BC Parks Living Lab for Climate Change & Conservation Program
Funding Application – 2021
The BC Parks Living Lab for Climate Change and Conservation Program promotes B.C.’s protected areas as places to learn about the effects of climate change, how to mitigate and manage for these effects, and how to share this information among and between academics and practitioners. B.C.’s protected areas are less developed than much of the rest of the province, so parks serve as a “living lab,” and can help us understand the impact of climate change on the natural world. Climate-informed conservation research in protected areas can also reveal areas that are critical to connectivity within and adjacent to the protected areas system which in turn can inform management decisions.
Applicants are encouraged to consider the Living Lab Program’s goals and priority projects and research themes in their application.
Each application will be considered on the basis of:
- Contribution to understanding climate change impacts and how to mitigate or adapt to these impacts in BC’s provincial parks;
- Objectives, methodology and approach;
- Qualifications and experience;
- Budget including other sources of funding (e.g., how Living Lab funding assistance contributes to other research or if there is an opportunity to leverage additional funds).
Successful applications will be chosen to ensure that the Living Lab research projects:
- Are endorsed by regional BC Parks staff;
- Acknowledge and include Indigenous stewardship in the project proposal, its results and/or application of results; and
- Support improved management of the conservation, cultural and/or recreational values within B.C.’s provincial park system.
Applications are due October 25, 2020. Preliminary decisions on priority projects for Living Labs funding will be announced in January 2021. Funding will be awarded in spring, subject to confirmation of its availability in the provincial budget.
Successful projects commence in the spring of 2021 and end in March 2022. All deliverables for 2021 projects are due March 22, 2022.
Eligibility:
Lead applicants must be professors who hold a current teaching or research position with a public post-secondary institution in BC. Adjunct professors are not eligible for Living Lab funding.
Organizations or individuals working in partnership with a professor as described above are also encouraged to apply. All successful applicants must be available to share the preliminary results of their project at the annual Living Lab Research Colloquium in December 2021 (location to be confirmed and event may be virtual).
Note: applicants are expected to engage relevant BC Parks staff (e.g., Conservation Specialists, Area Supervisors or Protected Areas Section Heads) prior to submitting their application. Please reference any input from regional staff and explain how the research will be made accessible to BCP staff and relevant partners. For help identifying the appropriate staff, email Jennifer Grant.