSSR’s Seminar Grant Scheme aims at facilitating research in different disciplines of social sciences and interdisciplinary areas. The seminars provide opportunities to national and international social science researchers, academicians and scholars to exchange views and opinions, address and debate research questions on themes of contemporary and policy relevance and generate academic research output on important social issues.
SCHEMES OF INTERNATIONAL COLLABORATION DIVISION