Discover Funding Opportunities

Walters Kundert Fellowship

The Walters Kundert Fellowship offers an annual grant of £10,000 to support post-PhD field research within Arctic or high mountain environments. Established in 2017, the Fellowship is supported through a generous donation by the Walters Kundert Charitable Trust and encourages applicants from across the spectrum of geographical research to enhance the understanding and well-being of the planet's Arctic and high mountain environments through research. The Fellowship specifically supports field research in physical geography within Arctic and/or high mountain environments, with preference for field studies that advance the understanding of environmental change past or present. Applications are open to post-PhD researchers affiliated with a UK Higher Education Institution or equivalent research establishment, or Fellows and members of the Royal Geographical Society who are employed outside the UK. The Fellowship aims to encourage research that addresses critical questions about environmental change in these sensitive regions, including topics such as glacier dynamics, permafrost disturbances, climate change impacts, and ecosystem responses in Arctic and high mountain settings.

The Gino Watkins Fund Awards

The Gino Watkins Fund Awards support expeditions guiding and inspiring enterprising people towards scientific research and exploration in the polar regions. The Gino Watkins Memorial Fund gives grants annually of up to £4,000 towards expeditions that meet its objective of the diffusion and improvement of knowledge of the polar regions. The Fund endeavours to increase our knowledge of one of the least known, but most important parts of our planet, and also to stimulate the lasting qualities of enterprise, endurance and leadership gained in this uniquely arduous environment. The Fund was established in 1933 in memory of Henry George ('Gino') Watkins, who revolutionised polar exploration. Expeditions supported by the Fund visit Greenland and other high Arctic lands, as well as the Antarctic. Applications come from researchers, expeditioners, adventurers and organised groups, with particular favour given to expeditions that bring experience and training to young people or those early in their career.