Hello Everyone,
24 new opportunities on the Global Health and WASH page this cycle, all added since the July mid-month update, and 17 of them closing within the month. Three currents run through them: climate is being absorbed into the definition of health, artificial intelligence is moving from the lab into care delivery, and epidemic preparedness is being rebuilt around African institutions.
Climate is being written into the definition of health. Nexa, co-led by Grand Challenges Canada and the Science for Africa Foundation, states the thesis plainly: climate change is a health delivery crisis, and it funds tools that let communities act on climate-driven risks like mosquito-borne infection and extreme heat. UNICEF is running three separate calls that reframe water and sanitation as climate-resilience work, in Nepal’s Karnali province, in West Java, and across Ecuador’s emergency contingency system. Even the Halton Foundation’s indoor-environmental-quality grants tie building conditions to respiratory health. The climate-health convergence we have tracked all year is no longer a niche; it is becoming the frame through which mainstream health and WASH money is allocated.
AI is being funded at the point of care, not just the bench. The Gates Foundation’s Grand Challenges RFP asks for conversational AI that engages consumers directly on family planning, and its multiplex-diagnostics call wants low-cost tools that read many biomarkers at once. The Francis Crick Institute’s KQ Labs backs startups whose use of data sits at the core of the model, not bolted on, and the Asian Development Bank’s dengue challenge rewards bio-enabled and digitally powered surveillance. The tell is consistent: these funders now treat data and AI capability as a scored expectation of a credible health solution, extending the AI-as-baseline pattern we first named in the spring into frontline delivery.
Epidemic preparedness is being rebuilt around African institutions. Africa CDC’s African Epidemic Services fellowship trains field epidemiologists inside the continent’s own public-health system, the Africa Health Collaborative funds research led by early-career investigators at African member institutions, and the Global Health EDCTP3 prizes recognize teams working across sub-Saharan Africa and Europe. CEPI, meanwhile, keeps a rolling call open for rapid-response vaccine platforms against the next Disease X. Together they show health-security money flowing toward locally held capacity and standing readiness rather than one-off external projects, a continuation of the health-security rebuild we flagged in July.
Open Calls: Current grant and opportunities with a deadline. Grants are listed by closing date. 57 open opportunities- 23 new!
Rolling Applications: current grant and opportunities with rolling applications (but it’s still best to submit as early as possible). 18 rolling opportunities- 1 new opportunities!
Long term planning: Grants that have closed their current rounds, but are expected to open new windows. 4 long term opportunities!
A quick tip for returning readers: if you want to jump straight to the newest additions, use CTRL F to search for “New!” and navigate quickly to the latest funding opportunities
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Contingency Agreements with UNICEF for Emergency Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) Preparedness and Response, United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF). *New!*
The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) Ecuador is inviting organizations to join a standing roster of partners for water, sanitation, and hygiene response when emergencies strike. UNICEF pre-qualifies partners before a crisis so that safe water, sanitation, and hygiene services can reach children and families in the first days of a flood, earthquake, or displacement event. The agency is looking for organizations that already hold operational footing in Ecuador’s most disaster-prone provinces, with warehouses, staff, and the ability to move supplies quickly. Selection weighs field presence, emergency experience, and alignment with the Core Commitments for Children, signaling that UNICEF values readiness over promises. The strongest fits are Ecuadorian civil society organizations with proven WASH delivery and logistics reach in vulnerable coastal and border provinces.
Geographies: Caribbean, Central America, South America (Ecuador).
Who can apply: Civil society organizations and NGOs with demonstrated experience in emergency preparedness and response in WASH (and related sectors), and operational capacity - field offices, warehouses, staffing, and rapid supply-mobilization ability - in Ecuador’s priority disaster-prone provinces.
Funding amount: No fixed award amount is published on the call page.
Targeted Sectors / SDGs: WASH; SDGs 3, 6, 13. Focus: wash in emergencies, contingency planning, disaster risk reduction.
Deadline: August 4, 2026.
Cancer Research Trust NZ: Research Project + Special Purpose Grants 2026, Cancer Research Trust NZ.
Cancer Research Trust New Zealand runs two parallel grant programs that share a portal, an NZD $80,000 (~USD $48,000) ceiling, and a 5 August 2026 deadline, but fund opposite kinds of work. The Research Project Grant backs hypothesis-driven cancer research, from drug discovery to clinical trials, as proof-of-concept seed work for larger follow-on funding; it runs international peer review, and only the top half by reviewer score reach full committee. The Special Purpose Grant funds everything that is not hypothesis-driven: care, support, education, and capacity initiatives, committee-assessed without peer review. Both run through a host institution, and both require every proposal to be cancer-focused and to address Maori health advancement under te Tiriti o Waitangi. The first decision is which door fits your work.
Geographies: New Zealand; host institution required
Who can apply: NZ researchers and cancer care professionals through host institutions; both grants require cancer focus and Māori health advancement under te Tiriti o Waitangi
Funding amount: NZD $80,000 ceiling per grant (~USD $48K); no overheads or capital covered
Targeted Sectors / SDGs: Health; Focus areas: cancer research, oncology, cancer care, education, Māori health equity, New Zealand.
Deadline: August 5, 2026 (host institution internal deadline typically earlier)
Neither grant pays overheads, capital, student stipends, conference travel, or salary buy-out for permanent staff, and the ceiling is NZD $80,000. Budget only the direct, fundable costs and lean on your host institution to absorb the rest; a budget padded with ineligible lines reads as not having read the rules.
"Go Healthy with Taiwan 2026" Global Proposal Campaign, Taiwan External Trade Development Council (TAITRA) / Taiwan Excellence.
The Taiwan External Trade Development Council runs Go Healthy with Taiwan to accelerate the global reach of the island's health, medical, smart-healthcare, and sports-technology industries by seeding real adoption abroad. The campaign invites organizations worldwide to propose projects that solve a genuine health or wellbeing challenge by integrating a specific Taiwanese product, service, or technology. The funder looks for innovation, feasibility, and scalability, and the strength of the link to a Taiwanese solution is a decisive selection signal rather than a nice-to-have. Selected projects can receive implementation support to fund delivery and scale-up, while top teams also win cash prizes and a sponsored trip to Taiwan with enterprise matchmaking and pitch coaching. The logic is market access and durable commercial partnership for Taiwanese industry, framed as co-creation for healthier communities.
Geographies: Global.
Who can apply: Companies, NGOs, research institutions, universities, government agencies, and groups worldwide, with a designated coordinator for teams.
Funding amount: Up to $100,000 USD per project, plus $30,000 USD prizes for up to three winners and a sponsored Taiwan trip for finalists.
Targeted Sectors / SDGs: Health; SDG3, SDG9, SDG17. Focus: health technology adoption.
Deadline: August 5, 2026.
Taiwan is really buying market entry for its health industry, so the decisive factor is a genuine, specific link to a Taiwanese product or technology, not a general good idea. Build your proposal around one real solution you will actually adopt and scale, and let a credible implementation plan and the prospect of lasting commercial partnership do the persuading.
Community Wellbeing and Mental Health Fund, Dorset Community Foundation.
Dorset Community Foundation, working with Community Action Network and funded by NHS Dorset, is opening the final round of its Community Wellbeing and Mental Health Fund for adults across Dorset. The foundation is backing non-clinical, community based early intervention: social groups, green social prescribing, carer support, and services that help people build resilience before they reach the point of needing clinical care. It wants groups woven into the local Access Wellbeing network, signaling that it values joined up support over standalone projects, and it gives priority to communities facing health inequalities and deprivation. Pre-application coaching is built in, which tells you the foundation cares more about delivery readiness than polished proposals. The strongest fits are small Dorset based charities and voluntary groups running wellbeing activities for isolated or excluded adults.
Geographies: United Kingdom.
Who can apply: Registered charities; constituted community and voluntary organisations; Community Interest Companies limited by guarantee; and companies limited by guarantee with a clear not-for-profit clause and charitable or social objectives.
Funding amount: Grants of up to £20,000 for an 18 to 24 month grant period (established groups delivering for 2+ years); grants of up to £5,000 for a 12 month grant period (newer groups, under 2 years, or those piloting new services). Smaller requests welcome..
Targeted Sectors / SDGs: Health; SDGs: SDG3; SDG10; Focus areas: mental health support; community wellbeing; early intervention; health inequalities; inclusion health groups; social isolation.
Deadline: August 6, 2026.
The fund is tightly local to Dorset and expects groups already woven into the Access Wellbeing network delivering non-clinical early intervention, so standalone projects are a weaker fit; built-in pre-application coaching signals applicants should engage early rather than apply cold.
Initiative First Food Madagascar, UNICEF. *New!*
The United Nations Children’s Fund is seeking implementing partners for Initiative First Food Madagascar, the country rollout of its First Foods Africa drive to end child food poverty and malnutrition. The strategy works the food system itself: encouraging local production of nutritious young-child foods, shaping policy so standards and access improve, and building demand so nutritious local food becomes the default choice for caregivers. The Madagascar call mirrors that breadth, spanning infant and young child feeding, agricultural inputs and smallholder market support, food security analysis, water and hygiene, and communication for development. Recruiting through the UN Partner Portal signals a working partnership with the country office, favoring organizations already assessed by UN agencies. The strongest fits are civil society organizations pairing community nutrition delivery with agricultural livelihoods work in Madagascar.
Geographies: Africa (Madagascar).
Who can apply: Civil society organizations (national and international NGOs) registered on the UN Partner Portal; UNICEF selects implementing partner(s) through this partnership opportunity.
Funding amount: No fixed award amount is published on the call page.
Targeted Sectors / SDGs: Health; SDGs 2, 3. Focus: first foods, complementary feeding, local food production.
Deadline: August 10, 2026.
Mine Health and Safety State Grants, Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA), U.S. Department of Labor.
The Mine Safety and Health Administration runs this annual program under the 1977 Mine Act to improve the safety and health of the US mining workforce through a Federal-State partnership. Its aim is to reduce miner injuries, illnesses, and fatalities by funding state-delivered training and compliance assistance, with priority on new and small operations, inexperienced miners, and persistent hazards like powered haulage and respirable dust disease. A notable 2026 signal is an explicit push to support reopening idled mines and extracting critical minerals, as coal gains that designation. The money is structured as a cost-shared supplement, not a replacement, so the agency reinforces rather than supplants state safety capacity. Eligibility is tightly drawn to designated state, tribal, and territorial public agencies in mining states. The agency also requires open licensing of the training materials it funds.
Geographies: United States.
Who can apply: US state, tribal and territorial governments and their Governor-designated public agencies (no private, NGO or for-profit applicants).
Funding amount: Up to USD 800,000 per award.
Targeted Sectors / SDGs: Health; SDG3, SDG8. Focus: miner safety and health training.
Deadline: August 10, 2026.
MSHA wants its state partners to reinforce, not replace, existing safety capacity, and this year it is steering attention toward reopening idled mines and the critical-minerals workforce. So build your statement of need on hard state injury data, target the new and small operations and inexperienced miners the agency flags, and position your training as a supplement that deepens what your state already does.
KQ Labs Cohort 9 - Data-Driven Health Startups, Francis Crick Institute. *New!*
The Francis Crick Institute runs KQ Labs, a five month accelerator for early stage companies building data driven tools in drug discovery, precision medicine, and digital health. The Crick, working with Medicines Discovery Catapult and Cancer Research Horizons, uses the program to move computational science out of the lab and toward investment ready businesses, pairing founders with biotech entrepreneurs, pharmaceutical partners, and investors. It seeks teams whose science is credible and whose use of data sits at the core of the model, not bolted on, signaling that the Crick wants durable companies rather than promising demos. The convertible loan structure and demo day access show a funder building a lasting UK ecosystem around health data. The strongest fits are UK registered, early stage founders turning biomedical research into scalable products.
Geographies: Europe (United Kingdom).
Who can apply: Early-stage companies with a legal entity registered in the UK, working on solutions with significant potential impact on health where the use of data is a core part of the business model.
Funding amount: GBP 40,000 per company (convertible loan note).
Targeted Sectors / SDGs: Health. Focus: ai drug discovery, digital health, precision medicine.
Deadline: August 12, 2026.
LMIC Capacity and Capability Building Grant, International Society for Quality in Health Care (ISQua). *New!*
The International Society for Quality in Health Care opens its LMIC Capacity and Capability Building Grant to fund a single project that strengthens healthcare quality and patient safety in low and lower-middle-income countries. ISQua is directing the award toward building local capability rather than importing outside expertise, backing work in workforce development, quality improvement collaboratives, patient safety, leadership, digital quality systems, and community education. What it wants to grow is durable in-country capacity that outlasts the grant, which is why applicants must be based in and actively working in the regions they serve. Requiring patient and community co-design signals that ISQua treats lived experience as central to quality, not decorative. The strongest fits are ISQua members leading practical, measurable improvement efforts inside under-resourced health systems.
Geographies: LIC’s and LMIC’s.
Who can apply: The proposer (project leader) must be an ISQua Member, either Institutional or Individual, and must be based in and actively working in a low- or lower-middle-income country as classified by the World Bank (2026). Project teams may include non-members. The project must include patient/community co-design.
Funding amount: €15,000.
Targeted Sectors / SDGs: Health. Focus: patient safety, quality improvement collaboratives, healthcare workforce development.
Deadline: August 12, 2026.
MQ Mental Health Research Schizophrenia Research Fellowship 2026, MQ Mental Health Research. *New!*
MQ Mental Health Research is funding a Schizophrenia Research Fellowship for early career scientists worldwide, backed by Nikki Fa Fond hosted by Fondation Philanthropia. MQ names schizophrenia as underfunded and inadequately treated, and it is using three year fellowships to pull postdoctoral talent into the field and keep it there. The call favors focused, feasible projects that build on existing data and infrastructure and reach clinically meaningful outcomes, including cognitive and negative symptoms, treatment resistance, and early intervention, signaling that MQ wants translation within the award window, not open ended discovery. Early stage drug discovery is out of scope, and lived experience involvement is expected throughout. The strongest fits are postdoctoral researchers three to seven years out with a credible path to independence and patient centered study designs.
Geographies: Global.
Who can apply: Early-career mental health researchers anywhere in the world with a minimum of 3 and no more than 7 years of postdoctoral research experience, based at a university, hospital, or research institution.
Funding amount: up to £250,000 over three years.
Targeted Sectors / SDGs: Health; SDGs 3. Focus: schizophrenia, psychosis, mental health research.
Deadline: August 12, 2026.
Nexa: From Climate Risk to Health Resilience - Transition to Scale Grants, Science for Africa Foundation / Grand Challenges Canada. *New!*
Nexa is a global climate and health initiative co-led by Grand Challenges Canada and the Science for Africa Foundation, with backing from Wellcome Trust, the Novo Nordisk Foundation, and Sanofi. Its premise is that climate change is not only an environmental crisis but a health delivery crisis, and that the local health actors closest to it are the least resourced to respond. Nexa funds innovations that let communities act on climate-driven health risks, specifically mosquito-borne infection, extreme heat, and poor air quality. Backing solutions that already carry proof-of-concept evidence and can move toward scale signals that the initiative wants field-tested approaches ready to grow, not early experiments. The strongest fits are organizations implementing in Africa or in Latin America and the Caribbean with demonstrated results behind them.
Geographies: Africa (all 54 countries for both tracks) | Latin America & Caribbean (Brazil only for PoC; 28 countries for TTS).
Who can apply: Any incorporated organization is eligible, including companies, social enterprises, NGOs, non-profits, for-profit organizations, and research or academic institutions. Individuals, sole proprietorships, unincorporated trusts, partnerships, and UN agencies are not eligible.
Funding amount: $250,000–$2,000,000 USD Transition to scale.
Targeted Sectors / SDGs: Health.
Deadline: August 12, 2026.
Open Fund - Large Collaborative Grant (OF-LCG), National Medical Research Council (NMRC).
The National Medical Research Council opens its Open Fund Large Collaborative Grant to bring the strongest teams from Singapore’s public institutions together around patient-centric translational research. NMRC wants work that moves between basic discovery and clinical application, refusing to back pure basic science or standalone clinical studies, and it favors programs that cross institutions and disciplines. Priority sits with cancers, cardiovascular and metabolic disease, mental health, infection, and cross-cutting tools like artificial intelligence and cell therapies. The two-stage review, from letter of intent through international assessment and interview, signals that the council is selecting for programs able to sustain multi-year collaboration and show a clear pathway to health and economic impact. The strongest fits are established investigators leading multi-institutional teams anchored in Singapore’s public research base.
Geographies: Singapore (South-eastern Asia).
Who can apply: The Corresponding Principal Investigator and Theme PIs, who must hold a primary appointment in and be salaried by a Singapore local public institution, hold a PhD or MD/MBBS/BDS qualification (case-by-case exceptions), be an independent investigator with a demonstrated track record.
Funding amount: Tier 1: Up to SGD $10 million; Tier 2: Up to SGD $25 million (both inclusive of indirect cost), over up to 5 years.
Targeted Sectors / SDGs: Health; SDGs: SDG3; SDG9; Focus areas: cancer; cardiovascular disease; mental health; infectious disease; metabolic and endocrine disorders; neurological conditions; multi-morbidity; artificial intelligence in health; cell and nucleic acid therapies.
Deadline: August 12, 2026.
The decisive gate is that lead investigators must hold a primary, salaried appointment at a Singapore local public institution, and the fund backs cross-institutional translational teams, refusing both pure basic science and standalone clinical studies.
Lundbeck Foundation Start-Up Programme, Lundbeckfonden (The Lundbeck Foundation).
The Lundbeck Foundation seeks to position Denmark as a global leader in neuroscience by strategically recruiting world-class researchers to permanent academic positions. The foundation funds comprehensive research start-up packages that enable Danish universities and hospitals to attract established scientists from international institutions and industry, specifically targeting associate and full professors with proven track records in brain disorders research. This investment strategy supports institutional capacity building by covering multi-year research infrastructure, equipment, and operational costs while requiring host institutions to demonstrate long-term commitment through salary coverage. The foundation catalyzes international talent mobility by removing financial barriers that typically prevent institutions from recruiting senior researchers, particularly those transitioning from industry to academia. Through this targeted approach, the foundation enables Danish research institutions to compete globally for neuroscience talent while building sustainable research programs focused on understanding and treating brain disorders.
Geographies: Denmark.
Who can apply: Danish universities and hospitals with hiring authority (Step 1), recruiting an associate or full professor from outside Denmark or industry (Step 2).
Funding amount: Up to approx USD 1,595,000 over four years (original: DKK 7,000,000 for associate professors, DKK 11,000,000 for full professors).
Targeted Sectors / SDGs: Health; SDG3, SDG4, SDG9. Focus: neuroscience talent recruitment.
Deadline: August 13, 2026.
This is really a talent-recruitment instrument for Danish neuroscience, so the foundation is backing institutions that can lock in a world-class brain researcher permanently, not fund a project. The host that fits best shows genuine long-term commitment through salary coverage and a clear strategic reason this hire strengthens its field, so frame the recruitment as central to your institution's neuroscience future.
Alzheimer’s Association Research Grant for All (AARGA) Program, Alzheimer’s Association. *New!*
The Alzheimer’s Association opens its Research Grant for All to early-career investigators building the foundations of a dementia research career. The program funds newly independent assistant professors to generate preliminary data, test procedures, and sharpen hypotheses, the groundwork that later wins federal and other major grants. The Association is seeding the next generation of scientists rather than backing established labs, and it welcomes work across basic science, translational studies, clinical research, and psychosocial investigation, signaling that it reads the dementia field as broad and interconnected. Its emphasis on researchers from underrepresented backgrounds, and its partnership with Brain Canada for Canadian applicants, shows a deliberate widening of who does this science. The strongest fits are recently appointed faculty in Alzheimer’s and related dementia research who need pilot funding to become independent.
Geographies: Global.
Who can apply: U.S. and international early-career researchers who hold a doctoral degree (PhD or equivalent) and a full-time Assistant Professor (or equivalent, including Research Assistant Professor) position at a not-for-profit academic, medical, or research institution, and who have held that position for no more than seven years…
Funding amount: Up to $200,000 total (direct and indirect costs); maximum $70,000 per year.
Targeted Sectors / SDGs: Health; SDGs 3. Focus: alzheimers research, dementia, early-career investigators.
Deadline: August 14, 2026.
Urban Dengue Control Innovation Challenge, Asian Development Bank (ADB). *New!*
The Asian Development Bank runs its Technology Innovation Challenge as a search for proven technologies ready to leave the lab, and this call turns that search toward dengue in Sri Lanka’s crowded cities. ADB wants bio-enabled and digitally powered tools that can complement the spraying and larviciding that insecticide resistance and denser urban growth have started to outpace. What it funds is a real pilot, run in actual neighborhoods, that generates the field evidence governments need before they commit to scaling. Requiring co-financing and local ties signals that ADB is backing teams already invested in the market, not visitors testing a demo. The strongest fits are technology providers, research institutions, and social enterprises with a working vector control solution and a genuine plan to prove it where dengue hits hardest.
Geographies: Asia, Oceania (Sri Lanka).
Who can apply: For-profit companies, non-profit organizations, civil society organizations, research institutions, and legally and financially autonomous government-owned enterprises.
Funding amount: Up to USD 450,000 per pilot project (10% co-financing required).
Targeted Sectors / SDGs: Health; SDGs 3, 11. Focus: dengue, vector-borne disease, mosquito surveillance.
Deadline: August 14, 2026.
Active Play Challenge 2026, Cities for Better Health (Novo Nordisk). *New!*
Cities for Better Health, Novo Nordisk’s global urban health initiative, has launched the Active Play Challenge to fund organizations creating more opportunities for active play for children and young people in cities. The program treats shrinking space for everyday play as a health equity problem: unsafe streets, unequal access, and overscheduled routines raise the risk of childhood obesity and chronic disease. Winning initiatives receive implementation funding plus technical guidance, with three categories spanning spatial design, everyday services, and early years, the last backed by the Van Leer Foundation. The two-stage jury process, with feedback and resubmission for finalists, signals that the partners want implementable, scalable projects, not concepts. The strongest fits are legally registered organizations, especially youth-led ones, already working on play, public space, or child health in underserved communities.
Geographies: Global.
Who can apply: Legally registered organizations worldwide that have the mandate, expertise, and capacity to lead and implement initiatives creating opportunities for active play for children and young people aged 0-25.
Funding amount: USD 50,000 - 100,000 per winning initiative (up to six winners).
Targeted Sectors / SDGs: Health; SDGs 3, 10, 11. Focus: play by design, play in action, play for early years.
Deadline: August 14, 2026.
Africa Health Collaborative Research Fund 2026, Africa Health Collaborative. *New!*
The Africa Health Collaborative opens its 2026 Research Fund to early career researchers at its member universities, backing collaborative studies on how primary health care systems are staffed and paid for. The collaborative is using seed money to grow a generation of African-led health systems scholars, funding the partnerships, exchange visits, and preliminary evidence that later attract larger grants. It wants to strengthen policy on health financing and the health workforce, the quieter structural questions that determine whether clinics function. By requiring at least two member institutions on every team and reserving lead roles for local researchers, the fund signals that it values durable cross-border academic ties over one-off projects. The strongest fits are early career health systems researchers at member institutions ready to build a multi-country collaboration.
Geographies: Africa (Ethiopia, Kenya, Ghana, Rwanda, South Africa, Canada).
Who can apply: Early Career Researchers (ECRs) affiliated with an Africa Health Collaborative member institution. Proposals must be collaborative, involving at least two AHC member institutions (bilateral) or three or more (multilateral), and must include master’s, doctoral, or postdoctoral trainees on the team.
Funding amount: Bilateral projects: Up to USD 22,000 (USD 11,000 per participating institution); Multilateral projects: USD 11,000 per participating institution.
Targeted Sectors / SDGs: Health. Focus: health systems research, health policy, health workforce.
Deadline: August 15, 2026.
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