Innovating in Health and Wellbeing Challenge

Ireland’s demographics is undergoing a rapid shift with increasing demand for healthcare services. This presents the health systems with the key challenge of how to adapt to evolving needs while ensuring equitable health and wellbeing outcomes for all ages and backgrounds. Central to addressing this challenge is the need to take a multidimensional approach that includes person-centred strategies, community-based care, policy reform and the promotion of environments that support wellbeing.

Under the Innovating in Health and Wellbeing Challenge, researchers are invited to explore the determinants of health and wellbeing, identify existing barriers, and develop novel approaches and interventions tailored to specific population cohorts – including but not limited to infants and children, women, and individuals with disabilities and/or chronic diseases. The Challenge seeks solutions that focus on prevention, equity, and continuity of care.

Due to the phased structure of Challenge funding, longitudinal studies and clinical trials are not covered under the remit of this call.

As the Innovating in Health and Wellbeing Challenge focuses on preventive strategies and approaches, therapeutics and curative care are not covered under the remit of this call.

This Challenge is intended to support pre-deployment/pre-commercial activities only, and as such, we do not anticipate funding the development of existing solutions or products.

Please refer to the Call Document for further information on the call scope.

Challenge funding is a solution-focused approach to address complex problems via research. It focuses on finding the most innovative and impactful solutions using competitive processes to direct research activities. Research Ireland’s approach to challenge funding places strong emphasis on:

• Inter and Transdisciplinary Teams, reflecting the need to bring together experts and innovators from different disciplines to address complex challenges
• Engagement & Validation with stakeholders to understand the nature of specific problems, to test assumptions and to co-create solutions;
• Impact Pathways demonstrating efficient adaptation of approaches that will lead to socially and economically relevant change.

The Innovating in Health and Wellbeing Challenge comprises three phases: Concept, Seed and Prize Award with different durations and level of funding, as illustrated below. Applications to the programme can request up to €250,000 in total direct costs over a duration of 18-months, 5 teams will be awarded at application. Further information on eligible costs and funding levels is available in the Call Document.

From application review, 5 teams progress to:

• Phase 1: Concept
  • 6 months duration
  • award amount up to €50,000
  • includes team formation; validation of challenge and solution concept; impact pathway

• Phase 2: Seed
  • 12 months duration
  • award amount up to €200,000
  • includes team development; initial prototyping; deployment prep

1 winning team progresses to:

• Phase 3: Prize
  • 24 months duration
  • award amount up to €1 million
  • includes advanced prototyping; solution deployment plan; impact assessment

The Innovating in Health and Wellbeing Challenge is intended to support interdisciplinary and collaborative research teams, including both STEM and AHSS disciplines, as appropriate for the solutions proposed. Applications to the programme will be accepted from applicant teams comprising two researchers who are either at an established or a postdoctoral (incl. research fellowship) career stage and are based at an eligible research body. The core applicant team must comprise:

• Team Lead (Lead Applicant) will have responsibility for managing the activities of the team, will provide research leadership and have overall responsibility for delivery of research programme objectives.
• Team Co-Lead (Co-Applicant) will provide research leadership as part of the research programme but may not have the same disciplinary background as that of the Team Lead.

The team will also include a Societal Impact Champion who will come from a non-academic background and will help with identifying barriers and developing strategies to overcome them to maximise the societal impact of the solution. It is strongly recommended that the Societal Impact Champion is identified at the application stage. Where a Societal Impact Champion is not included at the application stage, a clear outline as to why this was not possible must be provided as part of the application in addition to a plan for how one will be identified and recruited.

Successful teams will have an opportunity to build a broader challenge team as the development of their solution(s) require.

Applications must be submitted through Research Ireland’s Grants Management System SESAME. SESAME will be open for applications from 14^th July 2025.

Applicants must use the templates provided and adhere to all guidelines provided in the Call Document.

The Team Lead and Team Co-Lead must all use the CV Template provided.

If you experience any technical issues while submitting your application, please either:

• Raise a Problem Ticket via the Helpdesk function on your SESAME portal page, or
• Contact us directly at challenges@researchireland.ie

If you need a copy of the presentation slides please email: challenges@researchireland.ie

Research Ireland is holding an in-person brokerage event to provide an opportunity to hear diverse range of perspectives from the health and wellbeing sector, meet potential collaborators and engage on project ideas.

Date: Thursday 4^th September 2025

Time: 13:15 -16:00

Location: Research Ireland, Three Park Place, Hatch Street Upper, Dublin 2.

Registration is now closed as we have reached full capacity due to an exceptionally high number of registrations.