Overview
Below is a non-exhaustive list of grants that users can apply to in order to supplement or cover the cost of Sagehen Creek Field Station User Fees. We are happy to participate in the grant writing process as co-authors or to write letters of collaboration or support for grants. Please contact the station manager for inquiries to coordinate efforts: sagehen@berkeley.edu
Lists of Funding Opportunities
Your institution likely has grants and fellowships to support field research. Please see your home institution’s website to explore these options.
Society for Conservation Biology’s curated list of funding opportunities
Montana State University’s curated list of funding opportunities for graduate students
National Science Foundation’s list of funding opportunities
Funding Opportunities for Graduate Students
Mildred E. Mathias Graduate Student Research Grant Program (due Oct 21, 2021)
Sponsored by the UC Natural Reserve System, the Mildred E. Mathias Graduate Student Research Grant Program is open to University of California graduate students pursuing any discipline who plan to work at one or more sites in the NRS. A maximum of $38,000 is awarded each year, with each applicant receiving up to $3,000. The grants commemorate Mildred E. Mathias, a former professor of botany at UC Los Angeles and a founder of the NRS.
CONICYT Fellowship (rolling submissions)
All Chilean graduate students who have been accepted into the University of California and meet criteria set by the CONICYT (Comisión Nacional de Investigatión Científica y Tecnológica) program are eligible to apply. The CONICYT Fellowship can be used to support field research or other work conducted at NRS reserves.
Lewis and Clark Fund for Exploration and Field Research (due Nov 11, 2021)
The Lewis and Clark Fund encourages exploratory field studies for the collection of specimens and data and to provide the imaginative stimulus that accompanies direct observation. Applications are invited from disciplines with a large dependence on field studies, such as archaeology, anthropology, biology, ecology, geography, geology, linguistics, paleontology, and population genetics, but grants will not be restricted to these fields.
GSA Graduate Student Research Grants (due Feb 2022)
The primary role of the GSA research grants program is to provide partial support of master’s and doctoral thesis research in the geological sciences for graduate students enrolled in universities in the United States, Canada, Mexico and Central America. In 2020, $651,645 was awarded to 360 graduate students (~55% of the 657 who applied), with an average grant of $1,820.
Noria Research Training Grants
In 2018, Noria created field grants to support young researchers in their work and ensure their autonomy. The grants are offered to PhD students of any citizenship who do not have access to funding for their work. Beyond funding travel, our grants offer researchers full support from field studies to the publication of their work in several languages. Once the program is completed, the recipients may join our team to pass on what they have learned, by presenting their work in our roundtables or by publishing it with our editorial team.
The Explorers Club Student Grants (due Dec 4, 2021)
The Explorers Club is proud of its history and also looks toward the future by recognizing the importance of new ideas and avenues of exploration. The Club is deeply committed to supporting the fieldwork of serious researchers and, as part of its public service commitment, offers exploration grants.
Funding Opportunities for Undergraduate Students
Field Science Fellowship (due Jan 20, 2022)
The Field Science Fellowship funds UC undergraduate-faculty teams conducting field research at NRS reserves. The fellowship encourages mentoring relationships between faculty and students from backgrounds traditionally underrepresented in the sciences.
The Explorers Club Student Grants (due Dec 4, 2021)
The Explorers Club is proud of its history and also looks toward the future by recognizing the importance of new ideas and avenues of exploration. The Club is deeply committed to supporting the fieldwork of serious researchers and, as part of its public service commitment, offers exploration grants.
Funding for Postdoctoral Researchers
The Explorers Club Student Grants (due Dec 4, 2021)
The Explorers Club is proud of its history and also looks toward the future by recognizing the importance of new ideas and avenues of exploration. The Club is deeply committed to supporting the fieldwork of serious researchers and, as part of its public service commitment, offers exploration grants.
Funding for PIs
Earth Watch
We support research projects that produce rigorous, relevant, and impactful science, address global change, and actively involve citizen-scientist participants. We distribute requests for proposals (RFPs) annually. We evaluate proposals based on scientific merit, appropriateness of citizen-scientist activities, expected project outcomes and impacts, safety, and logistics. Earthwatch funding is intended to be supplemental to other sources of funding. Annual budgets for projects with long-duration teams range between US $20,000–$80,000, with most of that covering volunteer and staff expenses while in the field. Final grants are provided on a per-capita basis based on the number of participants. Research projects are tenable for three years, subject to annual performance review, and may be eligible for renewal beyond that period. We pride ourselves on our capacity for long-term support of research projects, averaging between 7-8 years of support across the projects available for public recruitment.