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Ruth Gates Fellowship

Description: The Ruth Gates Fellowship was established in memory of its past president, Dr. Ruth Gates, who died unexpectedly in 2018 while in office. The grant is to be used for research and development in a subject area within which Ruth herself was active. This includes research focused on reef corals and coral reefs that address solution-orientated topics relevant to the coral reef crisis. Proposals that address diversity and inclusion in the coral reef research community are especially welcome.

Level of experience needed:  Available to any post-graduate student (MS/MSc or PhD) or any early career post-doctoral researcher no more than 3 years post PhD at the time of application (career breaks excepted). Currently, there are two awards available per year: Junior Ruth Gates Fellowship (Masters and PhD students) and Senior Ruth Gates Fellowship (Post-docs).

ICRS Membership requirement: Yes, either student or full membership

ICRS Service requirement: None

Frequency of award: Annual, depending on level of funding

Number of awards: Two per year

Recognition: Up to US$5,000 cash prize to support research; Commemorative plaque.

Due date for applications:  15th February.  Instructions for Applicants are listed below.  Applications and enquiries about the award should be sent directly to the ICRS Award Committee Chairs either Dr. Isla Kuffner or Dr. Nicola Browne.

A list of past graduate fellowship recipients may be found here.

Donations and Management:  The Society appeals to members to help support this award by donating to the Ruth Gates Fellowship. The Society made an initial contribution to the fund of US$ 5,000 in 2019 and over the period 2019-2022, will match any other amounts received from Society members or private individuals (with a cap on matching funds during that period of US$15,000). Donations may be sent by electronic transfer, cheque or through the Society’s website using a credit or debit card.  Please contact the Society’s treasurer Dr. Anderson Mayfield, for any questions related to donating.

The fund and the award process will be managed by a Memorial Award Committee of five members: the Society’s President, the Society’s Treasurer, and three other Society members with relevant interests. Currently these members are Dr. Peter Edmunds of California State University (USA), Dr. Tracy Ainsworth of the University of New South Wales (Australia), and Dr. Barbara Brown – all three close colleagues of Ruth’s. The Awards Committee will have sole discretion in deciding whether or not to make an award (in any one year) and in deciding on the final amount of the award.

Instructions for Applicants

Proposal:
An application should consist of this completed form, and the following documents, combined into a single file:

  • A short cover letter (<500 words)
  • A curriculum vitae (CV; <2 pages)
      • Track record (e.g. publications, presentations, awards/fellowships, etc)
      • Include details of past project work
      • Highlight experience in reef science and/or marine activities
      • Include contributions to outreach, mentoring, and Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) appropriate to career stage and opportunity (This applies to the Senior Ruth Gates Award only)
  • Two letters of support from established reef scientists, one of whom must be an ICRS member (<500 words). These letters should include information on the applicant’s background, research experience and acumen, financial need, and likelihood of follow through and ability to complete the work.
  • A research proposal (max 3 pages of text excluding budget, size 12 font, single spaced, US Letter or A4 page size) that includes:
    • Concise explanatory title of no more than two lines
    • Brief introduction with sufficient background to enable the value of the proposed work to the reef-science and management community
    • Clear set of aims and/or objectives
    • Methods should be clear, concise, and repeatable, and include planned data collection, analyses, and expected results.  Note: Projects should have a duration of no more than 24 months with reports and deliverables provided within 36 months.
    • Budget with clear breakdown of costs and totals and a short explanation (1 to 2 sentences) justifying the budget with reference to level of the applicant’s financial need (e.g., state what work could not be completed without the fellowship).
    • Timeline of how research will be executed and when funds will be spent
    • Literature cited (<10 references)

Budget: The proposal should include a detailed budget. Funds may be used for equipment, consumables, fieldwork or laboratory costs, and travel or living expenses, as required, but not for salaries or institutional overheads. Your budget and budget justifications will be closely reviewed to evaluate the strength of the proposed work as well as the financial need of the candidate.

The funds will, if necessary, be paid directly to the recipient. An account of expenses accompanied by receipts will be required on completion of the proposed work. This should be within 36 months of the announcement of the award.

The awardee will also be required to submit to the Society (within the 36-month period) a report on the work completed. Ideally this should take the form of a manuscript for submission to either the Society’s journal Coral Reefs or the Society’s news journal Reef Encounter. It is a requirement to acknowledge the support of the Society and the Memorial Award in any outputs from this grant.

All of the above documents are required to submit this form. The documents must be combined into a single word or pdf file prior to submission. The file must be < 10 mb in size and should be named as: ApplicantLastName_ICRSRGF

Please note that applications exceeding the stated word and page limits will not be considered. Please also note that you cannot save and return to this form; have all materials ready prior to submission. Incomplete applications will not be reviewed.

Please review the ICRS Code of Conduct prior to submission.