NOTES FOR APPLICANTS

·  Applications will be assessed by at least two senior scientists from BirdLife Australia and/or external referees.

·  Students are only eligible for funding toward current research being undertaken at an Australian tertiary institution or travel to a conference to present current original research.

·  Grants are awarded on the strict understanding that funds will be exempt from institutional administration charges.

·  Funds are limited and not all applications may be funded.

·  The maximum amount provided by the Stuart Leslie Bird Research Award and Professor Allen Keast Research Award is $5000.

·  Conference attendance will be supported to a maximum of $1000 and is only for applicants delivering their own work as a presentation, paper or poster.

·  The Chadcombe Bird Research Award provides up to $2000 for students undertaking research in their Honours year.

·  Students are required to append all relevant academic transcripts in support of their application.

·  Students are responsible for obtaining all necessary permits from government authorities, indigenous communities, ethics committees etc., to undertake their research.

·  Students are strongly encouraged to publish their research in Emu- Austral Ornithology or Australian Field Ornithology and reminded that BirdLife may be able to offer other in-kind support such as access to databases, library facilities etc.

Applications close at 5pm on March 31 annually.

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ASSESSMENT CRITERIA

The merit of applications will be judged on:

·  The quality and significance of the research project

·  The novelty and strength of the science employed

·  The likely value of the project to avian conservation in Australia (SLBRA and PAKRA awards)

·  The alignment of the project with Birdlife Australia’s Conservation Strategy (see http://www.birdlife.org.au/conservation/science) (SLBRA and PAKRA awards)

·  The justification for a grant in the context of the overall budget of the project

·  The track record of the student and the likelihood of the project achieving its objectives

ELIGIBILITY CHECKLIST

Are Australian native birds the focus of your research project? / Yes / No
Will your research project improve our understanding of factors important to the conservation of Australian native birds? / Yes / No
Have you previously applied for a BirdLife Australia student award? / Yes / No

If yes, provide details of which award you applied for, and if you were successful how much funding you received:

______

How does this application differ from your previous application?

______

______

Applicants must answer ‘yes’ to all of the following statements in order to be eligible to apply:

The applicant agrees to provide a two-page progress report by October 31 and a two-page final report by February 28 the following year. / Yes / No
The applicant agrees to abstracts of the report and photographs submitted being included on BirdLife Australia’s website and/or other publications. Photographers will be acknowledged. / Yes / No
On completion of the project, the applicant is willing to write a brief article for Australia’s leading bird magazine, Australian Birdlife, if requested to do so by the editor. / Yes / No
The applicant will acknowledge the support of the relevant award and BirdLife Australia in any publications, presentations and reports arising from this work. / Yes / No
The applicant agrees to provide BirdLife Australia with a bound paper and an electronic copy of their final academic thesis at the completion of the research project. / Yes / No
The applicant is a member of BirdLife Australia. Student memberships are available online / Member Number:

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PERSONAL DETAILS

Title:

/ / / /
(Mr, Ms etc) / Family name / Given Name/s

Date of Birth:

/

Gender:

/ Male / Female
Institution:
Institutional address:
Street address or GPO Box
Degree type: / PhdHonoursMasters
Suburb or town / State or country / Postcode
Primary contact number / Mobile phone number / Fax number
Email address:

SUPERVISOR 1. DETAILS

Title:

/ / / /
(Mr, Ms etc) / Family name / Given Name/s
Institution:
Institutional address:
Street address or GPO Box
Suburb or town / State or country / Postcode
Work phone number / Mobile phone number / Fax number
Email address:

SUPERVISOR 2. DETAILS

Title:

/ / / /
(Mr, Ms etc) / Family name / Given Name/s
Institution:
Institutional address:
Street address or GPO Box
Suburb or town / State or country / Postcode
Work phone number / Mobile phone number / Fax number
Email address:

REFEREES

If you do not have an academic supervisor, you MUST provide details of two people who may be contacted to comment on your ability to carry out the proposed project or (in the case of conference travel) have an understanding of your research project. Please use the space provided above for referee contact details and tick the box below to indicate this person is a referee.

Supervisor 1.
Supervisor 2.

PROJECT DETAILS

Project Title: Please provide concise and informative title of your entire project (not just the component for which funds are sought)

Part A. FOR CONFERENCE APPLICANTS ONLY

Conference Title: / Location: / Date:
Presentation Abstract
(250 word maximum):

Part B. FOR RESEARCH APPLICANTS ONLY

Details of your entire project (not just the component for which funds are sought) (2.5 page maximum)
1.  Objectives:
2.  Background:
3.  Project plan, timeline and methods:
4.  Likely benefit to conservation of Australian birds and / or key research outputs:
5.  Alignment with Birdlife Australia’s Conservation Strategy: / Please indicate which of the Birdlife Australia Conservation priorities are addressed in this project:
☐ Woodland birds of south-eastern Australia, including Red-tailed Black-cockatoo (south-east subspecies)
☐ Threatened cockatoos in south-western Australia, including Carnaby’s Black-cockatoo
☐ Mallee birds
☐ Riparian, floodplain, wetland and estuarine birds of the Murray–Darling Basin
☐ Island birds
☐ Powerful Owl in the Greater Sydney region
☐ Australian shorebirds
☐ Australian wetland birds
☐ Birds of the Great Western Woodlands
☐ Albatrosses and giant petrels
☐ Orange-bellied Parrot
6.  Explain the part of your project for which you are seeking funds in this application:
7.  References:

Part C. FOR ALL APPLICANTS

Student Experience Relevant to Project (0.5 page maximum): - In addition to appending your academic transcripts as requested below. Please list all non-academic research experience and experience with birds/conservation e.g. work experience, volunteer experience, bird banding, bird-watching.

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PROJECT BUDGET (please outline your entire project, not just the component for which funds are being sought)

Item
(Please list) / $ Budget
(including GST) / Current support
(source and amount) / Requested support
(source and amount)
Equipment
Consumable items
Travel and accommodation
Computing & clerical
Other
Total amount requested from BirdLife Australia:
(All amounts to include GST)
Budget justification: Please provide brief description and justification of all major budgetary items requested, indicating any that are essential to the project and/or conference for which you are applying (250 word maximum):

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DECLARATION

I have discussed the contents of this application with my Supervisor/s (and/or Referee/s) and I certify that to the best of my knowledge all documentation and information submitted or made available by me is true, accurate and complete.

By ticking the following box you are agreeing to the above statement:

Please declare how you first heard about this award: Supervisor/lecturerUniversity CampusAward FlyerAustralasian Ornithological ConferenceBirdLife e-NewsAustralian BirdLife MagazineOnline scholarship websiteOther / (Please specify)

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APPLICATION CHECKLIST

All relevant sections of this application have been completed / Yes / No
All relevant academic transcripts have been attached / Yes / No
Full payment details have been provided on the final page / Yes / No
Application is being submitted electronically as one single document (transcripts may be separately appended) / Yes / No
Application is being submitted in either MS Word or PDF file format (it is important that text can be copied – please do not scan this form) / Yes / No
Application has been discussed with and all Supervisor/s (or Referee/s) have been a carbon copied (cc) to application submission as evidence they have seen and are aware this application has been made. / Yes / No

Applications that do not comply with these guidelines will be returned to the applicant.

APPLICATION SUBMISSION

Please email your application as a single document to:

BirdLife Australia will acknowledge the receipt of your application.

Applications close March 31

Results will be announced in June

Enquiries: BirdLife Australia 03 9347 0757

http://www.birdlife.org.au/who-we-are/our-organisation/awards-scholarships

Office Use Only:
Decision:
Authorised: / __ / __ / __
Entered: / __ / __ / __
Comments:
Student Advised: / __ / __ / __

PLEASE COMPLETE PAYMENT DETAILS ON FINAL PAGE

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PAYMENT DETAILS

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To ensure prompt payment of successful applications please complete the following details and submit with your application. Please note: Applicants are required to confirm with their respective university Research Grants Team if payment is required to be made directly to the university. Payment will only be made to individual bank accounts upon confirmation of the university.

PREFERRED PAYMENT METHOD

Electronic funds transfer (EFT)
Name of applicant:
Payment reference number:
BSB:
Account Number:
Name on account:
Email address for remittance advice:

ALTERNATE PAYMENT METHOD

Cheque
Name of applicant:
Cheque to be made payable to:
Payment to be sent to:

GRANT CONDITIONS

In accordance with the application criteria, the following conditions must be met:

·  Funds are to be strictly exempt from organisational administration charges.

·  You are required to submit one copy by email of a two-page progress report by October 31 and a two-page final report by February 28 of the following year.

·  In your reports, please include the following which may be included on BirdLife Australia’s website:

·  two or more reasonable-quality photos with captions illustrating your research

·  a 300-500 word summary of study purpose, methods and results to date

·  You are required to acknowledge the Professor Allen Keast / Stuart Leslie / Chadcombe Bird Research Award and BirdLife Australia in any presentations, publications, reports or promotional material arising from this work. Please email in order to obtain an electronic copy of BirdLife Australia’s logo for use on any display material you will be preparing.

·  You are required to submit relevant sightings data to BirdLife Australia’s Atlas of Australian Birds. Please contact Andrew Silcocks () for advice on accessing Birdata or Atlas forms.

·  You may be requested to write a brief article for BirdLife Australia’s membership magazine, Australian Birdlife.

·  You are required to provide BirdLife Australia with a bound paper and an electronic copy of your final academic thesis at the completion of your research project.

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