Your final project will be a 15-20 page (double-spaced) paper. I
have
approved your paper that will be either a research proposal (typical)
or
a literature review. The main requirement is that it explores the
relevance
of ecology to conservation. I should say that I am somewhat
flexible
as to the format. My main objective is that you deeply explore
one
aspect of conservation biology.
Proposal
A proposal should be written as if for a funding organization that
has interest in applications of basic research. If it is not
called
for in the guidelines that you are looking at, there should be a
specific
section in the proposal on how your research will apply to
conservation.
You may write a proposal that is related to your thesis or
dissertation;
however, I do not want to receive a copy of something that you’ve
already
written previously. Here are some guidelines for some possible
funding
sources. Even if the funding source is not a perfect match, you
are
welcome to use their guidelines and then just adapt them to your
specific,
conservation related proposal. Again, I'm happy to add other
links
as they are suggested. Having read your abstracts, my main advice
is
to make sure and think as broadly as possible about the implications
and
applicationns of your work.
USDA:
Ecosystems Panel (23.1, Ecosystem Management. Guidlines
are in
PART III--PREPARATION OF AN APPLICATION)
NSF
(see
the
Division of
Environmental
Biology for types of research NSF supports)
SERDP (for
work on military lands). Instructions will provide instructions
for
grant writing. Statement Of Need will tell about the types of
things they are looking for (look under the Conservation section).
Review
A review could be on any topic that has relevance to conservation.
The only requirements for a review are that the topic has not not
been recently reviewed in the literature, and and that it should be
written as if it will be submitted to a major journal that relates to
conservation biology. If you choose this approach, I recommend
that you take a look at a journal that relates to your area of
interest, and find a recent review paper to model your own paper after.
Successful reviews that I have read typically
include one graph or table that help to summarize the major findings of
your
review. Here are links to a few journals, where you can find
guidelines
to authors, and in some cases access to the journal. I'm happy to
add
other links as they are suggested.
Ecological
Applications [articles available
online]
Conservation
Biology
[articles available online]
Journal
of Wildlife Management [articles available online]