# Call for concept notes - Climate change, informal trade, and instability in conflict-affected borderlands 

> Tender notice from UK public-sector procurement sources.

## Key facts

- Public buyer: [Chemonics International, Inc\.](/buyers/chemonics-international-inc/contract-awards)
- Tender value: £120,000
- Published: 11 September 2025
- Planned start: 30 December 2025
- Planned end: 31 December 2026
- Stage: open_tender
- Procurement category: services
- Notice ID: b8d64b90-dc11-4118-96a6-d989fec3a630-863199
- OCID: ocds-b5fd17-82667ea1-350f-4ad4-9724-32a824edd091

## Description

The XCEPT Research Fund \(XRF\) is inviting applications for a 12-month project that will produce innovative, empirically grounded research examining the relationship between climate change, informal trade networks, and instability in conflict-affected borderlands, with a focus on the role of informal cross-border trade in the causal pathways linking climate stress to instability and conflict\. Building on the understanding that climate stress in conflict-affected borderlands - and the resulting increase in informal cross-border trade - can both amplify the agency of local communities as well as fuel instability, this Call for Concept Notes seeks to fund research that examines whether - and under what conditions - such trade networks support climate change adaptation and/or influence conflict\. Concept notes should consider the following interlinked research questions: 1\. How do communities in conflict-affected borderlands draw on informal, cross-border trade networks to adapt to climate extremes? 2\. How are existing trade networks utilised or new ones formed? How effective are such networks as a form of climate change adaptation and resilience-building? 3\. Under what conditions do such informal, cross-border trade networks fuel instability and conflict, and what are the implications for local communities and climate adaptation? Funding support up to £120,000 is available per award, depending on the scope of the research and methods employed\. Applications are welcome from organisations only\. Interested applicants can read more about this opportunity here: https://www\.xcept-research\.org/grants\_post/call-for-concept-notes-climate-change-informal-trade-and-instability-in-conflict-affected-borderlands/ The deadline for submission is Tuesday 16 September 2025 at 10:00 BST

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## Source

[View the original notice on Contracts Finder](https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Notice/b8d64b90-dc11-4118-96a6-d989fec3a630-863199)