Research Agreement guideline

Note
This document outlines the expected content of agreements governing the transfer of funds from the Dried Fish Matters SSHRC Partnership Grant to partner organizations. Each Research Agreement will contain the following elements. Text printed in italics describes commitments required by SSHRC – these are copied from the checklist for the letter of transfer of funds, http://www.nserc-crsng.gc.ca/_doc/Professors-Professeurs/Transfer_Primary_eng.pdf.

Definitions

The “Primary Institution” is the SSHRC Award Holder, The University of Manitoba.

The “Secondary Institution” is a delegated recipient of funds from the SSHRC Award. It is a Partner Institution within the Dried Fish Matters research partnership and employs at least one individual researcher who is designated as a Co-Investigator.

General Information

Research project title

• “Dried Fish Matters: Mapping the social economy of dried fish in South and Southeast Asia for enhanced wellbeing and nutrition”

Name and signature of the Grantee or award Holder

• Derek S. Johnson

Name and signature of any co-investigators and/or collaborators to whom the delegated authority has been given to use the funds

• Designated Co-Investigator at a Secondary Institution (see separate list)

Period for use of the funds (start and end date of use of funds)

• Funding will be allocated for research beginning immediately upon signature of the agreement, up to the mid-point of the project (November 2021).

Proposed use of the funds

• Funds are to be used exclusively in support of local/regional Scoping Research on the social economy of dried fish.
• The specific outputs and deliverables expected of the Partner will be listed separately in an appendix (see below).
• Cash contributions from University of Manitoba will cover travel and subsistence, materials, research assistant time, and other documented expenses that are allowable under SSHRC guidelines as direct costs, and that have not been counted as partner contributions or consultant fees.

Amount to be transferred

• The University of Manitoba will transfer funding to cover agreed expenses up to [AMOUNT OF THE AGREEMENT – generally $41,000].
• In exceptional circumstances due to currency fluctuations or other unexpected changes, a small supplementary amount may be allocated at the Project Director’s discretion to cover unexpected expenses, currency fluctuations, etc.

Date of the transfer

• Funds will be disbursed by wire transfer to the Secondary Institution on a 6-monthly cycle, pending:
  • satisfactory production of the expected deliverables (listed in the appendix);
  • timely submission of quarterly statements of expenses and complete financial reports for each preceding 3-month period, following a template given by the Primary Institution; and
  • submission of an activity report describing research activities in the preceding 6-month period, including copies of any supplementary research outputs such as conference presentations, interviews, or publications.
• Additional funds may be provided in the form of an advance where the need is justified by the Secondary Institution to the satisfaction of the Award Holder.

Date all unused funds must be returned to the Primary Institution

• March 2022

Clarification of ownership of equipment

• The Secondary Institution will assume and retain ownership of any equipment purchased with allocated project funds.
• The Secondary Institution will house, maintain and, if appropriate, insure the Equipment, and take reasonable measures to protect it during its useful life; and to the extent reasonably possible, and if appropriate given the nature of the Equipment, allow other Researchers to also make use of it.
• If the equipment is sold, the Secondary Institution shall make reasonable efforts to use any funds obtained from the sale of Equipment for research-related purposes.

Shared commitments

Data ownership and sharing

• All data produced through this research is the joint property of the Partners.
• Primary data and analytical materials collected or generated through this project will be shared with other project-affiliated researchers without restriction.
• In compliance with the SSHRC Research Data Archiving Policy, all research data will be preserved and made available for use by others within two years of the completion of the research project for which the data was collected (i.e., within two years of the completion of the Scoping Research).

Attribution

• Contributors to research publications will be acknowledged according to the ICMJE Recommendations [1].
  • Authorship of research outputs will be determined based on the following four criteria. All those designated as authors must meet all four criteria for authorship, and all who meet the four criteria will be identified as authors:
  • Substantial contributions to the conception or design of the work; or the acquisition, analysis, or interpretation of data for the work; AND
  • Drafting the work or revising it critically for important intellectual content; AND
  • Final approval of the version to be published; AND
  • Agreement to be accountable for all aspects of the work in ensuring that questions related to the accuracy or integrity of any part of the work are appropriately investigated and resolved.
• Contributors who meet fewer than all 4 of the above criteria for authorship will not be listed as authors, but they will be acknowledged.
• Each multi-author group will decide who will be an author before the work is started and confirm who is an author before submitting the manuscript for publication.
• Authorship order will be alphabetical by default, unless agreed otherwise by all contributing authors.

Commitments by the Secondary Institution

The Secondary Institution will comply with the following SSHRC policies and guidelines:

• Agreement on the Administration of Agency Grants and Awards by Research Institutions
• Human and animal ethics reviews and controls to ensure adherence to ethics policies that conform to the TCPS 2 - Tri-Council Policy Statement: Ethical Conduct for Research Involving Humans, the Tri-Agency Framework: Responsible Conduct of Research, and the guidelines of the Canadian Council on Animal Care and any ethical policies and/or requirements by the country where the research is being conducted;
• Delegation of signing authority for the transferred funds to a co-investigator, and/or collaborator, and/or research personnel at the Secondary Institution; and
• Permitted uses of the transferred funds (e.g., salaries, purchase or rental of equipment).

Administration of funds

• The Secondary Institution will administer the funds on behalf of the Primary Institution for the benefit of any researcher, including the Grantee or Award Holder, any co-investigator, and/or collaborator, and/or research personnel at the Secondary Institution in accordance with the relevant Agency’s policies as published in their formal guides and program literature and in the Agreement on the Administration of Agency Grants and Awards by Research Institutions
• The Secondary Institution will provide each Agency-funded researcher or delegated authority at the Secondary Institution with all relevant information concerning any conditions that the Agency has imposed on the use of the grant or award
• The Secondary Institution will ensure that each of the researchers uses the funds only in the areas permitted in the Research Agreement

Compliance with SSHRC policies and guidelines

• The Secondary Institution will ensure that certification requirements (e.g., regarding research involving humans or animals) are in place before the funds can be accessed by the researchers or delegated authority
• The Secondary Institution will withhold or withdraw approval of expenditures proposed by the researcher if the expenditures do not comply with the Agency’s requirements or with its own institutional policies (when appropriate, the Secondary Institution may seek advice or a ruling from the Primary Institution)

Financial accounts and reporting

• The Secondary Institution will complete and submit to the Primary Institution, by April 30 of each year, a financial statement (Form 300) signed by the researcher or delegated authority to whom the funds were made available and by the relevant financial officer, whose signature certifies that the funds were administered according to the relevant Agency’s policies and requirements
• The Secondary Institution will maintain the relevant supporting documentation on file (i.e., a copy of the letter of transfer of funds, certification(s), supporting documentation for all expenditures and Form 300); in particular, the Secondary Institution must be able to provide the Primary Institution, upon request, with copies of documents detailing transactions involving the funds
• The Secondary Institution will permit the Primary Institution to review its records and facilities in the same manner that, under the Agreement on the Administration of Agency Grants and Awards by Research Institutions, an Agency is permitted to review those of Eligible Institutions

Unused funds

• The Secondary Institution will return all unused and uncommitted funds to the Primary Institution at the end of the period allowed for the use of the funds
• The Secondary Institution will repay the Primary Institution any funds that are used in a way that does not conform to Agency policies

Purchase of equipment

• The Secondary Institution will clarify ownership of equipment if equipment is to be purchased by the Secondary Institution.

Commitments by the Primary Institution

Financial reporting

• The Primary Institution will consolidate the information provided in the financial statement (Form 300) received from the Secondary Institution with its own relevant financial information to create a single consolidated financial statement for the grant in question
• The Primary Institution will sign the consolidated financial statement and, by so doing, certify:
• receipt of a signed financial statement (Form 300) from the Secondary Institution for the funds transferred to that institution
• that the information provided in the financial statement from the Secondary Institution is consolidated with financial information of the Primary Institution, and that this constitutes the consolidated financial statement
• that the information provided in the consolidated financial statement has been reviewed for compliance with this policy and with any other relevant policies of the Agency, including those on eligible expenditure categories, and with any relevant policy of the Primary Institution.

Appendices

• Schedule of outputs and expected dates of delivery
• Outline of expected contents for the Scoping Research report