In recent years, Governments, international organizations, businesses, academics, media, civil society  organizations, and web developers  around the world have embraced and sponsored open data programs, creating large expectations for open data as a suitable remedy for challenges of good governance, economic growth, social inclusion, innovation, and participation. However, given the recency of this global momentum towards Open Data, there is, as yet, relatively sparce tangible evidence of th epositive and sustainable impacts of Open data.

The Web Foundation and International Development Research Centre are inviting research proposals that address current gaps in the evidence base underlying the implementation of open data initiatives, and to inform policy and practice in a range of different settings. Research partners will be invited to form part of an international research network over the course of 2013.

The project will fund a series of detailed case studies that examine the emerging impacts of specific on-going open data initiatives that address key development themes. Grants are expected to range from USD$25,000 to USD$75,000 and it is expected that smaller grants will focus on small, single-country or local initiative cases while larger grants can include a wider range of activities such as  multi-country comparisons of open data about a particular governance domain (e.g. budget, cities, extractive industries).

The closing date for the call is 10th September 2012. Details can be found at http://www.opendataresearch.org/post/26975988175/call