Pat and Dick Johnston Graduate Fellowship in Coastal Sustainability at the Bald Head Island Conservancy
November 19, 2024
Fellowship Details:
The Bald Head Island Conservancy is now accepting applications for the 2025-26 Johnston Graduate Fellowship in Coastal Sustainability. The Fellowship provides support for a graduate student to pursue a coastal sustainability project on Bald Head Island in collaboration with Bald Head Island Conservancy staff and the Center for Coastal Sustainability. Projects should be directly related to the sustainability of Bald Head Island and other southeastern US barrier islands. Topics of special interest for the Johnston Coastal Sustainability Fellowship include landscape ecology, land preservation, habitat restoration ecology, coastal processes/engineering, coastal management, sustainability practices, and resource economics. See below for a list of current priority research topics. The Fellow is expected to collaborate closely with Conservancy staff, give a public presentation on the results of the project at the Annual Coastal Sustainability Symposium in April 2026, and provide a 2-page final summary report within 3 months of the funding period ending.
About the Bald Head Island Conservancy:
The Bald Head Island Conservancy is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization founded in 1983 on Bald Head Island, North Carolina. Our mission statement is “We Discover, Learn, Conserve, and Preserve”, and in pursuit of this mission, we conduct barrier island conservation science and research activities and lead a variety of environmental education programs for visitors, scouts, and local schools. Our science and research work falls under three major categories: 40-year Sea Turtle Protection Program; Environmental Services Contract work for the Village of BHI; and collaborative research focusing on barrier island sustainability science and conservation biology. The Conservancy’s campus has 4 primary buildings including the Barrier Island Study Center with laboratory and office spaces, Fleming Education Building with exhibits and dedicated classroom space, Turtle Central gift shop, and a dormitory to house interns and visiting scientists/educators. Visit bhic.org to learn more.
Fellowship Funds:
Total Award = $20,000
Funding Period = June 1, 2025 – May 31, 2026 unless extension approved by BHI Conservancy. Funds can be used for stipend, tuition, materials, and travel costs and will be distributed directly to the student after a request for payment with university documentation has been made to the Conservancy’s finance team. Institutional indirect costs and equipment purchases >$500 are not eligible through this award. The Conservancy will hold $1000 in escrow until the final project report has been submitted. Additional funds may be made available to former Fellows after the project ends to support travel to a scientific conference to present project results.
Eligibility Requirements:
Must be enrolled in an M.S. or Ph.D. program at an accredited university and have completed year 1 of the graduate program when the fellowship begins in summer 2025.
Required Application Materials:
All applicants are required to discuss their project idea and logistics/feasibility with BHI Conservancy staff prior to application submission. Please set up a brief meeting with Beth Darrow (darrow@bhic.org) and/or Chris Shank (shank@bhic.org) prior to December 13, 2024.
1. Project Description (4-page limit in 12-point font and 1-inch margins not including references)
descriptive title and name of applicant
scientific background, including relevant references
need for proposed project and objective(s)
research questions and hypotheses
materials/methods and plans for working on BHI
project timeline
how the project and student will integrate with BHIC staff and existing work h. how the project will incorporate environmental education or public outreach
2. Budget Description* brief summary of how funds will support student stipend, tuition, materials, and/or travel fees
Proposals will be evaluated based on the following:
Relevance of project to Bald Head Island Conservancy & Center for Coastal Sustainability research & sustainability priorities
Potential scientific impact of project
Broader impacts of project, including management implications or education/outreach
Project feasibility
Appropriateness of budget
Quality and clarity of proposal as written
Academic qualifications of applicant
Review Process:
Application Due Date: January 10, 2025
Finalists Notification Date: January 30, 2025
Fellow Selection Notification: March 1, 2025
Funding Period: June 1, 2025 – May 31, 2026
How to Submit Application:
Applications should be submitted as a single pdf (file name format: Lastname_Sustainability) to Executive Director Dr. Chris Shank at shank@bhic.org. Finalists will be interviewed by the selection panel in February 2025.
2025 Research Priorities – Bald Head Island Conservancy & Johnston Center for Coastal Sustainability
Sand movement on the east end of Bald Head Island / Frying Pan Shoals – assessment of patterns, predictions, recommendations that can be used to aid shoreline management
Establishment of baseline data or model on salt marsh health, erosion/accretion
Maritime forest succession, vegetation changes through time – assessment of current status compared to historical data
Analysis / modeling of Bald Head Creek water quality data to investigate links to Cape Fear River water quality
Real estate valuation in response to sea level rise/future storms
Social / community responses to environmental perturbations such as sea level rise; how community deals with uncertainty
