Climate Impacts Awards: Unlocking urgent climate action by making the health effects of climate change visible

The aim of this scheme is to make the impacts of climate change on physical and mental health visible to drive urgent climate policy action at scale. We will fund transdisciplinary teams to deliver short-term, high impact projects that can drive policy impact by combining evidence generation (or synthesis) with influencing and engagement strategies.

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Scheme overview 

Lead applicant career stage:
Mid-career researcher, Established researcher
Administering organisation location:
Anywhere in the world (apart from mainland China)
Frequency:
Annual
Funding amount:

Up to £2.5 million per award

Funding duration:

Up to 3 years

Coapplicants:
Required

We expect to make around 10-15 awards in this highly competitive funding scheme. 

Upcoming application stage

Calculating next key date…
Application process timeline

This year, we have made changes to the research that will be supported through the scheme. As well as funding projects that fill evidence gaps on climate change-related health outcomes, we will also support research which builds the understanding of the economic implications of these climate change-related health outcomes. Read more about the 2026 scheme.

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Find out more about the Climate Impacts Awards 2026.

Hi, I'm Georgia and I work as a Research Manager in Wellcome's climate and health team. Thank you so much for taking an interest in the Climate Impacts Awards.

We have been running the Climate Impacts Awards since 2023 and it is the only scheme, meaning an annual call, that we have in the climate and health portfolio at Wellcome. We have funded 37 projects to date through three rounds. The aim of this scheme is to make the impacts of climate change visible across a wide range of physical and mental health outcomes in order to drive urgent climate policy at scale. And there are really three key elements to this scheme. 

One, investing in research. We are looking for proposals that can identify an evidence gap that can be filled within a short time frame by generating or synthesizing data and insights on the context-specific, direct and environmentally mediated health effects of climate change. 

Two, influencing change. Teams must also articulate a clear theory of change within their proposal and a strong understanding of policy levers either at the local, national, and multilateral levels as well as a track record of influencing policy. There must be a climate policy opportunity that can be targeted within the three-year timeline, whether focusing on adaptation, mitigation, or loss and damage. We are not looking to support broad advocacy campaigns but something much more specific and targeted. 

And three, engaged research. Research must be designed using an engaged research approach which meaningfully includes the voices of key stakeholders including policy and decision makers and communities impacted by climate change. And this does not just refer to the qualitative methods you may use in your project, but in the entire design, team composition, development, and implementation of the project.

We have made changes to the research that will be supported through this scheme. We are still looking for proposals that can generate or synthesise evidence on significant health issues arising from climate impacts. But we are also looking for proposals that account for the economic consequences of the health impacts of climate change at various levels. There are many different methods to quantify the economic impacts of health damages from climate change. We will accept a range of approaches and economic and econometric measures and tools for this analysis. There is a need for more evidence and better understanding of the cost of climate change related health outcomes to create an urgent argument for action and advance progress on the three pillars of climate policy adaptation, mitigation and loss and damage.

We are looking for transdisciplinary teams that combine all of the necessary expertise to deliver the project and bring together key stakeholders in research, policy and society. This is a global call and we are looking for teams from around the world but will prioritise funding for research that involves and serves the needs of communities most impacted by the health effects of climate change. The teams must have climate and health expertise, particularly meteorological expertise as well as relevant economic expertise. And we are looking for mature teams that have experience working together and delivering policy relevant projects, influencing policy, and working in strong collaboration with communities impacted by climate change.

The team must have one lead applicant and up to seven coapplicants. But with all the requirements for the teams, we expect to see close to the limit of coapplicants on the project, and there must be at least one applicant based at each study site in multi-sight projects, but there is no limit to the number of collaborators.

We list all of the stages of the application process on the scheme page. But a few things to note. Firstly, please read through the entire scheme page. We make sure everything you need to know is on there. And this is a very competitive call and we understand the burden it is to apply. So we want to ensure that all proposals we receive are in scope. We only accept full proposals for this scheme which are due on April 8th. Make sure that your proposal fits the scope of this scheme. Particularly pay attention to what is not in scope which is listed on the scheme page. Eligible and in scope proposals will be reviewed by our Climate Impacts Awards advisory funding committee who provide us with recommendations for shortlisting and the final funding stages.

We are introducing interviews for shortlisted proposals this year. These interviews will take place from July 21st to 23rd. Shortlisted applicants will receive further information on the interview process in advance. Final decisions will be released in August and we cannot provide specific feedback to proposals that were not shortlisted. 

Now, we do list on the scheme page what is in and out of scope for the Climate Impacts Awards, namely that we are looking for direct and environmentally mediated impacts of climate change on health. But if you are unclear about whether your proposed idea would be in scope for this scheme, you can send a very brief summary of your idea, no more than 200 words, to climateimpacts@welcome.org, and you must do this by the 6th of March. Include the title of the call, 2026 Climate Impacts Awards, in the subject line. Based on this information, we will aim to reply to your email within one week with an in scope or out of scope response. Now, this is not a requirement and it will not impact your likelihood of being funded. The confirmation that a proposed idea is in scope does not guarantee that the final proposal will fulfil all of the requirements for the scheme and it also doesn't constitute an active invitation to apply for the scheme. We cannot answer questions on the competitiveness of proposals. 

We will be hosting a webinar for potential applicants on February 23rd. Be sure to register for that on our scheme page. From the climate and health team, we wish you the best of luck.

Who can apply 

The team must: 

  • Be of an appropriate size for the proposed research. Teams must consist of one lead applicant and at least one coapplicant, and must not exceed one lead applicant and seven coapplicants. There must be at least one applicant based at each study site in multi-site projects. There is no limit to the number of collaborators, but all team members must be essential to the delivery of the project.
  • Be transdisciplinary, combining knowledge from different scientific disciplines, with that of public and private sector stakeholders and communities. See the OECD report for further information on what we mean by transdisciplinary. In particular, the team should include a strong collaboration with impacted communities and policy/decision makers to ensure research uptake.
  • Demonstrate strong climate and health knowledge (including meteorological) and relevant economic expertise. It must also include the necessary expertise, technical skills and organisational support to deliver the proposed research.
  • Demonstrate a history of collaborating and successfully delivering projects.
  • Have a track record of working in climate and health research and activities, including but not limited to: 
    • Involving and co-producing with communities most impacted by climate change 
    • Collaborating with policy experts and partners 
    • Influencing policy at local, national, regional and global levels
    • Designing and delivering communications and/or engagement activities
    • Incorporating economic analysis within climate and health evidence
  • Demonstrate a commitment to actively fostering a diverse, inclusive and supportive research environment and equitable partnerships within the team structure (particularly in teams that include organisations from both the Global South and the Global North). The UK Collaborative on Development Research (UKCDR) has resources on this topic.

The lead applicant must: 

  • Have a permanent, open-ended or long-term rolling contract, or the guarantee of one, for the duration of the award. The contract should not be conditional on receiving this award. Lead applicants with less than three years remaining on their contract at the point of application must have secured their next position at an eligible organisation and provide a letter of support from them.
  • Be a team leader who wants to advance transdisciplinary research on the impacts of climate change on health and has experience leading transdisciplinary teams.
  • Have prior experience of conducting policy-relevant research, engaging appropriate policy partners in climate and/or health and an established policy network.
  • Have knowledge brokering skills such as the ability to bring together research teams and policy makers and/or impacted communities.
  • Actively foster a diverse, inclusive and supportive research environment within their team and across their organisation. 
  • Be based at an eligible administering organisation that can sign up to Wellcome’s grant conditions.   

There can only be one lead applicant on applications to this scheme. Wellcome cannot make awards to teams with co-lead applicants. 

Coapplicants can be based at the same or different organisations as other applicants, including in different countries. They can be at any career stage and come from any relevant discipline. We encourage teams to consider including at least one early-career stage researcher. 

Each coapplicant must: 

  • Be essential for delivery of the project and make a significant contribution, for example in designing the proposed research and leading a specific component of the project. 
  • Be based at an eligible organisation that can sign up to Wellcome’s grant conditions. This can include a sole trader or self-employed person’s business.  

Coapplicants do not need to have a permanent, open-ended or long-term rolling contract.

Collaborators are distinct from coapplicants. Collaborators support the delivery of the project but don't lead on a specific component of the research. For example, collaborators could support by: 

  • sharing facilities
  • providing access to tools or resources such as datasets or clinical records
  • providing access to organisations led by or working in collaboration with lived experience experts
  • providing expertise on working in different countries
  • sharing subject-specific knowledge and guidance, for example expertise on statistical analysis or measurement of specific variables

Collaborators do not have to meet eligibility requirements.

Collaborators cannot receive a salary or compensation for the time spent on the proposed project. You can request costs to cover their expenses, for example for their grant-related travel and the costs associated with providing the agreed input into the research, including the materials and consumables involved. These should be costs directly related to the research.

If you’ve spent time away from research

Career breaks, parental leave, sick leave

You can apply for this award if you have spent time away from research (for example, for a career break, parental leave or long-term sick leave). We will take this into consideration during the review of your application.

Retirement

If you have retired, you must contact us before applying. You must have a guarantee of space from your administering organisation for the duration of any award. 

Working part-time

Lead and coapplicants can be part-time. Their part-time work should be compatible with delivering the project successfully.

 

Resubmissions

We will accept resubmissions from proposals that were shortlisted once in any previous round of the Climate Impacts Awards. Teams must demonstrate significant revisions to the application based on the decision letter provided. Previously shortlisted proposals must also be in scope for this year’s awards.

Who cannot apply 

You cannot apply for this call if: 

  • You intend to carry out activities which involve the transfer of funds into mainland China.
  • You cannot demonstrate that you can dedicate enough time and resources to the project, if funded.
  • You are already an applicant on two applications for this funding call: 
    • You can only be a lead applicant on one application and a coapplicant on another one.
    • You can be a coapplicant on two applications. You must demonstrate that you have sufficient capacity for both projects if funded.
    • The applications should be for different projects with no overlap of activities.
  • You already have applied for, or hold, the maximum number of Wellcome awards for your career stage.

Is your organisation right for this scheme? 

The administering organisation is where the lead applicant is based. It is responsible for submitting your final application to Wellcome and managing the finances of the grant if it is awarded. 

The administering organisation must be able to sign up to Wellcome’s grant conditions. The administering organisation can be based anywhere in the world apart from mainland China. 

The administering organisation must be not-for-profit and can be a: 

  • higher education institution 
  • research institute 
  • healthcare organisation 
  • non-governmental organisation  

Commercial organisations are not eligible to apply as administering organisation for this call. However, coapplicants and collaborators can be based at commercial organisations.   

Multilateral organisations can apply. Please contact us to discuss further. Proposals must meet all scheme requirements.

Is your research right for this scheme? 

What your research proposal must include

We are looking for proposals that can generate or synthesise context-specific evidence on significant health issues arising from climate impacts. We are also looking for proposals that account for the economic consequences of the health impacts of climate change at various levels.  We will seek to fund projects that can use this research to advance narratives and support the development of policy solutions that can be scaled to multiple settings. 

We will prioritise funding for research that involves and serves the needs of communities most impacted by the health effects of climate change. 

We will support proposals that: 

  • Invest in policy-relevant research. Teams must:  
    • Identify an evidence gap that can be filled within a short time frame (for example, 12-18 months within the project duration) by generating and/or synthesising data and insights on the context-specific, direct and environmentally mediated health effects of climate change.
    • Articulate clearly their methodological approach and why it is appropriate; we accept all forms of methodologies including arts and social sciences-based and traditional knowledge-based methods.
    • Be able to assess associated economic costs of the health effects of climate change and to communicate these in a way that is appropriate for decision makers. There are many different methods to quantify the economic impacts of health damages from climate change. The costs can be direct costs (i.e. healthcare expenses for climate-sensitive illnesses), indirect costs (i.e. productivity losses, reduced income, long-term health impacts) and intangible costs (i.e. non-financial burdens related to morbidity/mortality). We will accept a range of approaches and economic/econometric measures and tools for this analysis. 
  • Influence change. Teams must: 
    • Articulate a clear theory of change within their proposal and strong understanding of policy levers either at the local, national and multilateral levels, as well as a track record of influencing policy. There must be a climate policy opportunity that can be targeted within the 3-year timeline whether focusing on adaptation, mitigation or loss and damage.
    • Demonstrate the demand driving the research from decision makers, the policy goals of the proposed set of activities and how these can be achieved within the timeframe of the award (recognising that policy change is often incremental, takes time and cannot always be easily attributable).
    • Show how their research design is innovative and will help drive impact, supporting meaningful and sustainable climate and health action.
    • Include a visibility and narrative plan, to ensure that the evidence can be meaningfully communicated to key stakeholders and build momentum. 
  • Engage people. Teams must:  
    • Meaningfully engage relevant stakeholders and communities from the outset, valuing the expertise of knowledge of different stakeholders. This should be reflected in the composition of the team as well as the design of the research proposal. Wellcome supports the use of an engaged research approach. This approach asks researchers to include engagement in the design of their project, while being inclusive of a range of stakeholders. In particular, we would expect to see the inclusion of the policy partners the team will work with in the proposal. 

For this award, relevant stakeholders and communities could include: 

  • local or national governments 
  • civil society and community-based organisations 
  • international or multilateral organisations 
  • private sector or legal sector 
  • cultural institutions

We strongly encourage you to provide letters of support from any collaborator involved in the project. Upload these in the ‘Additional information’ section of the form. These letters will not count towards your two page A4 limit for additional information. Research with Indigenous communities should follow best practice protocols (see the CARE Principles for Indigenous Data Governance for guidance). 


Inclusive research design 

The proposed research should be equitable, diverse and inclusive in a way that is appropriate to the place in which the research is conducted and the aims of the research or other activities.  

This should focus on:  

  • Who defines and does the research: we expect our applicants to demonstrate to us that their research team has substantive input from, and engagement with, the primary end users or subjects of their research, be they patients, participants or policymakers.
  • How the research is done: we expect our applicants to demonstrate to us that their research agenda and the design and conduct of their research substantively engages with the needs and values of the people and communities who are participating in, or are the subject of, their research.
  • Who benefits from the research: Wellcome already has a commitment to focusing on those most affected by our health challenges. We expect our applicants to be able to demonstrate within their research and activity plans that their outputs will be made meaningfully accessible and used by those who most need it and, if appropriate, those who participated in the research. 

What is in scope 

Wellcome’s Climate and Health team have modified the scope of this round of the Climate Impacts Awards, guided by learnings and insights from the past year and broader trends in the climate and health space. What is in/out of scope this year may not be the same next year. 

In scope 

  • Proposals where the primary focus is on the current or future direct and environmentally mediated physical or mental health outcomes attributable to climate change (Haines and Ebi 2019 for definitions, figure 3).
  • Proposals that will also assess associated economic costs of the health effects of climate change.
  • Proposals that include the three key elements of: 
  1. An evidence gap that can be filled in the short time available 
  2. A clear pathway to influence change including a theory of change 
  3. An engaged research approach with key stakeholders identified

Out of scope 

  • Proposals where the primary focus is on:​ 
    • socially mediated health effects (such as migration and livelihoods) - we are aware that all health outcomes have a social context but we are looking for research where environmentally driven aspects of climate change are the primary driver(s) of a given health outcome.
    • health co-benefits attributable to the consequences of climate change action (mitigation or adaptation); or the unintended consequences of maladaptation.
    • current or future health effects attributable to the drivers of climate change (for example: burning of fossil fuels, deforestation, waste decomposition). Proposals cannot focus solely on fossil-fuel related air pollution but can include air pollution as a secondary driver of a given health outcome.
    • Impacts of climate change on health systems.
  • Proposals where the primary activity is evaluating an intervention.
  • Proposals where the goal of the project is general advocacy for a specific issue, rather than a specific climate action target that can be achieved in a realistic timeframe through targeted and co-produced evidence and communications activities.
  • Proposals where the three key elements listed above are not articulated. 

View previous projects that have been awarded through this scheme.

Awarded grants

Research costs we will cover 

Lead applicant

Lead applicants based in the UK or Republic of Ireland

You cannot ask for your salary if you work for a: 

  • higher education institution
  • research institute
  • healthcare organisation

You can ask for a contribution to your salary if you work for a:

  • charity
  • non-governmental organisation (NGO)
  • social enterprise

If you want to claim your salary on this award, you must contribute at least 10% of your research time.

The amount we pay will be proportionate to the time you contribute to the award, for example if you contribute 30% of your time to the award we will fund 30% of your salary.

Lead applicants based outside of the UK or Republic of Ireland

You can ask for a contribution to your salary if you work for a:

  • higher education institute
  • research institute
  • healthcare organisation
  • charity
  • non-governmental organisation
  • social enterprise

If you work for a higher education institute, research institute, or healthcare organisation, we will only pay your salary if you hold a permanent, open-ended or long-term rolling contract that states that you must get your salary from external grant funding. Your administering organisation must confirm:

  • that you must get salary recovery from external grant funding
  • they will guarantee to provide salary support, including any salary not covered by Wellcome, if you cannot get it from other sources for the period of time that you will be working on the grant

If you want to claim your salary on this award, you must contribute at least 10% of your research time.

In all cases, the amount we pay will be proportionate to the time you contribute to the award. For example, if you contribute 30% of your time to the award we will fund 30% of your salary.

Coapplicants

Coapplicants employed by higher education institutes, research institutes or healthcare organisations
  1. Coapplicants with permanent, open-ended or long-term rolling contracts

    Coapplicants with these contract types can ask for a contribution to their salary if their employment contract states that they must  get their salary from external grant funding.

    The amount we pay will be proportionate to the time they contribute to the award, for example if they contribute 30% of their time to the award we will fund 30% of their salary. The coapplicant’s employing organisation must confirm: 

    • that they must get salary recovery from external grant funding
    • they will guarantee to provide salary support, including any salary costs not covered by Wellcome, for the period of time that the person will be working on the grant
  2. Coapplicants who don’t have permanent, open ended or long-term rolling contracts

    Coapplicants without a permanent, open ended or long-term rolling contract can request salary depending on the amount of their time they will spend on the grant:

    • Less than 80% of coapplicant’s time on the grant: they can request salary proportionate to the time they will spend on the grant. Their organisation must guarantee space and salary support if they cannot get it from other sources for the period of time they are working on the grant. Their post cannot be dependent on the application being successful.
    • 80% or more of coapplicant’s time on the grant: they can ask for their full salary. Their organisation does not have to guarantee salary support if salary cannot be obtained from other sources for the period of time they are working on the grant. The post can be dependent on the application being successful.
    • If the coapplicants are employed on the award as research assistants and they are to spend 100% of their time on the award, their post does not need to be underwritten by the administering organisation and can be dependent on the application being successful.

    Alternatively, coapplicants may get their salary through employment on another grant.

Coapplicants employed by charities, social enterprises, non-governmental organisations or commercial organisations

Coapplicants can ask for salary if they are employed by these organisations. The amount we pay will be proportionate to the time they will contribute to the award. Their employment contract does not need to state that they must get their salary from external grant funding.   

Staff working on your programme

We will cover the salary costs of all staff, full or part-time, who will work on your grant.

Staff members may include:

  • research assistants or technicians employed on your grant
  • experts with lived experience
  • specialist service staff and technical experts, for example in environmental sustainability, data analysis, fieldwork and clinical studies
  • project manager, if you have multiple applicants on your programme
  • support if you or a member of staff employed on your grant is disabled or has a long-term health condition

Teaching buyout

Humanities and social science researchers can ask for funds for research or teaching replacement to cover the cost of a temporary replacement lecturer. They must retain at least a 10% commitment to teaching.

Costs:

  • can cover up to 33% FTE of your contracted time
  • are usually for a person at a more junior level than the postholder
  • can be spread across the full period of the grant

Researchers who already get buyout costs from another grant (funded by Wellcome or elsewhere) can ask us for this cost, but only for the period of time on the award when they won't receive buyout costs from another grant.

Researchers must provide a letter from their employing organisation, confirming that their contract includes a teaching commitment. They should include this in the grant application.

PhD/Research Masters fees

We do not provide studentships or PhD/Research Masters fees for staff on this award.

Staff salaries should be appropriate to skills, responsibilities and expertise. Organisations should use their salary scales to calculate these costs, which should include: 

  • basic salary
  • employer’s contributions, including any statutory obligations (for example, National Insurance contributions if you’re based in the UK) and pension scheme costs
  • Apprentice Levy charges for UK-based salaries
  • any incremental progression up the salary scale
  • locally recognised allowances such as London allowance

You should allow for salary pay awards during Year 1. If the pay award is not yet known, applicants should use the International Monetary Fund inflation rate, selecting the ‘inflation, average consumer price’ option as indicator.

From Year 2 onwards, you should use your organisation’s current pay rates. We’ll provide a separate inflation allowance for salary inflation costs.

Read about the responsibilities of grantholders and organisations we fund.

If you have named people on your grant whose salaries will be funded by Wellcome, you can ask for visa or work permit costs to help them take up their posts at the host organisation. You can also ask for:

  • visa costs for the person's partner and dependent children
  • essential associated costs, such as travel to attend appointments at a visa application centre or embassy, and essential English language tests
  • Immigration Health Surcharge costs for the person, their partner and dependent children if they will be in the UK for six months or more.

If you or a member of staff working on your grant is disabled or has a long-term health condition, you can ask for adjustment support to help you carry out your project.

Costs can include, but are not limited to:

  • additional costs for staff to help with day-to-day activities related to your project
  • assistive technology to help use computers, research equipment or materials – for example, text to audio software
  • care costs for assistance animals if you need to travel.

We will not pay for capital or building costs, such as access ramps.

You can ask for these costs if your government and/or employer:

  • does not cover any of the costs
  • only covers some of the costs (if they do, we will only meet the shortfall).

The costs we provide must not replace the support you may get from the government or your organisation, who are responsible for providing these costs.

If you don't know what these costs are now, you can ask for them after we've awarded your grant.

We will pay for the materials and consumables you need to carry out your project, including:

  • laboratory chemicals and materials (for example reagents, isotopes, peptides, enzymes, antibodies, gases, proteins, cell/tissue/bacterial culture, plasticware and glassware)
  • project-specific personal protective equipment (PPE) that is above the standard expected for the setting
  • printing associated with fieldwork and empirical research
  • associated charges for shipping, delivery and freight.

We will provide funds if you need to outsource specialised elements of the project to organisations that are not already involved as applicants or collaborators, on a fee-for-service basis. This work can include:

  • synthesising compounds or reagents
  • building medical devices
  • preclinical studies, such as toxicology or pharmacology studies
  • undertaking large scale data analysis 

Where multiple Contract Research Organisations are involved in a project, use a separate line item to request costs relating to each one. 

Contract research organisations must be able to sign up to our grant conditions.

You can ask for the cost of access to shared equipment, facilities or services if they’re essential to your project.

These may include materials and consumables, plus a proportion of:

  • maintenance and service contracts
  • staff time costs for dedicated technical staff employed to operate the equipment or facility

We don’t cover the costs of:

  • estates and utilities
  • depreciation or insurance
  • other staff, for example, contributions towards departmental technical, administrative and management staff time

We do cover these costs if related to animal housing facilities.

If the facilities or equipment were paid for by a Wellcome grant, you can only ask for access charges if:

  • the grant has ended
  • any support for running costs and maintenance contracts has ended

Equipment purchase

You can ask for the equipment you need to carry out your project where:

  • it is not available at your administering organisation or through collaborations, and
  • you will be the main user, with priority access to it. At least 50% of the use must be for Wellcome-funded activities. This can include small multi-use pieces of equipment such as desktop microscopes or shakers.

Costs may include purchase, delivery, installation, maintenance and training, where necessary.

You can purchase second-hand equipment if it is more environmentally sustainable to do so.

We will cover VAT and import duties if:

  • the usual UK exemptions on equipment used for medical research don’t apply
  • you’re applying from a non-UK organisation, and you can show these costs can’t be recovered

Equipment maintenance

We will cover maintenance costs for equipment that is:

  • funded by us or another source
  • essential to the proposed project
  • five years old, or will become five years old during the lifetime of the grant
  • cost effective and environmentally sustainable to keep maintaining it

Equipment maintenance can be requested for small pieces of equipment with multiple users if at least 50% of the use is for Wellcome-funded activities, and there is no mechanism in place to recoup these costs through access charges.

We will not provide maintenance support where there is a mechanism in place to recoup costs through access charges for all other equipment.

Computer equipment

We will cover the cost of:

  • one personal computer or laptop per person working on the grant. The cost should be reasonable, in line with market rates, and justified in the context of the research.
  • software, software licences and other recurring computing costs linked to the project

We won't pay for:

  • significantly expensive items, unless you can justify them
  • installation or training costs

If you need to carry out clinical research in the UK using NHS patients or facilities, we will cover some of the research costs.

Annex A of the guidelines for attributing the costs of health and social care research and development (AcoRD) sets out the costs we cover in the UK, and which costs should be funded through the Department of Health and Social Care in England, or its equivalent in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales. If you're based in the Republic of Ireland, we expect you to adhere to the spirit of these principles.

If your proposal involves clinical research using NHS resources, check if you need to upload a SoECAT form with your application.
 

Fieldwork expenses can include:

  • survey and data collection, including communication and data collection services and any associated costs such as essential field materials, travel costs and language translation services
  • the purchase, hire and running costs of vehicles dedicated to your project
  • expenses for subjects and volunteers, including the recruitment of participants, their participatory fees and travel costs
  • statistical analysis

You can ask for other fieldwork costs that aren’t listed here. You’ll need to justify them.

You can ask for these costs if you are applying from a:

  • higher education institution
  • research institute
  • healthcare organisation
  • charity, social enterprise or non-governmental research organisation
  • small company

Environmentally conscious travel

Travel on grants should be done in an environmentally conscious way, in line with our environmental sustainability funding policy. You should consider if you could meet your trip’s objectives using video conferencing, hybrid meetings or virtual attendance.

Where travel is necessary, you can ask for:

  • the cost of low carbon travel where practical, even if it's more expensive (for example travelling by train instead of flying)
  • economy flights when train journeys are over 10 hours, or not possible due to availability, safety, or visa permit reasons, or in exceptional circumstances such as a disability, long-term health condition or caring requirements necessitating faster travel. We will not pay for business class flights.
  • project-related resources or activities that provide an alternative to travel, such as video conferencing, communication and file-sharing software
  • costs to mitigate the carbon emissions of the essential travel by purchasing accredited carbon credits. If carbon mitigation for travel is not part of your organisational sustainability strategy, you can ask us for a similar level of support for other sustainability initiatives. Your organisation must contact us for approval before submitting your application.

We won't pay for the core infrastructure that your administering organisation should provide, unless you're eligible to ask for these costs under our overheads policy. Examples of these costs include:

  • organisation-wide video conferencing packages
  • high-speed broadband
  • HD screens

Conference attendance

You can ask for a contribution towards the costs of attending scientific and academic meetings and conferences, including travel, accommodation, and registration fees. The limits are:

  • Lead applicant – £2,000 a year
  • Coapplicants – £2,000 each a year
  • Research and technical staff employed on your grant – £1,000 each a year

You can ask for the cost of accredited carbon credits to mitigate the emissions from conference travel in addition to these limits.

We provide costs to cover caring responsibilities for any staff employed on your grant to attend a conference. This includes childcare and any other caring responsibility they have. We will pay these if:

  • Wellcome is providing the salary
  • the conference is directly related to the research
  • the caring costs are over and above what they would normally pay for care
  • the conference organiser and their employing organisation are unable to cover the costs

You can ask for up to £1,000 per person for each conference.

Other essential travel

You can ask for travel and subsistence costs for collaborative visits for you, any coapplicants and any staff employed on your grant to visit collaborators (or for them to visit you), and for other essential visits, for example to facilities, for sample collection and for field work. You’ll need to justify each visit and its duration.

Subsistence costs

Up to one month

If you’re away for up to one month you can ask for subsistence costs. These include accommodation, meals and incidentals (for example, refreshments or newspapers).

If your administering organisation has a subsistence policy, use their rates.

If your administering organisation doesn’t have a subsistence policy, please use the HMRC rates.

1 to 12 months

If you’re away for more than one month and up to 12 months, we will pay reasonable rental costs only, including aparthotels. You should discuss appropriate rates with the administering and employing organisations, or Wellcome, as needed. We expect you to choose the most economical options, booked in advance where possible.

If you’re from a low- or middle- income country and will be working in a high-income country for more than one month and up to 12 months, you can also ask for up to £10 a day to cover extra costs, such as transport.

More than 12 months

If you’re away for more than 12 months, we will pay the costs of your housing. You should discuss your needs with your administering and host organisations.

The allowance we provide will be based on family and business need. We will set the maximum allowance we pay for each location. This will be based on current market data or, where data is unavailable, in consultation with your administering organisation, using equivalent market rates. Please contact us if you need help calculating the costs.

We will cover the direct expenses you have to pay to find and rent a home. We will not cover the cost of utilities or any refurbishment.

Overseas research

If you or any research staff employed on your grant will be doing research away from your home organisation, we'll help with the additional costs of working on the project overseas. Read the 'Overseas allowances' section for details.

You can ask for these costs if you are applying from a:

  • higher education institution
  • research institute
  • healthcare organisation
  • charity, social enterprise or non-governmental research organisation
  • small company

If you or any staff employed on your grant will be spending time in another country, we’ll help you with the additional costs of working on the project overseas.

Our overseas allowances are:

  • a contribution towards the personal cost of carrying out research overseas, to ensure that you are not disadvantaged
  • provided on the assumption that you’ll be paying income tax, either in your home country, or the country you will be working in (your personal tax is your responsibility)
  • provided on the understanding that you or your partner will not receive equivalent allowances from elsewhere
  • determined by the amount of time you will spend away from your home country

Carbon offset costs

We expect the people we fund to choose travel that has a lower carbon impact, where practical, even if it’s more expensive (for example travelling by train instead of flying). We will not pay for business class flights.

You can ask for costs to offset the carbon generated by the travel, as part of your overseas allowances. If carbon offsetting for travel is not part of your organisational sustainability strategy, you can ask us for a similar level of support for other sustainability initiatives. Your organisation must get our approval for other sustainability initiatives to be included in applications.

Read our environmental sustainability funding policy for what you and your organisation can do.
 

If you will be away more than 12 months, we will provide overseas allowances for your partner and any dependants if they are travelling with you.

If you will be away for 12 months or less and can justify why your partner and dependants must travel with you, we may provide overseas allowances for them.

We define your partner as the person:

  • you’re married to
  • you’re not married to but with whom you’ve been in a relationship for at least a year

and

  • you live with at the same permanent address and share some form of joint financial commitment with, such as a mortgage.
     

We will pay your travel costs at the beginning and end of your overseas work. Costs can be for air, ferry, train or coach fares. We will not pay for business class flights.

All fares should be:

If you are away for up to 12 months, you can ask for up to 80kg of additional baggage or unaccompanied airline freight for your outward and return journeys.

If you are away for more than 12 months, you can ask for the costs of shipping your personal items at the beginning and end of your overseas work.

We will pay the full cost of transporting:

  • half a standard shipping container if you’re travelling alone
  • a whole standard shipping container (20ft) if you’re travelling with a partner and/or dependants
     

We will pay the cost of your medical insurance and travel insurance.

If you will be working in a low- or middle-income country we will also cover the cost of emergency evacuation cover.

We won’t pay for medical insurance if you will be based in the UK or Republic of Ireland.

We will pay the costs of visas, vaccinations and anti-malaria treatment.

You can ask for this if you’ll be based in a low- or middle-income country and it is necessary.

Costs can include guards, panic buttons and alarms. You should ask your employing organisation for advice on the level of security you need.

If you’re away for up to one month 

You can ask for subsistence costs. These include accommodation, meals and incidentals (for example, refreshments or newspapers).

If your administering organisation has a subsistence policy, use their rates.

If your administering organisation doesn’t have a subsistence policy, please use the HMRC rates.

If you’re away for more than one month and up to 12 months

We will pay reasonable rental costs only, including aparthotels. You should discuss appropriate rates with your administering and host organisations, or Wellcome, as appropriate. We expect you to choose the most economical options, booked in advance where possible.

If you’re from a low- or middle- income country and will be working in a high-income country for more than one month and up to 12 months, you can also ask for up to £10 a day to cover extra costs, such as transport and incidentals.

If you’re away for more than 12 months

We will pay the costs of your housing. You should discuss your needs with your administering and host organisations.

The allowance we provide will be based on family and business need. We will set the maximum allowance we pay for each location. This will be based on current market data or, where data is unavailable, in consultation with your administering organisation, using equivalent market rates. If you need help calculating the costs please contact us.

We will cover the direct expenses you have to pay to find and rent a home. We will not cover the cost of utilities or any refurbishment.

If you’re away for more than 12 months we will pay:

Local nursery or school fees

You can ask for these costs if you are in a location where there isn’t free local education of the same standard as in your home country.

Costs include:

  • local nursery school fees up to a maximum of 30 hours a week for 3 to 4 year olds
  • local junior or secondary school fees, up to the end of secondary school education
Local international school fees

You can ask for these costs if local schools do not provide the same standard of education as in your home country. We will only pay the published termly school fees.

We will not cover the costs of:

  • extracurricular activities, including field trips
  • other extras including, but not limited to, uniforms, sports kit and equipment, transport, meals, books and electronic equipment
Boarding school fees

We will consider paying the cost of boarding school fees in your home country if:

  • a local international school is not available
  • both parents, guardians or the sole care giver live outside the home country

The allowance covers:

We will not cover the costs of:

  • additional annual leave airfares
  • extracurricular activities, including field trips
  • other extras including, but not limited to, uniforms, sports kit and equipment, transport, meals, books and electronic equipment

We will cover the cost of providing special needs education as far as possible. Please contact us to discuss your needs.

We would not usually expect to provide an education allowance if you will be working in a high-income country.

If you will be away for more than 12 months, we’ll pay for you to travel back to your home country for annual leave. This is in addition to your outward and return travel costs and depends on how long you will be away:

  • 12-24 months – 1 annual leave trip
  • 25-36 months – 2 annual leave trips
  • 37-48 months – 3 annual leave trips

All fares should be:

We will not pay for business class flights.
 

If you will be away for more than 12 months, you can ask for up to 100 hours of lessons in the local language for you and/or your partner during the first 12 months of your visit.

We will cover 100% of the costs for local language school classes or up to 50% of the costs of individual tuition.

We will not cover the cost of examinations or personal learning materials such as apps, DVDs and books.

You should ask for the necessary costs to integrate key stakeholders’ perspectives across the life cycle of your project, from agenda setting, funding, and research design to implementation, monitoring, and evaluation. You cannot ask for costs for any activities that take place before the grant start date. 

Costs can include, but are not limited to:

  • compensation for stakeholders’ time and expertise
  • recruitment of participants, participatory fees, travel and other reasonable expenses
  • incentives and recognition for involvement for example, gift cards, one-off awards. These must be aligned with our Research involving human participants policy and avoid undue inducement to take part.
  • engagement professionals, for example community outreach coordinators, patient advocates, engaged research advisory board, lived experience experts
  • room hire, catering and other associated costs of running interviews, workshops, focus groups, partnership building and other activities to integrate stakeholder voices into your research
  • translation services, accessibility costs, survey tools to facilitate inclusive knowledge sharing
  • monitoring and evaluation activities

For more information, read our guidance on using an engaged research approach.

You can ask for costs associated with disseminating research results and findings from Wellcome-funded research, including podcasts, media outreach, websites and talks.

For costs associated with written publications, consult our open access policy.

You can ask for overheads if your administering organisation is a: 

  • higher eudcation institution, healthcare organisation or research institute outside the UK
  • UK research organisation that does not receive core funding for overheads
  • charity, non-profit or non-governmental research organisation
  • social enterprise or small or medium-sized commercial organisation

UK universities and large commercial organisations cannot ask for overheads.

Overheads can include:

  • estates, for example building and premises
  • non-project dedicated administrative and support staff
  • administration, for example finance, library, and room hire

The total cost for overheads should not be more than 20% of the costs requested in your application. 

These costs must directly support the activity funded by the grant.

Sub-awarding

Applicants can also ask for overheads on any part of the grant that is sub-awarded to any of the organisations listed above. However, applicants based at a UK university cannot ask for overheads for the sub-awarded activity if their university will include the sub-awarded funding in its annual report to the UK Charity Research Support Fund.

How to apply for these costs

In your grant application, you must include a letter from your Finance Director stating how the overhead costs have been calculated.

If your organisation has an externally audited or otherwise verified methodology for calculating overhead rates, then the letter must include:

  • confirmation of the validated rate
  • how the rate was arrived at/who provided the rate
  • when the rate was last reviewed
  • where details of the rate can be found

If your organisation does not have an externally audited or otherwise verified methodology for calculating overhead rates, then the letter must include:

  • a breakdown of the costs requested
  • confirmation that the request is a true representation of the costs incurred
     

You can ask for these costs if you are applying from a:

  • higher education institution
  • research institute
  • healthcare organisation
  • charity, social enterprise or non-governmental research organisation
  • small company

Continuing professional development and professional skills training

You can ask for a contribution towards these costs.

Types of training can include:

  • research leadership, professional and people management skills
  • career development support
  • responsible conduct of research
  • diversity and inclusion
  • promotion of a healthy research culture
  • understanding and reducing the environmental impact of research

We expect the employing organisation to provide and fund this training. However, if these types of training are not available, or the quality is inadequate, you can ask for up to £500 a year for lead applicants, coapplicants and each member of staff employed on your grant who will be:

  • in a post of 12 months duration or more only and
  • working on Wellcome funded awards for at least 50% full time equivalent

You will need to justify these costs in your application.

Research skills training

You can ask for costs to cover training for the technical and research skills you need to deliver your proposed research.

You can ask for whatever research skills training you need for lead applicants, coapplicants and each member of staff employed on your grant, who will be:

  • in a post of 12 months duration or more only and
  • working on Wellcome funded awards for at least 50% full time equivalent

You will need to justify these costs in your application.
 

If your organisation receives open access block grant funding, you can ask them to cover your open access article processing charges.

If you're at an organisation that does not receive block grant funding, we’ll supplement your grant when your paper has been accepted for publication.

You cannot ask for these charges in your grant application.

How we calculate your inflation allowance

We will add an inflation allowance to your award. Your inflation allowance is based on your total eligible costs and the duration of the award.

We will use an inflation allowance that reflects the inflation rate of the country where the administering organisation is based using data from the International Monetary Fund (IMF). You'll receive the following allowance if the costs in your application are in pounds sterling.

Award duration (in months)Inflation allowance
0-120.00%
13-241.00%
25-362.01%


The costs in your application must be based on current known costs, excluding inflation.

You should allow for salary pay awards during Year 1. These should be based on pay awards already agreed. If you don’t know what the pay award is yet, then use the IMF rate for the currency your award will be made in.

Allowed costs

You may ask for the following costs (you will have to justify them in your application):

  • specialist publications that are relevant to the research and not available in institutional libraries
  • consultancy fees, including for lived experience experts and where such fees are required to receive advice on a specific aspect of your proposed work which cannot be provided by anyone involved in the application
  • ethics approval costs where these are charged by the approval body and they are a direct cost of the research. We will only pay the actual cost of the review. We will not pay a percentage cost of the grant.
  • expenses for subjects and volunteers – includes recruitment of participants, their participatory fees and travel, as well as interviewee expenses
  • reasonable research-associated costs related to the feedback of health-related findings but not any healthcare-associated costs
  • costs associated with developing an outputs management plan
  • questionnaires, recruitment material, and newsletters for clinical, epidemiological and qualitative research studies
  • public engagement materials where dissemination (including printing and publishing) is a key activity of the project
  • recruitment, advertising and interviewee travel costs for staff to be employed on the grant
  • purchase, hire and running costs of project-dedicated vehicles
  • project-specific personal protective equipment (PPE) that is above the standard expected for the setting

  • costs to host/a contribution towards hosting:

    • a conference
    • a session within a conference
    • a symposium
    • a seminar series
    • advisory board meetings, if appropriate

    The meeting should either be:

    • for research purposes, for example data gathering
    • to disseminate your research findings, for example to policy makers.

    Costs can include:

    • travel and accommodation for keynote speakers
    • external room hire and catering
    • event publicity and conference materials
    • childcare and other caring responsibility costs for delegates
    • any costs related to accessibility and inclusion

Disallowed costs

We will not pay for:

  • phone, postage, photocopying and stationery, unless you can justify these within a clinical or epidemiological study
  • page charges and the cost of colour prints
  • PhD stipends
  • office furniture, such as chairs, desks and filing cabinets
  • clothing such as lab coats and shoes
  • non-research related activities such as catering, room and venue hire for staff parties, team-building events and social activities
  • indemnity insurance (insurance cover against claims made by subjects or patients associated with a research programme) unless it is for a clinical trial and the insurance is a direct cost of the research
  • radiation protection costs
  • contingency funds
  • organisation insurance
  • clinical examination or course fees
  • working capital costs of commercial organisations
  • engagement activities that do not support an engaged approach to research or for one-off events/exhibitions

We will only fund these costs in the case of animal-related research and/or where we are providing overheads:

  • estates costs – such as building and premises costs, basic services and utilities (if your organisation uses full economic costing methodology)
  • research, technical and administrative staff whose time is shared across several projects and isn’t supported by an audit record
  • cleaning, waste and other disposal costs
     

How to apply 

Funding webinar

Attend our funding webinar at 12:00pm (GMT) on 23 February 2026 to hear more about the 2026 Climate Impact Awards, including details about the application process and a question and answers session. The webinar will be recorded and available on this page shortly after the event.

Register to attend

Where to apply

Apply for this scheme on the Wellcome Funding Platform. You can save your application and return to it at any time. 

Get some tips to help you write your grant application. 

Download application questions

Start application

Timing considerations for your application

You must leave enough time for:  

  • reading all the information on this page before applying.
  • you and your coapplicant(s) to complete the application.
  • your administering organisation to review and offer feedback on your application, and for you to complete any suggested changes.
  • the organisational approver at your administering organisation to have time to approve and submit your application to Wellcome by 15:00 BST on 8 April 2026. We do not accept late applications.  

Getting support with your application 

We offer disability-related support for applicants. Read the disability-related support guidance if you:  

  • are disabled or have a long-term health condition and you need help applying for funding.
  • need to defer your application.
  • need help completing your project, for example costs for assistive technology.

If you need further support with completing your application or need to request an extension to the deadline, please contact us.  


If this is your organisation’s first time applying for Wellcome funding  

If this is your organisation’s first time applying for Wellcome funding, they will need to contact us to request an organisation account.

Email fundingsupport@wellcome.org with your organisation’s:  

  • name  
  • address  
  • country  
  • team email address for the people who will approve and submit your application (this is usually a research management team)

We will create the organisation account and provide access to the approvers. Review our guidance for research offices.  

 

Application process 

1. Before you apply  

  • Make sure you read everything on this page.
  • You do not need to contact us before you write and submit your application.

2. Submit your application to your administering organisation for approval 

  • Complete your application form on Wellcome Funding platform.
  • Submit your completed application form to the organisational approver at your administering organisation for approval. Make sure you leave enough time for the approver to review and submit your application before the deadline. The approver may ask you to make changes to your application.

3. Administering organisation approves and submits it to Wellcome 

  • Your application must be submitted by 15.00 BST on 8 April 2026 on the deadline day. We do not accept late applications.  

4. Shortlisting 

  • We will check your eligibility for the scheme and that your proposed research is within the scheme’s scope. If your application is ineligible or your proposed research is not in the scheme’s scope, we will withdraw your application and notify you of this.
  • The Climate Impacts Awards Advisory Funding Committee will assess eligible and in scope applications against the assessment criteria, to make shortlisting recommendations to Wellcome.
  • Committee membership will be comprised of a diverse range of international members and will take into account Wellcome’s equity priorities.
  • If your application is shortlisted, it will proceed to the next stage.
  • We are unable to provide feedback on applications that are not shortlisted.   

5. Interview 

  • The Committee will interview shortlisted applicants online and make funding recommendations to Wellcome. Interviews are scheduled to take place 21-23 July 2026.
  • The lead applicant will attend the interview, accompanied by up to two coapplicants.
  • We’ll contact the lead applicant to ask if interview attendees have any accessibility requirements.
  • You will be asked to give a presentation at the start of your interview. Details of the requirements for this presentation, and the date when slides need to be submitted to Wellcome, will be shared in advance.
  • We will provide further information on the structure of the interview and Committee membership before the interview.
  • The focus of the interview will be on questions and answers. The Committee will assess the application against the full set of assessment criteria, rather than one specific aspect of the proposal.
  • The Committee will consider your application and interview responses when making funding recommendations to Wellcome.  

6. Funding decision 

  • Final funding decisions will be made by Wellcome.
  • You will receive an email notification of the funding decision soon after the decision has been made in August 2026.
  • We will write to unsuccessful shortlisted applicants after this with the reasons for the decision.

How applications are assessed 

The total number of projects we fund through this scheme will depend on several factors, such as the number and quality of applications received.  

For this scheme, there is a preference for proposals focused on policy outcomes informed by communities most impacted by climate change in both high-income countries (HICs) and low-and middle-income countries (LMICs). There is no preference for single or multi-country studies. We are looking for proposals that aim to demonstrate the scale of the problem and the potential for climate action at scale. 

There is no preference for proposals that generate new data versus synthesise available data. Data should be managed/collected following the FAIR Guiding Principles for scientific data management and stewardship. Research should be developed and reported using standardised guidelines from the equator network. 

All applications will be evaluated using the same weighted assessment criteria.  

Essential criteria and weightings 

Research and methods (25% weighting)  

  • Relevance of the proposed work in driving context-specific climate action. 
  • The importance of the proposed work in the context of the health impact.
  • Appropriateness of the research approach including the economic analysis.
  • The quality, innovation and mix of methodologies proposed. For example, is the presented theoretical and conceptual framework informed by different perspectives (such as natural sciences, social sciences, epidemiological analysis, economic analysis, political analysis and climate sciences).
  • Justification for the chosen methods, including qualitative and quantitative work packages. 

Policy opportunity (25% weighting) 

  • Theory of change: the team provides a plausible theory of change with a clear problem articulation, that describes where the climate and health evidence gap is (and explicitly frames it in the context of a changing climate), how the team will address it and how the team will use the evidence to target a specific policy opportunity.
  • Clarity about the policy opportunity and implications of the proposed activities.
  • Potential to have policy impact in the timeframe of the award. For example, is this work scalable or transferable? 
  • Evidence of demand for this research.  
  • Relevance and innovation of the proposed communication strategy. For example, the ability to communicate the policy opportunity, implications of the proposed activities and engagement with key stakeholders. 

Engaged research (25% weighting)  

  • Clear identification and justification of key stakeholders and impacted communities' involvement (for example, local, or national governments, civil society, community-based organisations, international or multilateral organisations, private sector, local or national government).
  • Evidence of stakeholders and impacted communities contributing to the research design and research questions and their involvement is clearly shown throughout the lifespan of the proposed activities. For example, if the project responds to the needs, interests and capacities of the stakeholders and impacted communities.
  • The engagement methods and framework that will be used and how these are integrated and beneficial to the wider ambitions of the project.

Team, skills and experience (25% weighting)

  • Transdisciplinary teams: the team composition includes an appropriate combination of individuals and organisations with the capacity, skills and experience to deliver the project and its intended outcomes. Outline how your team will work in a transdisciplinary way, and has expertise in climate and health, and relevant economic expertise.
  • Successful partnerships: evidence of a history of working together and using a transdisciplinary approach.
  • Evidence that the team has the relevant expertise to deliver the approach and methods outlined. For example, triallists, policy analysis, policy practice, engagement practices and communication strategies.
  • Evidence of a commitment to equity, diversity and inclusion. For example, your approach to recruiting a diverse team and how you will promote inclusion of members in the research and outputs produced.
  • Clear articulation of what a positive research culture is and how teams will foster this through their future work.  

Applicants do not need to submit ethics approval to the administering organisation by the deadline but should give some consideration to potential ethical issues that may arise through the proposed work in the application.  

Provide any relevant links including publications, websites, social media and videos. We advise you to use links strategically, and be sure to include all of the crucial information in the text of the application as the reviewers are not required to go through each link. Any links must be written out in full URL format. 

About this scheme 

The Climate Impacts Awards were launched in 2023. To date, Wellcome has funded 37 innovative global projects through the scheme. The funded grants from the 2025 Climate Impacts Awards will be available to view on the website soon.

Despite the overwhelming evidence of the negative impacts of climate change, we are not seeing the scale and the speed of action required (IPCC AR6 Synthesis Report).   

The aim of this scheme is to make the impacts of climate change visible across a wide range of physical and mental health outcomes in order to drive urgent climate policy change at scale.  

There is a need for more evidence and better understanding of the cost of climate change-related health outcomes to create an urgent argument for action and advance progress on the three pillars of climate policy: adaptation, mitigation and loss and damage (2025 Lancet Report on climate and health). We are looking to fund evidence on the health effects of climate change, added with this economic analysis, bringing together key stakeholders and partners to amplify impactful narratives and unlock urgent climate action.   

The health effects of climate change are not evenly distributed and disproportionately burden vulnerable communities in LMICs and HICs. We will prioritise funding for research that serves the expressed needs of at-risk populations with high exposures and vulnerabilities to the health effects of climate change (in this context, vulnerability may result from the intersection of factors such as geography, socio-economic status, demography, gender, race, ability, ethnicity, co-morbidities and occupation). We want to support evidence which can influence policy decisions with health and economic arguments but also can support decision makers to prioritise investments by understanding where impacts hit hardest and in which communities.  

Research must be designed using an engaged approach that includes the voices of key stakeholders (including policy and decision makers) and impacted communities. A more detailed understanding of community level impacts can help bridge the gap between global climate discussions and local realities, making the urgency of climate action more relatable. We believe this will both drive greater climate action and help deliver equitable policy solutions in climate change adaptation, mitigation, and loss and damage. 

This scheme aims to make the impacts of climate change on health visible. There are many reasons the impacts of climate change could be invisible. 

These include but are not limited to: 

  • distance: decision makers not being based where the impacts are happening
  • ideology: political polarisation results in missing voices, disinformation or lack of information 
  • unseen: some of the climate impacts of environmental drivers of health outcomes (for example, certain chemicals, pollutants or microscopic organisms) may not be visible and therefore may be ignored 
  • linkage: the links between climate change and health effects not being explicitly made or understood 
  • low priority: climate change's effects on health are not given much focus due to competing priorities, unconvincing analyses and communications challenges

Application process timeline 

You must submit your application by 15:00 (BST) on the deadline day. We don’t accept late applications.

  1. 20 January 2026

    Scheme opens to applications

  2. 23 February 2026

    Webinar

    Register here
  3. 8 April 2026

    Application deadline

  4. 21-23 July 2026

    Interviews

  5. August 2026

    Decision

Contact us 

Eligibility, what we offer and application questions

If you have a question about eligibility, what we offer or about completing the application form using Wellcome Funding, send our funding information advisers a message.

Send us a message

Scope questions

  • If you are unclear about whether your proposed idea would be in scope for this scheme, you can send a very brief summary of your idea (no more than 200 words) by 6 March 2026 to climateimpacts@wellcome.org.
  • Include the title of the call '2026 Climate Impacts Awards' in the subject line.
  • Based on the information provided, we will aim to reply to your email within one week, with an 'in scope' or 'out of scope' response.
  • Please note that this is not a requirement and will not impact your likelihood of being funded. The confirmation that a proposed idea is in scope does not constitute an active invitation to apply. In addition to this, full proposals may still be deemed ineligible if they do not fulfil all the requirements of this scheme.
  • We do not answer questions on the competitiveness of proposals. 

climateimpacts@wellcome.org