Lewis and Clark Fund for Exploration and Field Research

The Lewis and Clark Fund encourages exploratory field studies for the collection of specimens and data and to provide the imaginative stimulus that accompanies direct observation.

Applications are invited from disciplines with a large dependence on field studies, such as archaeology, anthropology, biology, ecology, geography, geology, linguistics, paleontology, and population genetics, but grants will not be restricted to these fields.

Graduate students and postdoctoral and junior scientists wishing to pursue projects in astrobiological field studies should consult the program description and application forms for the Lewis and Clark Fund in Exploration and Field Research in Astrobiology.

Grants will be available to doctoral students. Postdoctoral fellows, master’s degree candidates, and undergraduates are not eligible. Applicants who have previously received a Lewis and Clark Fund grant may reapply after an interval of two years. Preference is given to applicants who have not yet been granted an award from the Fund.

Applicants should ask their academic advisor to write one of the two letters of recommendation, specifying the student’s qualifications to carry out the proposed work and the educational content of the trip. Budgets should be limited to travel and related expenses, including personal field equipment.

Proposals that are archival in nature or museum based will not normally be considered. The proposed work should be dissertation directed to the extent possible given the applicant’s year in the doctoral program.

The competition is open to U.S. citizens and residents wishing to carry out research anywhere in the world. Foreign applicants must either be based at a U.S. institution or plan to carry out their work in the United States.