Deadline: 31 January 2019

The Ornithological Society of the Middle East (OSME) is seeking applications for its “Conservation Fund”, which is small grants programme that supports bird conservation projects in the OSME region.

Programme Priorities

• Project Priorities
  • Initiated and carried out by nationals of OSME region countries, and/or
  • Include a strong educational element, pro-actively engaging local communities and/or
  • Include a strong educational element, pro-actively engaging local communities and/or
  • Include an element of long-term sustainability of the project, such as training of local counterparts
• Funding Priorities
  • Investigating the status of Critically Endangered, Endangered, Vulnerable or Near-threatened bird species
  • Attempting to further the knowledge of existing IBAs, for example by undertaking breeding censuses and conducting systematic counts
  • Investigating potential new IBAs or ornithologically little known areas
  • Conducting ecological studies of little-known species
  • Studies related to illegal bird killing and unsustainable hunting
  • Educational programmes, especially aimed at school children and youth.

Funding Information

• There is no maximum limit to the value of grant awarded but most average £1000 to £2,000.
• Ideally, the funding should be for the whole of the project, a discrete section, or major part of it and applicants must state if funding is being received or sought from elsewhere.
• Applications that include significant costs for international airfares are unlikely to be approved.

Eligibility Criteria

• The involvement of nationals of OSME countries in project management, implementation and/or capacity building is essential.
• The Region contains 35 countries or territories, namely: Egypt, Cyprus, Turkey (including European Turkey), Syria, Lebanon, Israel, Gaza, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Yemen (including the Socotra archipelago), Oman, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait, Iraq, Iran, Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan, the republics (Karachay-Cherkassia, Kabardino-Balkaria, North Ossetia and Chechenia) along the north slope of the Caucasus and a small part of the southernmost Russian federation (cutting through the regions of Krasnodar, Stavropo and Daghestan), Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Afghanistan.

How to Apply

Applicants can download the applications form via given website.

For more information, please visit https://www.osme.org/conservation