The George Atkins Communication Award recognizes individual radio broadcasters for their outstanding commitment and contribution to food security and poverty reduction in low-income countries. The winners will receive a certificate and C$500. Farm Radio International broadcasting partners in Africa can apply. The deadline to apply is 09 October 2026. Farm Radio Awards
Funding News
Agriculture, Fisheries, Forestry
Halcyon invites early-stage, revenue-generating ventures across Sub-Saharan Africa working on climate-resilient agriculture, food security, and smallholder farmer livelihoods to apply for its accelerator program. Selected founders receive a $10,000 equity-free stipend, $10,000 in AWS credits, professional advisors, and access to Halcyon’s global founder network. The initial eligibility deadline is 23 October 2026. Link to Halcyon
Hatch Blue invites women-led blue economy startups to apply for an equity-free business support programme focused on Latin America and the Caribbean. Topics include sustainable and regenerative aquaculture, marine biotech, seafood value chains, seafood waste reuse and blue carbon. The programme pays all travel, accommodation and food for two participants per team, but gives no cash or equity investment. Teams must be led or founded by women, or have women as real decision-makers, and have at least one participant, ideally two co-founders. Applications close on 07 November 2026. Women in Ocean Food
Biodiversity, Conservation, Wildlife
The Mohamed bin Zayed Species Conservation Fund invites applications for grants supporting the conservation of individual threatened plant, animal and fungi species anywhere in the world. Grants are up to US$25 thousand, and the Fund gives priority to Endangered, Critically Endangered and Data Deficient species. It mainly supports fieldwork in the species’ natural habitat, such as surveys, direct conservation action and training. Applications must be in English, with budgets in US dollars, and submitted through the Fund’s online system. The criteria page states no limits on applicant type or country. The deadline is 15 October 2026. Grants for Endangered Species Conservation
The Conservation Leadership Programme offers early-career conservationists project grants of up to US$15 thousand, plus ongoing support from its alumni network, including funding, training and mentorship. Projects must protect globally important at-risk habitats and species through ecological research and conservation action. Themes include climate adaptation, biodiversity, habitat restoration, community-led conservation, human-wildlife conflict, policy, and education or citizen science. Teams must have at least three members, all with no more than five years of professional conservation experience. All members must be nationals of the country where the project takes place. Concept notes are due by 30 October 2026. Link to the Conservation Leadership Program
Wild Animal Initiative invites academic researchers to apply for Validation Grants, Welfare Ecology Grants, or Seed Grants supporting research that advances wild animal welfare science, alongside WAI Fellowships for early-career researchers. Principal investigators must be affiliated with a university or research institution, and any fieldwork must include collaborators who are residents of the country where it takes place; NGO-managed projects require registration in that country. WAI cannot sponsor visas, so work carried out in the United States by a non-US resident generally cannot be funded, and it cannot fund research in countries under US sanctions, such as Iran, North Korea, or Russia. The deadline is 31 October 2026. Wild Animal Research Grants
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Energy, Climate Change
The African Climate Collaborative at UCT invites applications for 12 fully funded PhD fellowships supporting a four-year doctoral training program in Climate and Development. The fellowship is valued at R390,000 for 2027, covering a stipend, fees, relocation, medical insurance, and research costs. Applicants must hold a completed Master’s degree relevant to their chosen research topic, be citizens of an African country (including those residing outside Africa), and be under 35. The deadline is 15 October 2026. PhD Fellowships in Climate and Development
Generation Climate Europe invites informal groups of at least three young people (all under 30) to apply for small grants of up to €1,000 to support climate activism. The group doesn’t need to be a registered organisation, and funded activities can include things like awareness campaigns, advocacy, training, or community mobilisation, running anywhere from six months to a year. Applications are accepted on a rolling basis, with the next deadline on 25 October 2026. Youth Climate Changemakers Fund
The Green Climate Fund’s Enhancing Direct Access pilot funds locally decided climate adaptation and mitigation projects in developing countries. It has US$200 million approved, with an almost-US$175 million already allocated to nine proposals. Accredited national or regional “direct access” institutions, such as national climate funds and development banks, submit funding proposals to pass grants or loans on to communities, grassroots groups and small businesses. Institutions not yet accredited can submit a concept note, but must be accredited before the GCF Board considers a full proposal. There is no deadline. Enhancing Direct Access Pilot
Water Resources
The ABCD-Centre offers two nine-month research scholarships in Germany. They are for doctoral students from developing countries, to research water security and climate adaptation at RWTH Aachen, TU Dresden or UNU Resource Nexus in Dresden. Each scholarship pays €1,200 a month for accommodation and living costs, up to €105 a month for insurance and up to €1,000 for travel. A further €1,000 for research materials goes through the host institution. Applicants must be full-time PhD students at a university in a developing country who started their PhD within the last three years. Priority topics include water infrastructure modelling and digital twins, ecosystem monitoring, urban climate-driven water extremes, business models for unconventional water resources, and eco-friendly building materials. The deadline is 31 October 2026. Future Environmental Leaders Scholarships
Imagine H2O invites early-stage water startups from anywhere in the world to apply for its 2027 accelerator programs. It offers mentorship, training, introductions to a network of technology adopters and investors, and showcase opportunities at industry events. It takes no equity, and no cash award is stated. Startups must be under 10 years old, with revenue under US$5 million and equity investment under US$10 million. Meetings run on Pacific time mornings, which means evenings for African applicants. Applications close 20 November 2026. Water Startup Accelerator
UAE Water Aid Foundation (Suqia) invites nominations for the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Global Water Award. The award supports research and development of new and innovative technologies that produce, distribute, and purify water using renewable energy to support poverty- and disaster-stricken communities worldwide. Prizes vary according to category from US$20 thousand to US$150 thousand. Suqia invites corporations, research centers, institutions, innovators and youth from around the world, whose novel technologies provide solutions to the challenges of water scarcity, to participate in the awards. The deadline for nominations is 30 September 2026. Visit Suqia
Cross-Cutting
Pb Action invites researchers and teams to develop the most accurate and cost-effective methodology for assessing and monitoring air quality impacts from lead-acid battery recycling facilities in low-resource settings. Funding available: up to $100,000, with cost effectiveness as a key evaluation criterion. Applications are open to individuals, informal teams, universities, nonprofits, public agencies, and companies in any country. Selected applicants must be able to receive funds directly or through an acceptable host or fiscal sponsor. The deadline is 06 October 2026. Know more
The Demographics and Planetary Health Story Prize honors original published journalism connecting demographic change to planetary health, such as population dynamics, migration, climate, or reproductive health, across two categories: traditional print, podcast, or digital news ($500 USD), and social media, blogs, or video content ($500 USD). Eligible entrants are journalists, freelancers, community reporters, and student journalists; NGO or organizational blog submissions are not eligible. Content must have been published in 2026. The deadline is 09 October 2026. Planetary Health Story Prize
The Association of Commonwealth Universities offers seven grants of up to £2,000 each, helping early-career researchers attend conferences in other Commonwealth countries. The grants cover registration fees, flights, accommodation, visas, and travel and health insurance. Applicants must be early-career academics at an ACU member university, within seven years of starting their academic career. They must be chairing a session or presenting a paper or poster at an in-person conference in a Commonwealth country other than the one where they work. The conference must take place between January 2027 and January 2028. The deadline is 13 October 2026. Conference Grants