The Conservation and Wildlife Research Trust is savouring a pioneering role in its endeavours to protect Australia’s wildlife and natural surroundings. The Trust was set up in 2010 and raises money via its Public Fund to bolster the environmental crusade. Now things have stepped up to another level and the Trust is looking for new projects to support. A boost to the Trust’s ambitions is that it now enjoys tax-deductibility status.
The SSAA has been a key supporter of the Trust since its inception, which is something that all the trustees are very thankful for. The Association provides a dollar from every sale of the Australian Hunter magazine and that goes into the Public Fund to be used for purposes that the Trust was established for.
One of the major projects that the CWRT is investing in is a habitat improvement project to increase the feeding areas for migrating birds visiting Australia. Another key funding initiative is the Trust’s student grants program. This provides an opportunity for university students to access funding to help them to undertake research. Such studies will hopefully ultimately improve Australians’ understanding of wildlife and their habitats.
The CWRT Grants Program currently provides scholarships of $1000 to honours or postgraduate students engaged in environmental sciences, wildlife sciences and management, and zoology projects at Australian universities. It should be stressed that this is totally separate to the SSAA National Academy Bursary Program for students.
In the CWRT case, grants are on offer for research projects that delve into methods of correcting or reversing negative impacts of native and exotic species of wildlife, or addressing or altering decline in habitat, or other applied wildlife conservation research in Australia. Grants will not be implemented for projects involved with animal rights.
Grants may be used for the purchase of equipment and consumable items, travel expenses related to field research, or attending a conference at which a student is presenting his or her work. Applications should be a maximum of three to four pages in length and set out under the headings of: introduction, methods, schedule, budget and concluding with a brief CV.
Interested parties should send a single copy of their completed application, using the subject heading ‘CWRT Grants Program’, to [email protected] Successful applicants will be informed once the assessment of their request is complete. Now that the CWRT has an online presence, members can spread the word to any of their friends who are engaged in research that would qualify them for some assistance.
Meanwhile, individual SSAA members are welcome to donate to the CWRT via the website. The charity registration status of the CWRT means that any donations made to the Trust of $2 or more are tax deductable. The Public Fund was established to be maintained for the precise intent of supporting the environmental purposes of the Trust. At the core of the Trust’s aims is the protecting and conserving of the natural environment that supports wildlife as well as managing habitat, flora and fauna in an ecologically sustainable way. Seven years into its existence, the CWRT is striving to achieve those ideals. The SSAA certainly encourages our members to donate to this important initiative.