Policy Challenge Grants
The Policy Challenge Grant program supports applied public policy research to tackle key challenges and foster collaboration between academics and policymakers.
About the program
The Policy Challenge Grant program is a prestigious annual award to support applied public policy research for the public good. With the aim of tackling the greatest public policy challenges facing government, grants will be awarded to outstanding academics undertaking applied policy research, or translating existing research for a policy audiences. Successful projects will generate new insights, foster engagement between academics, policymakers and other stakeholders, including local communities, and support improved policy outcomes.
The Policy Challenge Grant program is unique: the Institute offers dedicated support to grant recipients to communicate their research outputs to a policy audience and maximise the impact of their research through targeted engagement with policymakers.
The 2025 grant round ran from 12 March to 2 May 2025, with successful applicants announced in November.
For the 2026 grant round, the Institute will also launch the James Martin Prize for Policy Impact. The prize will be open to Higher Degree Research (HDR) students who seek to identify solutions to multidimensional policy issues in Australia. Application details will be provided in March 2026 along with eligibility criteria. The winners will be announced at the 2026 Grant Winners Reception that takes place in November.
Award history
2024 Policy Challenge Grant Winners
2023 Policy Challenge Grant Winners
2022 Policy Challenge Grant Winners
The program in numbers
AUD in total grants awarded over 4 years
researchers supported
hours of collaborative engagement between researchers and policymakers
Projects we support
Completed projects
Our impact
APPI has developed a rigorous approach to capturing the impact of our work.
