The global coronavirus pandemic has led to significant disruption to the fieldwork plans of many researchers. The Society, through its grants programme, is continuing to select and commit funding for researchers who plan to go into the field when it is safe and responsible for them to do so. These grants will only be formally awarded and funds will only be released to the recipient when full institutional approvals have been received and Government, FCDO and in-country guidance is clear that it is appropriate for fieldwork to take place. The Society will continue to uphold the highest health and safety and ethics protocols for the research projects it (or any of the organisations it works with) supports through the grants programme.
In 2021, with the generous support of our donors, over £91,000 of funding was allocated to support 32 field research projects. An increased number of projects will be studying geographical issues in the UK, including investigating the geography of antibiotic- and vaccine-related attitudes. Further afield, projects are planned to take place in 23 countries spanning five continents. Topics range from studying the implications of glacier recession for mass movement processes and hazards in Chile to the evolution of informal water markets in East Africa. 39 field research projects were allocated funding in 2020, with many planning go into the field in 2021.
Grants are available for desk-based research, fieldwork and expeditions, developing teaching resources, and for international conference attendence. For enquiries, please contact grants@rgs.org