The Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) Secretariat is pleased to invite nominations for the 2022 GBIF Young Researchers Award.

The GBIF Young Researchers Award is an annual programme that aims to foster and recognize innovative research and discovery in biodiversity informatics by graduate students whose Master’s and PhD rely on GBIF-mediated data.

Since its inception in 2010, the GBIF Young Researchers Award has sought to encourage innovation in the use and mobilization of biodiversity data shared through the GBIF network.

Eligibility

To be eligible for the 2022 GBIF Young Researchers Award, candidates must:

• Either be citizens of a country participating in GBIF or students at an institution located in a GBIF participant country
• Enrolled in a university graduate programme

Nominations can come from the GBIF delegation or node of either the country of the candidate’s host institution or the candidate’s country of citizenship.

Benefit

The 2022 GBIF Young Researchers Award will provide a pair of €5,000 prizes recognizing the work of two early-career researchers — preferably, one Master’s and one PhD candidate — who have received formal nominations from the heads of delegation and node managers of GBIF Participant countries.

Submission process and deadline

Students seeking nomination must apply to the Head of Delegation or node manager of a GBIF Voting or Associate Participant country.

National participants are responsible for establishing their own deadlines and processes for receiving and processing student applications. As a result, graduate students who seek nomination should consult the websites of their national GBIF Participants or contact the Head of Delegation or node manager directly.

Student proposals are first reviewed and prioritized at the national level. GBIF national nodes are encouraged to work closely with the academic communities and higher education institutions in their countries and to reach out to relevant university programmes and research groups.

National Heads of Delegation and/or node managers may submit a maximum of two nominees per country to the GBIF Secretariat: [email protected] by the deadline for submissions which is June 20, 2022.

Heads of Delegations and node managers will ensure that submissions are complete and include all the elements listed below. Submissions of incomplete proposals will not be considered.

Award nomination packet

Candidates are to prepare their proposal and nomination packets to include:

• Research summary (200 words)Project description (maximum 5 pages, 12-point Arial) that describes: (a) The need for the research and the question(s) it addresses. (b) The role of data accessed through GBIF in addressing these questions. Research proposals must clearly demonstrate how the study incorporates data mobilized through GBIF. Students with questions about GBIF-enabled data should work with academic advisors, their GBIF national node, the GBIF Secretariat or members of the Science Committee to increase their understanding. (c) The research scope, plan, methodologies, relevant literature citations and timetable. (d) If relevant, a description or an excerpt from a data management plan that outlines how data related to the research is published or will be prepared for publication through the GBIF network to GBIF.org.
• Curriculum vitae of the student applicant including full contact information at the home institution.
• Supporting documents: (a) An official letter from the student’s faculty mentor/supervisor certifying that the applicant is a student in good standing in the graduate programme of the university. (b) At least one, and not more than three, letters of support from established researchers active in a field that encompasses and incorporates biodiversity informatics (e.g., genetics, species composition and traits, biogeography, ecology, systematics, et al.)

Selection process and criteria

The GBIF Science Committee will review the nominations and select winners of the 2022 GBIF Young Researchers Award. The criteria for the awards include:

• Originality and innovation
• Use of and strategic significance for data accessed through GBIF
• Measurable effectiveness and impact in advancing biodiversity informatics and/or the conservation of biological diversity

Proposals that are not selected may be updated and resubmitted for consideration in subsequent years.

A jury organized by GBIF Science Committee will select two award recipients from the pool of nominees whose names are received by the GBIF Secretariat by 20 June 2022.

The GBIF Secretariat will announce winners of the 2022 GBIF Young Researchers Award in early fall of 2022 and present the winners at the 29th meeting of the GBIF Governing Board (GB29) planned for Brussels in October 2022.

Deadline

The deadline for receipt of nominations at the GBIF Secretariat is June 20, 2022. Local deadlines do apply.

GBIF will post other national deadlines on the website when they receive them and post notifications through the GBIF Twitter feed using the hashtag #YoungResearchers.

Awardees are expected to acknowledge GBIF support when disseminating research results via peer-reviewed publications, presentations at professional meetings, and other media.