A New Program to Drive Cutting-Edge Biomedical Science in Latin America

For nearly 35 years, the Pew Latin American Fellows Program in the Biomedical Sciences has supported scientific breakthroughs and helped forge lasting connections among researchers in the United States and abroad. Now, a new grant initiative looks to expand this impact.

With support from the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative (CZI), The Pew Charitable Trusts is launching the inaugural cycle of the Partnership Award—a grant program funding former Pew fellows who team up with other Latin American scientists on interdisciplinary research to advance human health and medicine.

Forging a global network

Since 1991, Pew’s Latin American Fellows Program has supported more than 300 researchers from 12 countries conducting postdoctoral training in the United States. The program has accelerated many fellows’ careers, allowing them to take risks and pursue cutting-edge research while building connections with like-minded scientists.

In fact, the program has fostered a vibrant community of scientific exchange and mentorship that spans countries, disciplines, and backgrounds—especially for fellows who have used additional program funding to launch independent labs in Latin America. Nearly 70% of fellows have taken advantage of this funding and now conduct research at some of the region’s most prestigious institutions.

A new opportunity for collaboration

The Partnership Award is designed to build on this broad body of work. The program will support pairs of Latin American researchers—made up of one alum of the Pew fellows program and another scientist based in Latin America. Awardees will receive a combined $180,000 per pair—$90,000 annually over two years—for their proposed research.

Scientific collaboration is at the heart of this award, so researchers are encouraged to think creatively across countries, backgrounds, and areas of expertise when choosing a potential partner for this work. Ideally, scientists will also focus on interdisciplinary projects that couldn’t be completed by only one lab and that draw on pioneering approaches in biomedical research that would not be funded by existing sources.

Importantly, both applying scientists must hold a full-time appointment equivalent to assistant professor or above at an academic or research institution in Latin America, and at least one researcher must be an early-career scientist. This requirement is intended to promote mentorship within the collaboration.

“Pew has funded hundreds of promising Latin American scientists for 35 years, and their accomplishments demonstrate how important it is to invest in global biomedical research,” said Donna Frisby-Greenwood, Pew’s senior vice president for Philadelphia and scientific advancement. “We’re excited to continue expanding these investments in Latin America alongside the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative.”

Learn more

The program is accepting letters of intent Nov. 3–Dec. 1, 2025, and likely will announce award recipients in July 2026. Fellows interested in applying should email [email protected] for more information.

Donna Dang and Maria Krauss are principal associates with The Pew Charitable Trusts’ biomedical programs.