The Making a Difference Program

The Greenwall Foundation’s "Making a Difference in Real-World Bioethics Dilemmas" program is a flagship initiative supporting cutting-edge research that addresses practical ethical challenges within clinical, biomedical, and public health contexts. The program seeks to fund projects that not only explore pressing bioethics issues but also offer actionable solutions with a tangible impact on healthcare decision-making and public policy. The Foundation’s mission is to expand bioethics knowledge and embed ethical considerations deeply into healthcare, research, and policy landscapes. The Spring 2026 Request for Proposals encourages submissions that demonstrate how innovative bioethics research can resolve real-world dilemmas. While all impactful proposals are welcome, the Foundation has outlined key priority areas for this cycle: trust in science and medicine; bias and discrimination in healthcare; public health crises including mental health implications; healthcare access, cost, and allocation; and recent changes in federal health and science policy. Projects may be empirical, conceptual, or normative in design and must be led by a team with relevant expertise. Collaborations between bioethics scholars and practitioners are strongly encouraged. Proposals must clearly articulate the bioethics dilemma, its significance, and a plan to resolve it through rigorous methods. Dissemination plans should extend beyond academic publications to reach stakeholders such as policymakers, clinicians, or community leaders who can implement findings. Projects with postdoctoral or early-career investigators working alongside experienced mentors are encouraged, as are pilot studies intended to seed larger initiatives. The Foundation is particularly interested in projects aligning with its strategic goals of fostering inclusive bioethics and influencing policy. Funding from the Foundation includes support for up to 10% indirect costs related to salary and benefits. Investigator salaries are capped at 1.5 times the current NIH cap. Projects may be funded initially for an exploratory phase, with additional funds contingent upon meeting milestones. The Foundation does not fund projects that lack a core bioethics focus, implement existing solutions, or advocate predetermined positions. Also ineligible are projects primarily for education, infrastructure, or institutional support, and those lacking doctoral-level leadership. The application process begins with a required letter of intent (LOI), due by January 5, 2026, at 11:59 p.m. ET. Selected applicants will be invited to submit full proposals by March 16, 2026. Awards will be announced in late May, with projects starting on or after July 1, but no later than October 1, 2026. All LOIs must be submitted through the Foundation’s online portal, and technical issues will not excuse late submissions. Applicants must include a detailed narrative, budget summary, and CVs for key personnel. Applicants may not submit to both the Making a Difference and Faculty Scholars programs simultaneously. For technical issues, the Foundation recommends early portal access and reaching out to support@foundant.com or program officer Kyle Ruempler at kruempler@greenwall.org. Another RFP cycle will be launched in late Spring 2026 for Fall consideration.

Focus on actionable ethics problems with real-world policy or practice implications; avoid projects that are purely conceptual or educational; emphasize stakeholder engagement and dissemination outside academia.