Grants-in-Aid of Field Research aka ‘The Two Steves Award’

Steve Emslie (left) and Steve Weber (right), 2018.

Steve Emslie (left) and Steve Weber (right) at the latter's wedding in Flagstaff, Arizona, 1986.

Description
One award per year will be granted of up to $5000 to support an individual (student, professional or other) to conduct field research using rigorous methods and modes of analysis with the primary goal of increasing knowledge in any field of ethnobiology. This research can include current or past use of plants and animals. Awarded funds may be used for travel, field expenses including consultant fees for native informants and translations, supplies, food, or other field expenses. The award is not to be used for salaries or promoting or participating in activism or related activities. Projects that are innovative and provide new information, in either applied or pure research in ethnobiology, are especially eligible for this award.

Award winners must be a member of the Society of Ethnobiology, present their results at a future Society annual meeting (within five years of completing the field research), and will be encouraged to publish their results in the Journal of Ethnobiology or other suitable peer-reviewed publications.

Application
Applicants must complete the application form at the link below and provide a budget summary with justification (1 page) and no more than a 3-page description of the project, exclusive of references, including research questions and project aims, methods, and anticipated results and impact to the study of ethnobiology. Any required permits, or evidence of applications in progress, should be included with the proposal. Awards will be contingent on receipt of required permits.

Applications should be submitted through the Society website at:

‘The Two Steves Award’ Application Form

Due date: March 15, 2025

Grants-in-Aid of Field Research Recipients

2025 Maria Lopez Rojas
Maria Lopez Rojas is a Costa Rican anthropologist and a doctoral student in the Environmental Dynamics Program at the University of Arkansas. She is interested in paleoethnobotany, agroforestry, and biocultural heritage. Maria’s goal is promoting paleoethnobotanical studies in Costa Rica, and for this purpose, she is researching landscape management from 1500 BCE to 1250 CE in Nuevo Corinto archaeological site – a Chibchan settlement inhabited by indigenous people before the arrival of Spanishes. Also, Maria is dedicated to science communication in archaeology. She co-produces the podcast LACAP which disseminates archaeological studies conducted by young and senior researchers in Costa Rica.