Grants – Australian Citizen Science Association

29Nov 2023 by Lisa Evans - ACSA No Comments

2023 ACSA Seed Grant Winner

CS Project, Grants, Showcasing science outcomes

ACSA is very pleased to announce that Adelle Mansour has won the 2023 ACSA Seed Grant of $2,000 to be put towards publication of a citizen science related paper in an open access journal. Adelle presented a pre-recorded talk about her project at the CitSciOz23 conference, detailing the fascinating work she will be doing for her PhD at the University of Melbourne. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1DXduWSnXOA Watch Adelle's talk from the #CitSciOz23 conference University of MelbourneAdelle MansourIn the face of the climate crisis, housing plays a critical role in protecting the health and wellbeing of its occupants – for example, by keeping them cool during heatwaves. Yet, our housing stock in Australia is increasingly unable to both withstand and mitigate the impacts of environmental hazards (e.g. floods, temperature extremes). Improved housing policies are…

05Sep 2023 by Lisa Evans - ACSA 1 Comment

Seed Grants 2023 – Call for applications!

Grants

ACSA is excited to announce our sixth round of Seed Grants! As a way of giving back and investing in our members we are offering a grant of $2000 to an ACSA member to seed their professional growth or their project’s growth. What’s in it for you? $2000 to seed your professional development or your project’s growth, or assist with publication costs for an open access journal. Exposure for your project and/or organisation. Motivation to initiate something you have always wanted to do. Quick and easy application process (online application form). Last year our two ACSA Seed Grant winners were: PlantingSeedsDr Judy Friedlander A national school BioBlitz, held in National Biodiversity Month, to generate STEM skills and biodiversity data, with associated resources, curriculum links and workshops for teachers. Read their…

05Sep 2023 by Lisa Evans - ACSA No Comments

2022 Seed Grant – PlantingSeeds progress report

CS Project, Education, Field-based citizen science, Grants

By Dr Judy Friedlander, winner of a 2022 ACSA Seed Grant The awarding of an ACSA Seed Grant to PlantingSeeds Projects in 2022 enabled the organisation to kick-start the National School Citizen Science B&B BioBlitz and generate interest and engagement in schools around Australia. The BioBlitz attracted educational institutions from every Australian State and Territory and saw over 60 schools participating, with over 2,300 observations and 635 species recorded. Student citizen scientists taking images during the B&B BioBlitz Most schools are located in urban areas, which makes them particularly valuable sites for scientific research. Many threatened plant and animal species live in urban areas, yet only 5% of citizen science projects in Australia are urban-based. The National School Citizen Science B&B BioBitz involved students taking images of plant and animal…

17Mar 2023 by Lisa Evans - ACSA 2 Comments

New insect species discovered by high school citizen scientists!

Blogs, CS Project, Education, Grants

This is an exciting story you may have seen in the news lately. Beerwah State High School students in Queensland have recently announced the discovery of a new insect species, which was found by Year 8 students participating in the Insect Investigators project. This makes Beerwah SHS the latest out of 8 schools who have discovered previously unidentified insects since this project began. They announced the discovery on their Facebook page: After almost 12 months, the DNA tests and study by University of Adelaide (@uniofadelaide) taxonomists Mollie-Rosae Slater-Baker (a PhD candidate) and Dr Erinn Fagan-Jeffries, show that we have discovered a new species of wasp.It is a tiny parasitic wasp in the genus Mirax which lay eggs in caterpillars which then eat the caterpillar from the inside-out!Beerwah SHS Facebook page…

20Sep 2022 by Lisa Evans - ACSA 2 Comments

2022 ACSA Seed Grant winners

CS Project, Education, Field-based citizen science, Grants, Social research in CS

We are very pleased to announce that two great projects have been selected to receive our $1,000 seed grants. Ferox AustralisDr Larissa Braz SouzaLarissa’s grant will be put towards the costs of publishing a paper in the open-access journal Citizen Science: Theory and Practice. It will explore and publish the outcomes of the Great Southern Bioblitz, a co-created citizen science initiative.From their application:The Great Southern Bioblitz (GSB) is a co-created citizen science initiative to observe as many species as possible over spring in the Southern Hemisphere. As GSB is reaching its third year, we have identified the need to analyse its development and implementation, and assess challenges and opportunities to reach new areas. Thus, we propose using quantitative and qualitative methods to explore the GSB framework, outcomes and future directions resulting…

06Jun 2022 by Amy Slocombe No Comments

Seed Grants 2022 OPEN- Call for applications!

Grants

Two $1000 Grants available - apply now! ACSA is excited to announce its fifth round of Seed Grants. As a way of giving back and investing in our members we are offering grants of $1000 each to two ACSA members to seed their professional growth or their project’s growth, or assist with publication costs for an open access journal.Applications are now open for the 2022 Seed Grants. What’s in it for you? $1000 to seed your professional development or your project’s growth, or assist with publication costs for an open access journal.Exposure for your project and/or organisation.Motivation to initiate something you have always wanted to do.Quick and easy application process (online application form). Last year, our two ACSA Seed Grant winners were: Samantha Beckmann2 Bent RodsFor a video & QR…

06Jun 2022 by Amy Slocombe 2 Comments

2021 Seed Grant – MYOCOmmunity Applied Mycology Progress Report

Communication & promotion, CS Project, Grants

By Ema Corro, winner of a 2021 ACSA Seed Grant Our project aims to use citizen science to rapidly increase knowledge of fungal taxonomy and ecology. As part of this we have been training volunteers to record sightings of fungi using iNaturalist, to take and describe herbarium specimens and do microscopy and DNA work on fungi. The equipment we bought with the ACSA grant has allowed us to show volunteers how to extract DNA from mushrooms and environmental samples for sequencing and tests for environmental DNA. For the next stages of our project we are planning to study the effects of storm damage on soil fungi and do some pilot runs sequencing environmental DNA in animal scats. We are also developing tests to look for invasive as well as endangered species of…

06Jun 2022 by Amy Slocombe No Comments

2021 Seed Grant – 2 Bent Rods Progress Report

Communication & promotion, Grants

By Samantha Beckmann, winner of a 2021 ACSA Seed Grant We are so grateful to have won an ACSA Seed Grant to help promote the use of the 2 Bent Rods free fishing app, where recreational & professional fishers can upload photos and contribute data about the size and health of fish in their catch. Currently we have about 500 fishers using the app. We also use the app to help in the management of our fishing competitions, which encourage fishers to take a photo of native fish and release them, or in the case of pest fishing competitions, help to keep track of pest numbers before disposal. With users sharing their catches, we will be able to gain an understanding of the main fish caught from shore based fishers.…

15Mar 2022 by Amy Slocombe 1 Comment

Fungimap Research Grants open!

Communication & promotion, Grants

Both the inaugural Fungimap Research Grants and the Australasian Mycological Society Research Grants are now open for applications! The Fungimap Research Grant is open to citizen scientists and those building the capacity of fungi citizen science in Australia, while the Australasian Mycological Society Research Grant is open to mycologists, scientists and students associated with an Australasian research organisation.Full details and guidelines on the links below: Fungimap Research Grant Announcement 2022Fungimap Research Grant Guide 2022Australasian Mycological Society Research Grant 2022 For the Fungimap grant, citizen scientists are invited to apply for between $500-$2000, with up to $3000 total funds expected to be distributed across two programs on research projects focussed on improving knowledge of Australia's native macrofungi. Applications close Thursday 14th April 2022.Enquiries to fungimap@gmail.com. Fungimap gratefully acknowledges the generous support of every individual and organisation who have…

02Dec 2021 by Amy Slocombe No Comments

ACSA Seed Grant Winners

Communication & promotion, Grants

We are very excited to announce the winners of ACSA's 2021 Seed Grants; MYCOmmunity Applied Mycology and 2 Bent Rods! Each will be provided with $1000 to assist the growth and development of their citizen science projects. MYCOmmunity Applied MycologyEma CorroMYCOmmunity Applied Mycology will use the money to train volunteers in taking herbarium specimens of fungi and in the use of basic laboratory equipment and techniques related to environmental DNA and DNA sequencing. The Wild Fungi DNA Project is a very exciting initiative and has the potential to have a big impact and greatly enhance our knowledge of the distribution of Australian fungi. With only 5% of the estimated 250,000 species of Australian fungi being described, and the infrequent sightings and recording of fungi fruiting bodies, the use of eDNA…

Category: Grants