Apply for a Grant

Hixon Student Fellowships - Applications due February 1, 2024

Grant funding ($7,500 max each) will be awarded competitively to Yale School of the Environment students interested in conducting research that bridges science to practice. The Hixon Center aims to link science to applications that can inform and improve management practices and decision-making that improve the sustainability of urban areas. 

Applicants can apply to one of three opportunities. Funds for Hixon Fellowships are intended to support full-time summer research endeavors. Two of the opportunities (one in Freetown, Sierra Leone, and one in New Haven) will be advised by Dr. Karen Seto.  

In Freetown,  the Fellow will undertake a scoping exercise, which will include interviewing stakeholders to identify where Yale investment in research on governance mechanisms to maximize inclusive approaches to urban forestry management to mitigate UHI and address environmental injustices for the municipality of Freetown.

Applicants are invited to identify what outreach they would propose and what data they would generate. Describe in your cover letter your vision of how to engage with stakeholders to identify priorities. How would you undertake the scoping? Do you have experience in community engagement and stakeholder or focus group meetings? What could you produce from the stakeholder interviews?

In New Haven the Hixon Fellow will work to advance one of four projects listed below that are the focus of a spring 2024 YSE capstone course. The Fellow will apply research results produced from the course into strategies that are feasible to mobilize initial actions with key city partners.

  1. Assess the potential for geothermal energy production in New Haven.
  2. Assess and develop forward looking strategies to mitigate extreme urban heat and other climate hazards such as flooding in the Hill and Dixwell neighborhoods.
  3. Identify opportunities for waste heat capture.
  4. Assess opportunities to transform zoning to be more climate and people friendly.

Applicants are encouraged to describe their experience working on any of the four themes, and experience working in municipal policy and/or management.

Two Fellows will be allocated specifically for applied urban forestry research projects in New Haven, CT and Baltimore, Maryland described below.  Dr. Mark Ashton will serve as the New Haven Faculty Advisor and Dr. Morgan Grove will serve as Faculty Advisor in Baltimore.

New Haven Tree Allometry

Trees are effective for mitigating the urban heat island effect, reduce storm water runoff, and to improve physical and mental health of environmental justice (EJ) communities. This research will be part of two other research efforts: an ongoing NASA funded project which has already mapped urban tree canopy cover and trends in urban heat to advance environmental justice for the city of New Haven and the state of Connecticut, and a new project potentially funded by TFS Childs Family Fund to conduct drone imaging flights to gather spatially explicit local tree data in collaboration with the Center for Earth Observation.  Ultimately the research project will produce empirical data of specific species tree growth to predict crown growth and tools for policy makers at city and state levels to leverage the cooling effect of urban vegetation on the urban heat island effect.

Urban Silviculture in Baltimore (position filled)

Urban forested natural areas, or forests in cities, are distinct from street and park trees in how they need to be managed. Restoring these habitats represents a transformative, optimal opportunity to simultaneously address social justice, climate change, and the economy. There is a need for new training-employment programs that borrow from traditional forest management to educate and develop a new generation of urban forest stewards. This program will provide foundational knowledge and skills related to forest ecology, urban ecology, forest stewardship, and community engagement that will prepare the participant for work in urban environmental management. Research involves program evaluation and recommendations for program improvement.

Based at Stillmeadow Community Fellowship Church in Baltimore, MD and its 10-acre forest, the Urban Forest Management Training Program is 9 weeks and train 5 young adults (approx. 18-25 years old) with little or no formal training in forestry, environmental science, or urban ecology. The Program will use a combination of teaching approaches, including classroom lessons, field exercises, and management activities at Stillmeadow and other Baltimore-based greenspaces, as well as regular field trips to forest management agencies and sites in the greater Baltimore area. Curriculum topics will include basic forest and urban ecology, tree identification, methods in field assessments and monitoring, technical training in management activities, including tool safety and maintenance, tree planting and pruning, invasive plant control, trail design and construction, and approaches to community engagement.

This program will involve significant participation from the US Forest Service, state and city forestry agencies, Baltimore Green Space, Baltimore Tree Trust, and Turnaround Tuesday.

Application Guidelines:

Applicants should include their resume, and cover letter describing your interest in one of the four fellowship opportunities. Also include relevant coursework or professional experience that indicates your familiarity with the topic or methods. 

Please email applications to colleen.murphy-dunning@yale.edu by 4:00 pm on February 1, 2024. Successful applicants will be notified by February 28, 2024. Please contact Colleen Murphy-Dunning (203-432-6570) with any questions.