Grants & Fellowships

Small Grants Fund

Civil Society Organizations operating in and around forested areas are some of the most effective champions of forest conservation and management. However, they frequently lack the resources or knowledge of how to incorporate the latest forest-monitoring technology into their research, advocacy, and field work. The Small Grants Fund provides financial and technical support to organizations around the world to use Global Forest Watch’s tools and data to turn forest monitoring information into action. Working in close partnership with local organizations also helps GFW to understand how we can best adapt our tools to meet the unique needs of this user group.

Program Benefits

• Grant 3 awards between $10K – $40K.
• Individualized training and support.
• Form part of the GFW partnership.

Small Grants Fund projects have used GFW to strengthen community land rights, by providing evidence of the benefits of community-monitored forests; alert authorities to illegal deforestation, resulting in fines for the perpetrators; and create campaigns, to raise awareness of deforestation drivers and hold those responsible to account.

Results

Tech Fellowship

The Global Forest Watch Technology Fellowship aims to recruit and train the best and brightest forest managers, protectors and advocates in facing growing threats to forests through use of pioneering technology solutions and big data, and support others in their networks to do so as well. The objective of the fellowship program is to scale impact by developing a community of GFW power users and champions to support the use of the platform in priority countries, and develop a shared vision on how GFW tools and other forest monitoring technology can be used to protect forests in priority regions around the world. Fellows may be indigenous leaders, investigative journalists, public interest lawyers, foresters, environmental law enforcers, conservationists, or open data experts who have the passion to provide training and ongoing support to governments and local activists to use forest data and monitoring technology effectively within their work and to enhance their ability to participate in monitoring of illegal deforestation.

Program Benefits

• A monthly stipend, and access to additional discretionary funds for feld visits, equipment purchases, professional development, or workshop costs.
• All expenses paid (airfare, visa costs, meals and accommodation) to participate in tech camp and the GFW User Summit in Washington, DC.
• Training by experts in forest monitoring, land use planning, advocacy and enforcement, and project design and implementation.
• Participation in the GFW partnership and SGF/Fellowship alumni community.
• Communications coverage in WRI’s newsletters, blogs and social media.

Support the Small Grants Fund and Fellowship

If you would like to contribute to supporting communities, civil society, organizations, and individuals in using GFW to protect and sustainably manage the world’s forests, please contact us at gfwfund@wri.org.