The Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat (CTBUH) is now accepting proposals for its 2025 International Research Seed Funding—culminating with an award of $20,000 to be recognized at the CTBUH 2025 International Conference, held in Toronto from 6–9 October 2025. 

The goal of the International Research Seed Funding initiative is to assist talented researchers in developing projects/ideas to a level that would secure additional, more significant, funding—in conjunction with CTBUH. Research proposals should directly relate to the tall building typology and/or urban habitat, but can come from any topic/discipline. The proposals should have the potential to improve tall buildings and cities from a wide perspective. A non-exhaustive list of possible research topics is provided in the “Roadmap on the Future Research Needs of Tall Buildings,” produced by CTBUH in conjunction with UNESCO and CIB, and available here.

The ideal final objective of the CTBUH 2025 International Research Seed Funding is to produce an official CTBUH Research Report publication, much like those available here.

Submission Deadline

Proposals are due by Monday 28 July 2025 (11:59 PM Central Time). To express your interest in participating prior to this date, to discuss the suitability of your proposal in more detail, or to ask any questions, please contact: [email protected]

Please note: The CTBUH 2025 International Research Seed Funding initiative is open to research professionals, while the CTBUH International Student Research Competition is aimed specifically at student applications. It is therefore not possible to submit a proposal to both programs.

Selection Committee & Criteria

The evaluation of proposals will be guided by the CTBUH Expert Peer Review Committee, with guidance from the funding sponsor. The committee reflects a multi-disciplinary group of tall building/urban experts from around the world with established research and publication records as well as tall building experience in varying fields. After a first round evaluation by the Expert Peer Review Committee, the top five proposals will be reviewed by a jury representing the Seed Funding Sponsor and CTBUH representatives. CTBUH reserves the right to reject all applications and make no awards. 

Submission requirements/criteria/procedures

Full details of the CTBUH 2025 International Research Seed Funding initiative, including submission requirements, criteria, procedures, etc. can be found in the Award Brief.

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