The Garden Club of America Award in Desert Studies
The Garden Club of America Award in Desert Studies was established to promote the study of horticulture, conservation, and design in arid landscapes. The award is a one-year scholarship for graduate or advanced undergraduate students studying horticulture, conservation, botany, environmental science and landscape design relating to the arid landscape. Students must be enrolled at an accredited U.S. university. The award is intended to have a wide scope pertaining to the arid environment, with preference given to projects that generate scientifically sound water and plant management. Selection is by a panel appointed by the Desert Botanical Garden.
Established in 2006
Funds one or more scholars annually at $4,000
Deadline: January 15, 2010
Contact: Cathy Babcock
Director of Horticulture
Desert Botanical Garden
1201 N. Galvin Parkway
Phoenix, AZ 85008
Phone: 480-481-8162
Email
There is no application form. Candidates should submit the following required information to the email address above, with GCA Award in Desert Studies on the subject line:
1. A current resume that includes present address, phone and email; educational background including relevant education and work experiences and publications; names and contact information for two references qualified to describe student’s character and ability.
2. A 2-3 page essay describing the proposed project explaining how it relates to the subject area, what will be achieved during the project, and how the project relates to the student’s academic and professional development. The proposal should contain an abstract at the top of the page and specify how the work directly applies to this scholarship. The proposal should also specify the exact hypothesis motivating your work.
3. An itemized budget for the funds requested.
4. A letter of recommendation from the student’s graduate advisor, using the Academic Advisor Recommendation form (word doc or pdf), should be completed and signed the faculty advisor and sent to:
Desert Botanical Garden
Attn: Cathy Babcock
1201 N. Galvin Parkway
Phoenix, AZ 85008
The successful applicant will submit a written report of project results at the completion of the project to both The Garden Club of America and the Desert Botanical Garden.
Applications must be received by January 15, 2010.
Award selection will be completed early in March. The Award recipient will be notified and the award made by the GCA Scholarship Committee by March 31, 2010.
The Garden Club of America policy conforms with and strongly supports applicable federal and state laws that forbid discrimination on the basis of sex, disability, religion, age, national origin or sexual orientation with regard to the application for any of the scholarships The Garden Club of America sponsors.
The Desert Botanical Garden, Administrator of the Garden Club of America's New Award in Desert Studies, is pleased to announce the 2009 winners!
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Ben R. Grady
Ben is a PhD candidate from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Ben's proposal outlines an innovative approach for combining new tools in molecular systematics with classic greenhouse experiments. It will investigate the taxonomic distribution of edaphic endemism and lead to a better understanding of soil properties and the ecological variables they produce.
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Tobah M. Gass
Toby is a PhD candidate at Colorado State University. Toby proposes to trace the route of carbon compounds produced by trees, grasses and cacti into the soil under three levels of precipitation. She will assess at what level of precipitation in each vegetation type the distribution of soil nutrients becomes more irregular. To know the threshold could help determine when semi-arid lands are at risk of permanent conversion to arid lands.
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Matthew Charles Bossler
Matthew is an MLA graduate student from the University of Arizona. Matthew's proposal deals with water management and the need to reinvent existing flood structures, e.g. detention basins, to continue their primary functions, but to increasingly provide recreational habitat and other functions as capacity stabilizes or is reduced over time. The information gleaned from this project could lead to attractive solutions to the way ephemeral watercourses are treated in cities of arid and semiarid regions.
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