Submit Applications for Grants in Biodiversity (Canada)

The ACA Grants Program aims to aid Alberta Conservation Association (ACA) in the delivery of its mission. Grants made to partners are intended to enhance and supplement ACA activities.

Aim

• The ACA Grants in Biodiversity Program supports graduate student projects to:
  • Increase knowledge of Alberta’s living resources, notably flora, fauna, and habitats.
  • Attract graduate students and their supervisors to conduct biodiversity research in Alberta.
  • Promote the development of highly qualified, Alberta-based conservation biologists and managers.
  • Support ACA’s mission to promote conservation of Alberta’s resources.

Funding Information

• Maximum grant amount: There is no maximum specified, but special justification would be expected if over $20,000 Canadian was requested from ACA. Average grants are about $11,000.
• Duration: 2 years, starting April 1 of your award year. Funded activities must take place during the grant term.
• The awards will fund work completed between April 1, 2025 – March 31, 2027.

Eligible Activities

• ACA Grants in Biodiversity are available for:
  • Research in biodiversity, conservation biology, ecology, and related social science approaches that relate to flora, fauna and habitat in Alberta at any biological level.
  • Research should be directly anchored in the real world. For example, an experimental laboratory study dealing with beetle chromosomes must have a direct linkage to that organism in nature. Impact-type studies, such as those involving human-induced environmental change and social science will be considered, but such manipulations must be process-oriented and related to flora, fauna, and habitat change.
  • Direct research costs – assistants, supplies, travel within Alberta, etc.

Ineligible Activities

• ACA Grants in Biodiversity are not available for:
  • Projects outside of Alberta.
  • Overhead costs.
  • Travel to conferences and seminars.
  • Travel outside of Alberta.

Eligibility Criteria

• The applicant must be a graduate student (master’s or Ph.D.) associated with a university.
• The applicant can come from any university in the world as long as the proposed research is being done in Alberta (i.e. field work or subject of the research is in Alberta).
• Applicants may only apply for support for only one project per year.
• Graduate students are not eligible for more than one award for each degree-granting program.
• Graduate students must provide proof of acceptance in a graduate program including date of entry.
• Priority will be given to master’s students in the first two years of their program and Ph.D. students in the first three years of their program.
• Applications from students not yet in a graduate program will be considered but must be accompanied by a letter from the prospective graduate supervisor verifying that the research proposed is part of the proposed thesis research and that the applicant is in the process of being accepted. Proof of acceptance in a graduate program must be provided by the date outlined on the Deadlines page on the ACA Grants website (generally March of the award year). If that program is to begin September 1 of the award year, research prior to that date will not be supported.
• For projects that span multiple provinces, the ACA Grants in Biodiversity will only fund the proportion of the study that occurs in Alberta; the application should include the whole budget and provide a sub-estimate of the proportion that is Alberta based.
• Although field studies have been more successful in obtaining ACA Grants in Biodiversity, genetics, social science, and lab studies have also been funded.
• The student must write the application, but supervisors are encouraged to advise and review the application before submission.

Ineligibility Criteria

• The ACA Grants in Biodiversity will not support:
  • Postdoctoral fellows. These applicants should instead look at the ACA Research Grants Program.
  • Master’s research beyond the third year of a graduate program.
  • Ph.D. beyond the fourth year of a graduate program.
  • Supervisor-written proposals.
  • Students or supervisors who have engaged in the activities outlined in the “Grounds for Disqualification” found on the ACA Grants website.
  • Students who have received any prior funding from ACA, or whose supervisors have received funding for any part of the proposed project, are not eligible to apply. Previous grant recipients may only apply again if they are in a new degree program, and the research project is totally separate from what was ACA funded in the past.
  • ACA administers multiple granting streams. A project may only apply to one of ACA’s granting streams. Projects already receiving funding through an ACA grant, will not normally be provided additional grant funds.

For more information, visit Alberta Conservation Association.