[Coral-List] 2007 ISRS/TOC Fellowship announcement for coral reef studies

Robert Van Woesik rvw at fit.edu
Thu May 31 01:21:10 EDT 2007


Dear coral-list,

Funds are available for 2 International Society for Reef Studies (ISRS)
and The Ocean Conservancy (TOC) graduate fellowship for coral reef
research in 2007. The deadline for proposal submissions is 31 July 2007.
Up to US$6,000 per award  are available to support two Ph.D. students in
the general area of coral reef ecosystem research. More fellowships will
be awarded should additional funds become available.


1) Background and Fellowship Goals
In 2007 unfavorable conditions for reef growth are ubiquitous. Scientists
and reef managers are increasingly working together to develop sound
management strategies that are based on rigorous science. Scientific
questions are being addressed on reef disturbances and reef resilience,
climate change and adaptation, reef connectivity, and effective management
practices, to name a few. Many coral reefs are in poor condition, yet we
know very little about the very threats that are undermining the integrity
of coral reefs. What processes and mechanisms are causing differential
mortality and how are some species still able to survive and indeed be
successful in times of stress? Studies are needed that will combine
management with process-level information. Research supported by the
ISRS/TOC Fellowship should increase our understanding of processes on
coral reefs that are relevant to management at local, regional, or global
scales.


2) Conditions
Within the proposal, and as a condition of each ISRS/TOC Fellowship,
recipients will be required to articulate how they will report back to the
ISRS/TOC on their research progress, outline their findings, acknowledge
the support, and publicize the outcomes.


3) Who can apply?
The Fellowship is available to students worldwide, who are already
admitted to a graduate program at an accredited university. The intent of
the fellowship is to help Ph.D. students develop skills and to address
problems related to relevant applications of coral reef ecosystem research
and management. The Fellowship can be used to support salary, travel,
fieldwork, and laboratory analyses. The student can work entirely at the
host institution, or can split time between developed and developing
country institutions.


4) Application materials
A four page proposal as a pdf document, using 12-point font or larger,
double spaced, in English, is required from prospective fellowship
candidates: proposals that do not meet these criteria may be returned. The
proposal should include the following sections:

a. Overview: The overview starts with the Proposal Title, Author’s Name,
Author’s Address, Major Professor’s Name, Major Professor's Address (if
different than the Author's), and total amount in the budget request. The
overview should place the proposed research in context. We are looking for
a clearly stated rationale, research objectives and a clear question that
is driving the research within the context of the literature.

b. Methods: The methods section includes hypotheses, methods, and
experimental design, including details on field or laboratory techniques
and how data will be analyzed.

c. Relevance & implications of research: This section will outline
expected outcomes, how the work is relevant to host-country management and
science issues and the implications of the research within a broader
context. This section must also include evidence of host-country
coordination (e.g., identification of individuals or programs that will
benefit from your results);

The following three sections are required but do not count against the
four page limit:

d. Detailed Budget: The budget must not exceed $6,000.

e. Literature Cited: Use a bibliographic format that includes full titles
in the citations.

f. Applicant CV: 2 pages maximum.

g. Letter of support: The student's major professor must submit a support
letter for the project based on their knowledge of the project, and
familiarity with the student's background and abilities. If work will be
conducted at another university, a support letter is required from the
sponsoring Professor.



5) Submitting your application

All application materials must be submitted electronically as follows:

a)	All materials must be sent to Dr. Robert van Woesik at: rvw at fit.edu

b)	The completed proposal (items 4a-f above) must be combined into a
single document and sent as an attachment in pdf format.  Please enter the
subject line of your message as your last name followed by “ISRS/TOC
Proposal 2007” (e.g., “J Smith ISRS/TOC Proposal 2007”). Similarly, please
include your name on the pdf and ISRS/TOC proposal (e.g. Smith ISRSTOC.pdf
(don’t send ‘proposal.pdf’, because they will get misplaced).

c)	The letter of support (item 4g above) must come directly from the major
professor as an e-mail attachment (Word document or pdf file). Please
enter the subject line of the message as the last name of the applicant
followed by “ISRS/TOC Support” (e.g., “J Smith ISRS/TOC Support”, and
SmithSupport.pdf).

Applications will be considered complete only after the support letter has
arrived.  You should ensure that your sponsors are aware of the deadline,
and can get their letters submitted in a timely manner.  Only completed
electronic applications will be reviewed, and this will be accomplished by
an ISRS panel.


6) Evaluation Criteria Will Include:

a)  scientific merit,
b)	feasibility,
c)	support letter from major professor, and
d)	relevance to the Fellowship guidelines.


7) Administration of the Fellowship

The International Society for Reef Studies (ISRS) and The Ocean
Conservancy (TOC) support the Fellowship through professional and
administrative contributions. ISRS/TOC is committed to equal opportunity
and nondiscrimination. The mission of the ISRS is to promote for the
benefit of the public, the production and dissemination of scientific
knowledge and understanding concerning coral reefs, both living and
fossil. The TOC is committed to protecting ocean environments and
conserving the global abundance and diversity of marine life. Through
science-based advocacy, research, and public education, TOC promotes
informed citizen participation to reverse the degradation of our oceans.







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