Open call for the Alfred Toepfer Scholarships 2019!
Investing in young professionals working for Protected Areas
EUROPARC strongly believes that young people have a vital role to play in caring for Europe’s natural heritage. Like everything else, the future of Protected Areas relies on the young generation taking an active and informed role. Each year the EUROPARC Federation, with support from the Alfred Toepfer Stiftung F.V.S., awards three Alfred Toepfer Natural Heritage Scholarships to promising young conservationists, who are committed to working for the benefit of Protected Areas. The aim of the scholarships is to enhance international cooperation and to advance the quality, innovation and European dimension of Protected Area management.
Each scholarship is worth €3.000 and enables successful applicants to undertake a study visit on a particular theme to one or more Protected Areas in European countries.
While there are many opportunities for students to get scholarships to improve their skills abroad, there are few for those who have already entered the working world. Hence, the aim of this scholarship is to give the opportunity to those young professionals that have chosen to develop a career in protected areas, to improve their skills and learn from other professionals by carrying out study visits to protected areas across Europe.
Open Call for 2019!
The call is open to all young professionals working in topics related to Protected Areas in Europe. Conditions to apply:
- candidates must be under 35
- have a European nationality
- be employed by a Protected Area or nature conservation organisation
Applications for study visits to prepare master or doctoral thesis will not be considered.
5 steps to win your Scholarship:
1) Choose one category
The application must address one of the following selected themes faced by Protected Area Management:
2) Apply
To apply, candidates must submit:
- Online application form– that includes your Curriculum vitae, your motivation letter, the proposed programme of your study visit, and contact details of protected areas you want to visit (download a pdf of the online application form)
- Proof of employment
Applications are due on 3rd May 2019 and must be submitted online. (Note that once you start filling the application form you cannot save it, but you will be able to edit it afterward. We advise you to look at this pdf of the online form, to make sure you have all the information you need at the moment you apply)
Download the complete Guidelines and access the online application form.
3) Be awarded at EUROPARC Conference 2019
The winners of the Alfred Toepfer Natural Heritage Scholarship will be awarded in Latvia, at EUROPARC Conference 2019, between the 24th – 27th September.
The Alfred Toepfer Stiftung E.V.S will generously cover your travel expenses and participation at the largest gathering of Protected Areas professionals! This year, especially, we will be looking at the important influence of nature on our minds, so there will be plenty of opportunities for you to learn, network and share experience on this exciting topic.
Alfred Toepfer Scholarship Winners 2018 (From left to right) Ignace Schops, Agné Jasinavičiūtė, Lászlo Patkó, Baiba Ralle and Andreas Holz at EUROPARC Conference, Scotland.
4) Travel and Learn
The scholarship covers your travel costs to one or more protected areas in Europe. Visiting different countries enables you to gather new perspectives and deepen your subject of study. Check out the example of Bryonny Slaymaker or Ágnes Balázsi, who visited 5 protected areas in several countries, or Eduardo Batista who made a deep study in one protected area.
5) Share your results
After the trip, the scholars are expected to present the Federation their findings in a report and a short film. These reports are made available to EUROPARC members, as they are full of interesting facts on observation and solutions to common Protected Area management issues.
You will find all the reports since 2007 in our library and in this page you can learn more about the past scholarship winners.
Get inspired by the film of Tymur!
Do you still have questions?
Just give a look at our Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ’s) that you can download here. If you still have questions, send us an email to office @ europarc.org. And don’t forget to apply before the 3rd of May!
Will you be the next Scholarship winner?
