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Ecological Impact Awards
PAST WINNERS
Applications for this award open between 1 July and 31 August each year.
Apply via this online form.
>>CLICK HERE FOR A PROMOTIONAL FLYER<<
The Ecological Impact Awards have been established by the ESA’s Practitioner Engagement Working Group to highlight work with ‘big ecological impact’ and celebrate the role of practitioners in ecological projects, initiatives and research. The awards aim to showcase collaborative projects based on robust ecological science and to support opportunities to build on project successes.
In 2025, two different awards will be available:
Award 1: Research – Practitioner Collaborations
This award celebrates the collaborative relationships between practitioners and research partners. It is awarded to projects and initiatives with strong practitioner and research collaborations that are undertaking ecological research, or applying ecological science to achieve important ecological impacts.
To be eligible for this award, projects or initiatives must include ‘meaningful collaboration’ between practitioners and researchers’ and the application needs to include details for a representative from each of the research and practitioner organisations. The award also welcomes additional collaborators/partners.
See examples on our Past Winners page.
Award 2: Practitioner-Led Initiatives (New in 2025)
This award aims to raise the visibility of practitioners managing excellent ecological research, initiatives or projects applying ecological knowledge to deliver measurable on-ground outcomes, within their organisations. To be eligible for this award, the project or initiative must be led or managed by a practitioner. A current formal research partner is not required. Tell us what you are doing and why you are excited about it!
Please note: If your project includes a formal research partner (e.g. a university or research institute), you should apply under Award 1 instead.
Examples:
1) A conservation NGO adapting and applying published fire ecology principles to improve land management outcomes in priority habitat areas.
2) An indigenous ranger group rediscovering a species that was presumed extinct, through ecological surveys and pest management strategies.
The Prize
Each award includes funded attendance for two project representatives to attend the ESA Annual Conference and give a 20 minute plenary. This covers registration, flights, and accommodation for both people (up to the value of $5000).
Please note:
Successful award recipients must agree to prepare and deliver a joint presentation at the ESA annual conference on their winning project or initiative.
As this is a relatively small grant, the total funds provided are expected to be used for the recipients’ participation and not allocated toward general administration or indirect cost recovery.
Award Criteria
Please outline how your project or initiative addresses these criteria in the relevant sections of the form.
- Applied on-ground ecological research that showcases the value of meaningful partnerships between practitioners and researchers (Award 1), or practitioner-led research or application of ecological knowledge (Award 2).
- Identified measurable ecological impacts and/or outcomes.
- Plans to share outcomes with practitioners, stakeholders, and the broader community.
- Ecological impact, including management implications, broader influence or potential to contribute to broader conservation outcomes by enhancing scale, quality, or replicability.
Who are practitioners? – People engaged in managing, planning and/or researching the natural environment (ecology). This includes people working for First Nations, natural resource management, Landcare, private conservation, government departments or agencies, consultancies and other relevant non-government organisations.
What is the ESA Practitioner Engagement Working Group?
The Practitioner Engagement Working Group aims to develop strategies to enhance practitioner engagement with the Society and to develop programs and initiatives that will assist ecological practitioners to undertake their professional roles.
The Practitioner Engagement Working Group are looking to connect professionals engaged in managing, planning and/or researching the natural environment (ecology) across a diversity of sectors. We define a practitioner as an individual with an ecological or scientific background who designs and implements conservation actions on-ground; and a researcher as a person or organisation with expertise in research, monitoring and assessing conservation outcomes.