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Grants in Biodiversity

The ACA Grants in Biodiversity program for graduate students is funded by the Alberta Conservation Association. With the announcement of the 2021 Competition recipients, the 27 year old ACA Grants in Biodiversity has now awarded 5.8 million dollars to 567 graduate student researchers. The research supported by the ACA Grants in Biodiversity ultimately aims to conserve, protect and enhance Alberta's fish, wildlife and natural habitats. This annual competition opens in mid-September.

News

2022 Competition Winners Announced

April 26, 2022 – Habitat studies are a common theme amongst the 2022 ACA Grants in Biodiversity funded studies. From forest resilience to herbicide agricultural impacts to the effect of coal mining on fish in a key watershed, researchers need information about where wildlife resides and ACA is at the forefront of backing these studies. In addition, this year’s competition-winning projects include an estimate of wolf density, the interaction of black bears with caribou and the impact of human disturbance on one species of warblers.

ACA is pleased to fund 15 studies this year from five Ph.D. and ten MSc candidates.
Projects were sponsored by universities in Alberta, Quebec and Montana with each project focussing on biodiversity in Alberta.

2022 Competition Closed

December 2, 2021 - The timeline for accepting applications for the 2022 ACA Grants in Biodiversity Competition is now closed. 

2022 Competition Open

September 16, 2021 - The Alberta Conservation Association is pleased to be accepting applications for the 2022 ACA Grants in Biodiversity Competition. Awards of up to $20,000 are available for the grant term April 1, 2022 to March 31, 2024. Application information and forms are found on the Applicants page; applications are to be submitted by e-mail. The deadline for this year's competiton is 4:00pm on Wednesday, December 1, 2021.  Follow the instructions carefully.

2020 - 2021 Biennial Report Released

September 7, 2021 - The latest Biennial Report is now available online. This document contains final reports of projects funded in 2018 and 2019, and a sneak peek of projects funded in 2020 that are still underway.

Download: 2021 ACA Grants in Biodiversity Biennial Report (PDF, 8.5MB)

2021 Competition Winners Announced

March 04, 2021 – Invasion is a common theme that many of this year’s Alberta Conservation Association (ACA) Grants in Biodiversity selected projects will be studying. From parasites that don’t quite kill to invasive sportfish to the exotic sounding Chinese mystery snail, Alberta’s biodiversity is under threat from invaders. ACA Grants in Biodiversity-funded research will shed light on the impacts of these species.