Conservation Action Now (CAN) is the small-grant program of the Oklahoma City Zoo & Botanical Garden in the US. It funds work that helps imperiled species, their habitats and surrounding communities.
The 2026 round is limited to invertebrate projects and to early-career applicants, who run their own project at a site of their choosing. The work can be conservation education, scientific research or direct species preservation, in the wild or in human care.
Benefits & funding
- Up to US$2,500 per grant, awarded competitively
- Salaries are not funded, except locally hired support staff; travel (air and ground) is capped at 20% of the award
- No indirect costs or reimbursement of money already spent
- Grantees credit the zoo in all publications and send it a copy, file an update within a year of payment and a final report at the end
Eligibility
- Any nationality; the project can be anywhere
- 2026 only: early-career professionals — currently enrolled in a graduate program (e.g. MSc, PhD, DVM) or awarded a graduate degree no earlier than 2021
- The project must benefit the conservation of invertebrate species or their habitats
- Checks are not made out to individuals, so the award is paid to an institution or organisation
- Past grantees may reapply once their project update is in, with no guarantee of further funding
Can you apply?
Here's who can apply
Decoded from the official rules. A free account checks them against your passport, degree and age in seconds.
“Additionally, in 2026, grants will be awarded exclusively to early career professionals, defined as those currently enrolled in a graduate program (e.g., MSc, PhD, DVM) or those who were awarded a graduate degree no earlier than 2021.” Eligibility
Education required
Master Enrolled · Master
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Application process
- 1Download the 2026 application form and prepare the full application as a PDF, with an itemised budget in US dollars.
- 2Add a letter of commitment and the principal investigator’s CV.
- 3Upload everything on the program page by 11:59 PM CST, 13 November 2026; late applications are not considered.
Program timeline
Application deadline
13 November 2026, 11:59 PM CST
Within 48 hours of submission
confirmation e-mail
Within one year of payment
project update due