Applications for the 2025 fellowship are now being accepted through January 16, 2025.
About the Fellowship
As climate change impacts species and ecosystems across the country, it is increasingly important for resource managers to have high-quality, relevant science to help them make decisions amidst changing conditions. To meet these growing needs, we need a new generation of climate adaptation scientists willing to work with practitioners to meet on-the-ground needs.
The Science to Action Fellowship provides students with an opportunity to apply their science to real-world challenges. Over the course of the one-year fellowship, fellows will work with mentors from the USGS Climate Adaptation Science Centers (CASCs) to develop a policy-relevant project related to climate change impacts and adaptation on fish, wildlife, landscapes, and communities. This work will put science into action, applying the fellow’s research directly to natural resource decision making.
As a fellow, you will:
- Develop and implement a 1-year project that puts your science into action through policy-relevant research on climate change impacts and adaptation
- Be mentored by CASC experts in engagement-focused research designed to meet on-the-ground needs
- Have a $10,000 award to spend on fellowship project expenses, such as travel to project locations and to optional in-person meetings with CASC mentors and project partners
During the fellowship year and beyond, fellows benefit from collaborations with university and USGS mentors, from interactions with other colleagues and partners of USGS, and from exposure to high priority, real-world challenges in the natural resources policy arena.
The fellowship is supported through Michigan State University's Department of Fisheries and Wildlife and is coordinated by National CASC Research Fish Biologist Abigail Lynch and Program Coordinator Elijah Johnson.
Eligibility
This opportunity is open to graduate students at any CASC Consortium Institution who are students for the entire fellowship year (justified exceptions will be considered in special cases). Applicants may be master’s or doctoral students at any stages of their research program. Preference will be given to applicants with a clear research-management/policy link.
Application Process
The fellowship application process is divided into two stages. First, applicants will submit a Statement of Interest to express interest in the fellowship and to help the review panel pair applicants with potential CASC mentors. Should an applicant be selected to advance to the Full Proposal stage, the CASCs will match the applicant to a potential mentor. The applicant is then invited to work with their mentor to submit a Full Proposal. Learn more about the application process>>
About the CASCs
The USGS Climate Adaptation Science Centers (CASCs) is a partnership-driven program that delivers science to help fish, wildlife, water, land, and people adapt to a changing climate. We follow an actionable science model, working directly with natural resource managers and other partners to create research and tools that can be applied directly to adaptation decisions. There is one National and nine reginal CASCs that serve the continental United States, Alaska, Hawai'i, the U.S.-Affiliated Pacific Islands, and the U.S. Caribbean. Regional CASCS are federal-consortium partnerships made up of consortiums of academic, Tribal and non-profit institutions. Learn more about the CASCs>>
Questions?
