Competitive Project Awards

The Program

TheTempleton Competitive Project Awards in Values and Virtues (CPA) will provide grants to individual scholars or teams of scholars for one to three years’ duration, in amounts of from 35,000RMB to 525,000RMB. We will distribute 525,000RMB annually. The application deadline is annually, December 15, 2009-2011. We will notify successful applicants by the following January 15. Grants may begin as early as May 1, 2010 and conclude as late as December 30, 2013.

Topics

Often in academic philosophy, the realm of ethics is filled with “guild discourse,” with narrow and abstract conversation about ethics. We are more interested in “big questions” such as

· “Can morality be rooted in science (evolution)?”

· “What are the foundations of morality?”

· “Can we be good without God?”

· “What are the virtues or vices?”

· “Can (or how can) character be taught?”

· “What is the good life?”

Our Competitive Project Awards will fund projects to address these and related issues. We suggest such activities as:

· Conferences, seminars, and regional colloquia on relevant topics

· Internet and video productions to disseminate ideas more broadly

· Curricular development and pedagogy programs

· Team research and book publishing projects on relevant topics

· Publication series, translation projects, website, e-zine and journal startups

· First projects or project clusters of new institutes

· Intensive summer seminars in China co-taught by Western and Chinese scholars

We will also consider extraordinary proposals in philosophy of religion, and science and religion.

Program Eligibility

Eligibility is restricted to mainland Chinese scholars

Applicants must be affiliated with a mainland Chinese university

Applicants must have a Ph.D.

Applicants should demonstrate strong promise of or an established record of successful publication.

Application Instructions

· Anabstractof no more than 300 words briefly describing the project

· A more detailed projectnarrativeof no more than 1,500 words

· An itemizedbudgetfor the project

· Atimelinedescribing precisely the work that will be completed during the grant period, the order in which the work will be completed

· A completecurriculum vitaefor each team member

· Letters of supportfrom the host department and university

· One published or unpublishedpaper, in English, by each team member

Application materials should be submitted electronically to nmk5@calvin.edu. Questions about the application process can be sent to Director Kelly James Clarkkclark@calvin.edu.All application materials, including letters of support, must be received no later than December 15, 2009.

Additional Expectations

After completion of the project, each research team is expected to complete and disseminate the results of their efforts through publications, lectures, or presentations at academic conferences within a short time after the end of the program. Teams are also expected to submit a thorough report to the Program Director describing the effects of their time as grantees on the direction of their project within a year following the grant period, and to send the Program Directors notices of presentations, as well as copies of any papers and books resulting from research conducted during the grant period. CPA fellows are expected to attend our annual conferences in October, 2010-2012.

Selection Panel

Xu Xiangdong (Peking University), Zhu Jing (Zhongshan University), Bai Tongdong (Renmin University), Hao Changchi (Wuhan University), Su Xiangui (Peking University), Wang Wei (Tsinghua University)