The Research in Dance Award (RiDA) is an artist residency programme based at Birmingham Botanical Gardens, offering time, space, and support for dance artists to explore research-led practice.

The programme is designed for artists with an established body of work who are interested in developing research approaches within their practice. It supports artists to investigate new ideas, test methodologies, and deepen their engagement with dance as a site of enquiry.

The residency focuses on practices connected to EcoSomatics, site-responsive work, and expanded approaches to dance. Artists are encouraged to engage with the Gardens as a living environment, responding to its ecology, histories, and spatial qualities as part of their research.

Alongside the development of their work, artists are invited to participate in and contribute to ongoing dialogue, sharing insights, questions, and learning that emerge through the residency process.

The selection panel was made up of representatives from Fabric, Birmingham Botanical Gardens and Birmingham City University