Field Research Grant: Biodiversity Conservation

Projects should

• Increase scientific knowledge and public awareness of environmental challenges to ecosystems, while providing locally relevant solutions;
• Increase partnerships with local people, communities, governmental and non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and corporations at local and international levels; and
• Inform management plans and environmental policies.

All pre-proposals must be hypothesis-driven, have quantifiable goals, measurable direct impacts, and an overarching research theme directly related to taking action to address extinction and loss of biodiversity. Because meeting these challenges requires a whole-ecosystem approach, there is a specific interest in contributions that incorporate keystone species to address biodiversity loss. For research that takes place in or near land managed by Indigenous communities, pre-proposals must incorporate Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK), defined as a cumulative body of knowledge and beliefs, handed down through generations about the relationship of living beings (including humans) with one another and with their environment.

Pre-proposals that align with the UN Sustainable Development Goals and Global Biodiversity Framework that will improve human livelihoods and support scientists in emerging nations are strongly encouraged. Projects should take place in South America, Europe, Africa, Asia, and North America.

All proposed projects must:

• Have quantifiable goals and measurable impacts of action taken on the project;
• Incorporate field-based research and data collection, with participants sufficiently trained while in the field;
• Have data gathered primarily by citizen-scientist participants recruited by Earthwatch;
• Field a minimum of four research teams per year (the average project fields 6–8 teams per year), with 4–15 participants per team as needed for data collection;
• Field research teams are typically 7–9 days in length, with some projects hosting 10–14 day teams;
• Provide reputable housing for participants within a 45-minute drive from the site;
• Field adult, high school, and college student, teacher, and/or corporate groups;
• Be run in English, with all communications by field staff and supporting documents in English;
• Educate participants about the project’s science and its relevance to global priorities;
• Prioritize locally run vendors, partners, and businesses in preparing the field logistics (including food), with a focus on those that adhere to sustainable business practices;
• Collaborate with local community stakeholders through engagement, outreach, and contributions to conservation actions;
• Share project data with stakeholders, and contribute to open-source datasets as possible;
• Partner with collaborators and receive support from at least one other source of funding.