Explorers Club Impact Grants

Benefits & funding

• Awards typically range from US$10,000 to US$25,000.
• Covers field expenses, equipment, supplies, reasonable fees for local guides and assistants, specialised services such as lab analysis, and reasonable hotel costs.
• Does not cover salaries for the applicant or team members, business class airfare, unreasonable hotel costs, or in-kind support.
• Funding covers no more than one year of fieldwork from the stated project start date.
• Funded by the Club’s Council of Impact Advisors and other programme contributors; an anonymous Club member added a US$100,000 matching challenge.
• Recipients give The Explorers Club first right of refusal on television, web and other storytelling coverage of the project. Scientific and technical publications are exempt, though the Club asks to be told in advance.

Eligibility

• Applicants must be at least 21 years old.
• Explorers Club membership is not required.
• Open to all nationalities, with one exception: the Club states it cannot consider proposals for work being conducted in China or submitted by Chinese citizens, citing NGO regulations.
• Open to all disciplines. Fields named include biological sciences, archaeology, anthropology, paleontology, earth sciences, ecology and astronomy, plus exploratory projects that reveal new knowledge about the planet and its inhabitants.
• Projects must be largely field-based; a laboratory component is allowed.
• Adventure activities qualify only when paired with a genuine conservation or scientific objective; pure adrenaline sport does not.
• Permits for the proposed country must be held, or their status documented.
• Fieldwork in a country on the U.S. Treasury OFAC embargoed list requires the applicant to obtain an OFAC license.
• Including a local collaborator on the team is strongly encouraged, not required.

Application process

1. 1
   Confirm the project is field-based, that you are 21 or over, and that the work is not being carried out in China.
2. 2
   Write a project title and a non-technical abstract of no more than 200 words, plus a one-to-two page description with hypothesis and methodology.
3. 3
   Set expedition start and end dates that keep fieldwork within twelve months of the start date.
4. 4
   Build the budget on the Club’s template; the total shown on the summary page must match the detailed budget sheet.
5. 5
   Record a three-minute video statement in which you appear on screen.
6. 6
   Collect two letters of recommendation, CVs for yourself and every team member, a high-resolution photograph, your social handles and website, permit documents, and maps or images of the project site.
7. 7
   Submit through the Apply Now form on the program page. It runs to nine steps, takes about two hours, and keeps nothing once you close the browser.
8. 8
   Apply at least six months before the expedition. Reviews run each spring and fall, and a decision takes a minimum of two to three months.

Program timeline

1. All year

   applications open, no fixed deadline

2. Spring and fall

   proposals are reviewed

3. At least six months before departure

   the Club’s recommended submission point

4. Two to three months after submission

   earliest decision

5. Within twelve months of the stated start date

   fieldwork must be completed