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After two years of benchmarking and consultation, Alcoa Foundation launched the US$9.2 million Conservation & Sustainability Fellowship Program in late 2005 to advance the knowledge in the field of conservation and sustainability through fellowships to outstanding academics and practitioners from non-governmental organizations.
The six-year program’s unique design—pure and applied research combined with an interdisciplinary approach and opportunities for collaboration—brings together a global network of future leaders and premier institutions to create and leverage sustainability research and share innovative and interdisciplinary work in the conservation and sustainability field.
The research the fellows are producing will provide fresh insight into the opportunities and challenges facing the field of conservation and sustainability, and it will serve as input to other researchers around the world who are also focused on developing enhanced sustainability knowledge, practices, and outcomes.
In addition to enabling breakthrough research, the program is designed to accomplish the following:
- Present research outcomes that lead to the adoption of effective new policies or practices by organizations or communities;
- Create a global, interdisciplinary network of thought leaders;
- Develop fellows' ability to become recognized as innovators and world-class leaders; and
- Serve as a new model of effective private philanthropic action, bringing together academic, NGO, business, and government leaders to address urgent problems of global concern.
Program Structure
The program is advised by a distinguished panel of experts in the field as well as leaders at Alcoa whose work and interests are in the areas of conservation and sustainability.
Five academic partners, selected by a global competitive process, will host up to 30 post-doctoral fellows. Each fellow’s two-year research project is supported by the academic partner through a multidisciplinary sustainability cabinet and mentors from several key disciplines. The academic partners are:
- Curtin University of Technology, Alcoa Research Centre for Stronger Communities—Perth, Australia
- London School of Economics and Political Science, Centre for Environmental Policy and Governance—London, United Kingdom
- Tsinghua University, Department of Environmental Science and Engineering—Beijing, China
- University of Michigan, Center for Sustainable Systems and the Erb Institute for Global Sustainable Enterprise—Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
- University of São Paulo, Center for Environmental Research and Training—São Paulo, Brazil
The three sustainability institutes, also selected by a global competitive process, will mentor up to 60 practitioner fellows. The practitioner fellows are mid-career professionals from non-governmental organizations around the world who will conduct intensive applied research projects in their home countries for six months. Fellows will visit their respective sustainability institute early in their project and remain engaged with their mentors through periodic meetings and remote communications. The program’s sustainability institutes are:
- International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN)—Gland, Switzerland
- Tecnológico de Monterrey—Monterrey, Mexico
- World Wildlife Fund—Washington, D.C., USA
The academic and practitioner fellows, sustainability cabinet members, and sustainability institute mentors will convene biennially with other leaders in the field. These worldwide convenings will serve to share research findings and develop networks to enhance further collaborative research and joint implementation of projects addressing global and local challenges in conservation and sustainability. In addition, alumni networks for fellows and program partners are designed to continue connections among participants and key stakeholders after formal program activities conclude. |
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