Throughout history, stories from oceanic expeditions, such as those led by National Geographic Explorers at Large Sylvia Earle and Bob Ballard, have left people with a sense of adventure and, most importantly, urgency for protecting our blue planet. The ocean today remains a source of discovery, capable of inspiring awe and curiosity about our world. It is critical that we continue to study and explore the global ocean’s lesser-known areas and processes if we are to learn from and protect it into the future. To do this, an “all hands on deck” approach is needed — one that brings together scientists from all regions of the world with their unique ideas, perspectives and solutions. In 2022, a partnership between Schmidt Ocean Institute (SOI) and the National Geographic Society (the Society) was forged to advance ocean science and exploration. The goal of the partnership is to provide early career ocean scientists from around the world the opportunity to lead impactful projects that will explore, understand and inform the protection of the ocean. This partnership also builds on both organizations’ commitments to amplify diverse perspectives, support local leadership development in the ocean sciences and provide funding and access to state-of-the-art research infrastructure. Under this partnership, the Society and SOI are recruiting and supporting early career scientists who can take advantage of the available berth space and research infrastructure aboard SOI’s Falkor (too) research vessel during its 2025 season traversing the southeast coast of South America. Falkor (too) provides a cutting-edge space for pioneering ocean research and technology development projects. The state-of-the-art research vessel has onboard laboratories, underwater robot and camera capabilities, a high performance computing system, and the ability to trial and implement new tools for capacity development and ocean research. To cover travel and project related costs, the Society will award grants of up to $20,000 USD to selected research, conservation and/or technology projects. Awardees will also join the Explorer Community as National Geographic Explorers and have access to opportunities for training, capacity development and network building.

Who should apply
This highly competitive opportunity is best suited for early career scientists with experience in marine sciences and the ability to lead ship-based oceanographic science, deep sea research and/or other exploratory research with limited guidance. This funding opportunity is open to applicants over the age of 18. Please note that individuals who are already National Geographic Explorers cannot apply. Funding requests for this opportunity can be up to $20,000 USD. Projects can be up to one year in length and the fieldwork must occur in 2025. In alignment with the outlined criteria, selected projects must occur in the identified regions Falkor (too) will traverse in 2025. We will also prioritize candidates from these regions and/or those who demonstrate that they would benefit from access to scientific infrastructure on Falkor (too) for which they normally would not have access. Details on available equipment on the vessel is provided here. As organizations guided by science, we recognize that research demonstrates creativity and innovation stem from effectively engaging people from a wide range of backgrounds and lived experiences. With this top of mind, we warmly welcome people of all backgrounds and lived experiences to apply, including people from communities historically excluded from disciplines such as marine sciences and ocean exploration. Applicants of all backgrounds will be considered for this funding opportunity.