for young professionals: the Alfred Toepfer Natural Heritage Scholarship 2020
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.
The Alfred Toepfer Natural Heritage Scholarship 2020
Deadline for applications 3rd May 2020, 3 pm CET
The Alfred Toepfer Natural Heritage Scholarship is a great opportunity for young professionals who have chosen to develop a career to our natural and cultural heritage. The winners of the Scholarship will have the chance to improve their skills and learn from other professionals, by carrying out study visits in European Protected Areas. 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 or be employed by an organisation that develops its work in a Protected Area
Applications for study visits to prepare master or doctoral thesis will not be considered.
Download the Guidelines for 2020, FAQs and an overview of the application form 2020:
ATS FAQs ATS Guidelines ATS Application Form example
>>>>> online application form <<<<<
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
- Proof of employment if pre-selected
Applications are due on 3rd May 2020 (3 pm CET) and must be submitted online. Download the complete Guidelines and access the online application form.
3) Be awarded at EUROPARC Conference 2020
The winners of the Alfred Toepfer Natural Heritage Scholarship will be awarded in Austria, at EUROPARC Conference 2020.
The Alfred Toepfer Stiftung E.V.S will generously cover your travel expenses and participation at Europe’s biggest gathering of Protected Areas professionals! This year, especially, we will be looking at the way we communicate... How are we speaking to our audiences? Are we also looking from a human perspective to the many challenges our Protected Areas face? Can we use technology to better reach out people’s understanding and encourage respect for nature? so there will be plenty of opportunities for you to learn, network and share experience on this exciting topic.
The winner of the Alfred Toepfer Natural Heritage Scholarship in Jurmala, Latvia – EUROPARC Conference 2019
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 Baiba Ralle or Csaba Bereczki, who visited different protected areas in several countries, or Eduardo Batista who made a deep study in just one protected area.
You will find all the reports since 2007 in our library and on this page you can learn more about the past scholarship winners.
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. Here’s some inspiration from Agné and Tymur!
for more information or questions, please contact Teresa Pastor at teresa.pastor @ europarc.org.