The Climate Assessment for the Southwest (CLIMAS) program is currently accepting applications for the 2025 Environment & Society Graduate Fellowship Program. This fellowship supports University of Arizona graduate students from any degree-granting program whose work is focused on collaborative environmental research or outreach. Up to four fellowships of $5,000 each will be awarded for projects occurring between May 2025–May 2026. The Environment & Society Fellowship Program is made possible by CLIMAS, the University of Arizona Office of Research, Innovation, & Impact, and the Arizona Institute for Resilience.
The Environment & Society Fellowship provides an opportunity for graduate students to develop their knowledge, training, and experience in applied environmental science and communication. Projects should incorporate a collaborative approach meaning that the project meets a need expressed by a partner or stakeholder (an organization, community, or person affected by your research outcomes). Competitive proposals will describe methods for engaging with partners or stakeholders during the research or outreach project.
Projects can fall under one or more of the following categories: scoping research, dissertation/thesis work, developing a novel research output, or other kind of education and outreach.
Previously funded projects can be viewed on the Fellows page. While the Fellowship supports students in developing conventional research outputs (such as journal articles, thesis or dissertation chapters, and new knowledge or research findings), we also encourage applicants to use the Fellowship to develop other types of project outputs, such as policy briefs, course curricula, documentaries and videos, or community databases.
Applicants must be:
- A degree-seeking graduate student from any department at the University of Arizona
- Making good progress toward their degree, enrolled in spring semester 2025, and able to continue with the Fellowship through May 2026
- Involved in research that incorporates environmental and societal issues
Applications must include:
- A concise description of your project (maximum 2000 words). See below for more information about project descriptions
- A proposed timeline outlining your project goals between Summer 2025 - Summer 2026
- An up-to-date curriculum vitae
- One letter of support from your graduate advisor that endorses your application and demonstrates that they understand the collaborative nature of your proposed project - advisor letters should be emailed directly to Gigi Owen (gigi@arizona.edu) and are due on the same day as the application
Project descriptions should include:
- Relevant background of your project
- The category or categories into which your proposal fits: scoping research, dissertation/thesis work, developing a novel research output, or other kind of education and outreach
- A description of your partners, stakeholders, or intended audiences and how your project could be useful to them
- How you plan to engage with your partners, stakeholders, or intended audiences
- How a collaborative approach will strengthen your project and your overall career goals
A set of semi-finalists will be chosen by a small review committee. Semi-finalists will be invited to give a 5-minute pitch about their proposed project and participate in a Q&A session with a larger review committee on March 20, 2025 from 9-10:30 am. Award recipients will be notified within 3 days of these short presentations. Funding will be distributed in April 2025.
Selected Fellows are required to:
- Submit two online blog posts for CLIMAS News and Updates: 1) students introduce themselves and their projects (due Fall 2025); 2) students will discuss findings and outcomes from the Fellowship (due Spring 2026)
- Attend quarterly Fellowship meetings to discuss research progress - students can attend remotely
- Participate in a podcast about the Fellowship experience
- Submit a written report or other product that discusses results and findings
Please submit your application by March 3, 2025 via this Google Form: https://forms.gle/wXG3qHn1SSZJt9R67. Your application should be submitted as one document, either as a .pdf or .docx. Letters of support from advisors should be emailed directly to Gigi Owen (gigi@arizona.edu) and are due on the same day as the application.
Questions: Please contact Gigi Owen (gigi@arizona.edu) with any questions about the Environment & Society Graduate Fellowship Program or the application process.
CLIMAS Background
CLIMAS, housed at the University of Arizona’s Institute of the Environment, is part of the nationwide Climate Adaptation Partnerships (CAP) program funded by the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). CLIMAS promotes participatory research involving scientists, decision makers, resource users, educators, and others who need more and better information about climate and its impacts. CLIMAS investigators research the nature, causes, and consequences of climate change and variability in the southwestern United States. Visit www.climas.arizona.edu for more information.