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Prakriti Research Fellowship

Prakriti Research Fellowship is a small grants program initiated to support nature conservation research and action with a focus to create a direct tangible long-term impact on nature conservation in India. The fellowship aims to provide seed money for strong on-groundwork done by individuals, teams, and small NGOs in this field from various Industry partners. Prakriti Research Fellowship has been started by CARPE in collaboration with Grind Master Machines Pvt. Ltd. to support nature conservation research and action in India.

APPLY NOW!

  • Application by 20th May 2025
  • Doubts clarification session on Friday 9th May, 4:00 – 5:00 pm. Video call link
  • Selection by 30th June 2025
  • Project Duration from 01st July 2025 to 30th June 2026

FAQ

  • Who should apply? Independent INDIAN researchers and small NGOs, especially self-motivated, passionate researchers and small conservation groups. Kindly note: Since we fund fellows and not organizations, if someone is applying from a NGO, the person who is applying will be funded.
  • What projects will be funded? We are looking for projects with clear achievable objectives bringing about tangible on-ground conservation action and research. The proposal should fit well in the given themes. Most importantly, the impacts of the project should be measurable.
  • What projects will NOT be funded?
    • Litigation/activism.
    • Participation for conferences, workshops, and expeditions.
    • Sustainable agriculture/ projects in the agriculture sector.
  • What is the funding amount?:
    • Rs. 2.5 lakhs for 1 Year Project – Full Fellowship
    • Rs. 1 lakhs for 1 Year Project – Partial Fellowship
  • Application Themes:
    • Conservation of Important Habitats (including One Health)
    • Threatened Species (IUCN categories Critically Endangered", "Endangered", "Vulnerable" or Schedule 1 species under the Wildlife Protection Act 1972)
    • Research and action in Urban Ecology
  • More FAQs can be found here

In case you are not comfortable writing the proposal in English, you can reach out to us on research@carpeindia.org and we can help you out.

Download the application form here

Email the filled form with all attachments in ONE email to – research@carpeindia.org. Please note that the decision of the selection panel will be final. No appeals against decisions would be entertained.

Map of India showing project locations
Selection of 12 Projects in 2024 across India including:
  • 2 Projects on Endangered Species in Protected Areas
  • 4 Projects on Lesser-known Endangered Species
  • 2 Projects on Endangered Flora
  • 1 Technology deployment
  • 2 Nature Education
  • 1 Grassland Habitat Conservation

The broad themes under which the Fellowship is provided are:

  • Conservation of Important Habitats
  • Conservation of Threatened Species
  • Conservation of Urban ecology

PRF 2024 Selection

Abha Purohit
Bumble-Bee Conservation in Rudraprayag, Uttarakhand
Abinesh Muthaiyan
Madras Hedgehog in Tiruppur, Tamil Nadu
Aditya Rana
Conservation of Asiatic Wild Dog in Kanha Tiger Reserve, Madhya Pradesh
Dhananjay Kumar
Biodiversity Conservation Through Nature Education, Karnataka
Dr. H.S. Mogalekar
Turtles / Tortoises Diversity in Valmiki Tiger Reserve, Bihar
Gautam Kadam
Conservation of Salem Ornamental Tarantula in Eastern Ghats of Tamil Nadu
Manya Singh
Biodiversity Conservation in Surendranagar’s Commons in Chotila, Gujarat
Nivedita Tuli
Urban Nature Education : A Community Approach in Hyderabad
Pratiksha Mestry
Conservation Threatened Endemic Trees of Northern Western Ghats
Srijan Haldar
e-DNA solution for invasive species
Tremie M. Sangma
Conserving Garo Hills' Rare Plants in Meghalaya, India
Younis Khan
Conservation Endangered Flowers Suru Valley Kargil Ladakh

Past Fellows

Anirban Roy
Devika M Anilkumar
Divyajyoti Ganguly
Dr. Aabid Mir
Dr. Anukul Nath
Dr. Arshiya Bose
Dr. Bahar Baviskar
Dr. Jane Shangpliang
Dr. Pankaj Koparde
Dr. Sonika Kushwaha
Gayathri Venkatramanan
Jui Pethe
Nobina Gupta
Priya Ranganathan
Purabi Deshpande
Radhika Kothari
Samrat Sengupta
Tushar Pawar

Partners

Canpack
Canpack
Grind Master
Grind Master
AITG
AITG
Caring Friends
Caring Friends
Yeshshree
Yeshshree
Fairmacs
Fairmacs
MIT
MIT
Sportz Interactive
Sportz Interactive
LIB
LIB
Bandi Jai Ban
Bandi Jai Ban
Kedar Shah
Kedar Shah
Manjot Kaur
Manjot Kaur
Arvind Iyengar
Arvind Iyengar
Mayuri Kerr
Mayuri Kerr
Prajanya Kendrekar
Prajanya Kendrekar
Noopur Desai
Noopur Desai
Mukund Bhogale
Mukund Bhogale
Naveen Aranha
Naveen Aranha
Kedar Deshpande
Kedar Deshpande

PRF Committee

Sameer Kelkar
Sameer Kelkar
CARPE
Bahar Baviskar
Bahar Baviskar
WILDCER
Prerna Agarwal
Prerna Agarwal
Ecosphere
Gauri Mirashi
Gauri Mirashi
CARPE
Natasha Zarine
Natasha Zarine
CARPE

Testimonials

Sameer Kelkar

CEO, Grind Master Machines Pvt. Ltd.

Our World is witnessing/causing the 6th Extinction - an irreparable loss to biodiversity and ecologically diverse habitat. Research into these areas are must for directing Conservation Action. The PRF is aimed at funding individual researchers and has been successful in initiating excellent projects on diverse subjects such as Herbs, Odonates, Pangolins and also demonstrated Conservation action. We are excited with all the ON GROUND ZERO work happening with support of the PRF and Forest Department. We believe it is important to conduct a lot more research and awareness of our rich biodiversity and PRF is acting as a catalyst in attracting and retaining talented researchers in this field.

Rushika Shirsat

BSc Zoology student, SBES Science College, Aurangabad

I had never imagined that there is such an amazing world of dragonflies out there. Through this workshop, I got to learn so much about dragonflies, which I always considered as a mere insect and ignored. Here onwards, I will look around, take photos of dragonflies, and contribute my data to the Marathwada Citizen Science Project to do my bit of research and conservation.

Forest Guards

Bansbari Range, Manas National Park, Barpeta Road, Assam

Forest officials, especially the patrolling staff, were trained to monitor the activity pattern of hispid hare in the grasslands of Manas. Since 80% of people are unaware of the presence and importance of the species in their forest beat, our ongoing capacity building has initiated excellent results on the field. This initiative will also help in large scale monitoring of the Hispid Hare survey, which we plan to organize this winter.

Saurabh Bhogale

Director, AITG Group

We cannot conserve what we are not aware of. Some of the past fellowships have researched biodiversity including pangolins, odonates and tigers in the Marathwada area. This inspired us to support further research.

Kedar Shah

California, USA

As a passionate outdoor/wilderness enthusiast I am pleased to contribute in a meaningful way to research and conserve biodiversity. Young ecologists need to be encouraged and enabled to venture in this field.

Priya Ranganathan

PRF Fellow 2022

Without PRF 2022, I would never had the support I needed to carry out rigorous research in challenging conditions and create published material for outreach. The fellowship gave me the ability to travel extensively in my field, work in more sites, and engage with volunteers and interns to help make a comprehensive project.