World Wildlife Fund’s Food Systems Fellowship Program 2024

Fellows will also have an opportunity to join the expansive global community of EFN alumni to enable knowledge exchange and collective success.

Focus Areas

• This fellowship aims to bridge academic excellence and conservation practice and policy to provide hands-on experiences and learning opportunities in the food systems and transformation journey. The proposed research topics may cover a wide range of the following themes, but examples are not limited to this list:
  • Human dimensions in food systems and transformation: Equitable social and economic benefits to stakeholders, traditional and indigenous knowledge and culture in food systems, gender dimensions, equity, and inclusion in food systems, and community-based transformational leadership linked to food systems.
  • Climate change: Climate-resilient food systems, adaptation and mitigation strategies, and diversification of food systems including agroecological practices as nature-positive production.
  • Governance and Policy pathways: Public policy and governance in food systems, national food safety and security, and nutrition security, food systems in achieving Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs), National Adaptation Plans (NAPs) and global biodiversity goals.
  • Technology and Innovation: Role of technology and innovation to tackle food systems challenges, capacity, and data in transforming food systems
  • Entrepreneurship, finance solutions and mechanisms: Access to nutrition and affordable food, markets and investments, incentives, value chain development, sustainable markets, and sustainable practices to enhance desired socio-economic outcomes.
• Proposals should adequately address the following key questions:
  • How will/does the proposed work connect the nexus of food, with people and nature?
  • Why is this research needed now? How does your current/proposed research address a food systems problem?
  • What transdisciplinary approaches, experiential learning, and applied research approaches will your proposed research apply?
  • What is the applicability and feasibility of the proposed research in your country? Would you be working with stakeholders in the implementation of projects related to your research topic?
  • How can the proposed research leverage the WWF Network to sustain beyond the expected timeline?
  • What is the relevance of your work? What are the linkages of the proposed work to the national and regional food sector – its priorities, needs and stakeholders? How does the current/proposed research link to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and global agendas (for example, the Rio Conventions)?

Funding Information

• Applicants may apply for up to two years of funding and request up to $30,000 per year.

Geographic Focus

• Belize, Brazil, Bhutan, Bolivia, Cambodia, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chile, Colombia, Dem. Republic of Congo, Ecuador, French Guiana, Gabon, Guatemala, Guyana, Honduras, Indonesia, Kenya, Laos, Madagascar, Malaysia, Mozambique, Myanmar, Namibia, Nepal, Paraguay, Peru, Republic of Congo, Suriname, Tanzania, Uganda, Vietnam

Eligibility Criteria

• Applicants must meet all of the following criteria to be eligible:
  • You must be a citizen and legal permanent resident of an eligible country.
  • You must preferably have at least two years of conservation-related work or research experience.
  • You must have a demonstrated commitment to working in conservation in an eligible country.
  • You must be enrolled in, admitted to, or have applied to a master’s or PhD program anywhere in the world.
  • You must plan to begin your studies no later than January 2025.
  • You must contact EFN if you are a WWF employee, consultant, or previous EFN grant recipient to determine eligibility.

For more information, visit World Wildlife Fund.