The Pulitzer Center Impact Seed Fund (ISF) supports educational and engagement initiatives in Africa, Brazil, and Southeast Asia related to issues highlighted in Pulitzer Center-supported journalism, addressing the most critical challenges confronting our planet's ecosystems and communities.

Regional Guidelines
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GRANT OVERVIEW

We invite educators and researchers to use Pulitzer Center-supported journalism to develop impactful educational initiatives on climate and environmental issues. The Impact Seed Fund (ISF) is a microscale grant provided by the Pulitzer Center to support education, research activities with the aim to enrich the perspectives and knowledge within the university community—specifically students and educators. The ISF facilitates a deeper understanding of complex problems and encourages the exploration of solutions and innovations to address the impact of human activities on rainforests, the ocean, and the climate crisis.

The 2025 ISF focuses on several topics, including the rainforest, the ocean, and climate change, with a particular emphasis on their interconnectedness with workers and vulnerable communities.

  • Southeast Asia: Rainforest, Climate and Labor
  • Africa: Rainforest, Climate and Labor
  • Brazil:  Rainforest, Ocean

We believe in the power of knowledge and the role of education and educators in addressing multidisciplinary issues in social and environmental topics. Therefore, the ISF is designed to provide seed funding to educators globally to raise awareness of key issues to their communities around the world and contribute to aspired positive changes. The ISF provides micro-scale support to:

  • Initiate new collaborations or build on existing collaborations among professors, researchers, students, local universities, most affected local communities, and journalists
  • Increase engagement between educational communities, journalists, and Indigenous and affected communities, for example through participatory research, field study
  • Encourage the use of creative materials (e.g., photographs, short videos, documentaries, podcasts), infographics, data visuals, and information from the reports in teaching materials, student activities, curricular and classroom materials, or scientific publications
  • Support the meaningful translation of key findings, datasets, and methodologies from journalism reporting into projects tailored to unique local contexts. This may include comparative studies across different geographical regions.
  • Facilitate the adoption of the results presented in the journalism reports into relevant research and other scientific products.

REGIONAL GUIDELINES

All applicants must visit the regional page for region-specific details, requirements, and guidelines.


REGIONAL GRANTS

Africa

Regional grant opportunity focused on rainforests and climate & labor

Guidelines (English)
Lignes directrices (français)

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an aerial shot of a skinny line of cleared land cutting through a rainforest

REGIONAL GRANTS

Brazil

Regional grant opportunity focused on rainforests and the ocean

Diretrizes (português)

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REGIONAL GRANTS

Southeast Asia

Regional grant opportunity focused on rainforests and climate & labor

Guidelines (English)
Panduan (bahasa Indonesia)

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We aim to support projects that inspire changes in perspectives, narratives, and actions, fostering a more informed and empathetic community. By utilizing Pulitzer Center-supported reporting, the ISF initiative aims to:

  1. Improve the awareness and critical thinking of students and educators about complex issues related to tropical forests, the ocean, and the climate crisis, including their impacts on vulnerable communities. It encourages members of the university community to explore innovative solutions to address these impacts.
  1. Equip students and educators to take action and drive change to protect the environment, as well as the rights of those most affected by environmental destruction.

The ISF is designed to be flexible and responsive to the needs of educators and communities, enabling applicants to create activities related to pressing issues of climate and the environment relevant to the local context. 

Journalism reporting as the center of the proposed projects: With the support of the Pulitzer Center, journalists around the world have produced breakthrough reporting that explores underreported and systemic issues affecting rainforests, the ocean, and their interconnection with climate change, labor, and vulnerable communities. Featuring in-depth analysis, high-quality visuals, and data-driven insights, these stories transform complex issues into compelling and relevant narratives, making them excellent educational and communications tools for ISF-funded projects. All proposals must utilize at least one story reported by Pulitzer Center-supported journalists and explain how it will be relevant in the project.

WHAT WE FUND

  • Collaborative projects with Pulitzer Center-supported journalists or multidisciplinary educators
  • Collaborative projects with the most-affected local communities, such as field surveys, knowledge exchange activities, student immersive learnings, biodiversity expeditions, and citizen journalism
  • Insertion of Pulitzer Center-supported journalism elements into teaching materials, new modules, campus debates, hackathons on social issues, student-led debates, and dialogues
  • Support for multistakeholders dialogue, focus group discussions with decision-makers webinar series, seminars
  • Production and dissemination of visual content to support learning aids (short videos, documentaries, podcasts)
  • Small exhibitions on campus, such as photo exhibits or film screenings 
  • Journalism workshops for student press clubs
  • Communication activities to promote citizenship related to the proposed themes 
  • Support for research activities: rapid studies, white papers, policy recommendations

ISF grants range from USD $2,500 to $4,000, varying by region.  Applicants should read through guidelines that are appropriate to their region or countries. We expect projects to be implemented within five - six months of approval, varying per region. 

WHO IS ELIGIBLE TO APPLY?

  1. Applicants should be university professors or researchers based in an institution. 
  2. Applicants are welcome to propose a project through a consortia of educators from universities in one or more regions of the country. 
  3. See our eligibility guidelines in the regional information box at the beginning of the page for Southeast Asia, Brazil, Africa, and Global.

REQUIREMENTS

  • Proposals need to utilize at least one story reported by Pulitzer Center-supported journalists. Please see below for reference:
    • For the topic of Rainforests: Applicants need to explore stories from the Rainforest Investigations Network and the Rainforest Reporting initiative.
    • For the topic of Ocean: Applicants need to explore stories from the Ocean Reporting Network.
    • For the topic of Climate and Labor: Applicants need to explore stories from the Our Work/Environment initiative.
    • Examples include: collaboration with Pulitzer Center network journalists in the activity design upon proposal approval; utilization of key data/information from the journalists’ reporting in proposal outputs or activities.
  • The activity must present intended impacts with audiences in the academic community (students or faculty/research fellows) and civil society that align with one or both of the following outcomes:
    • Improve the awareness and critical thinking of students and educators about complex issues related to tropical forests, the ocean, and the climate crisis, including their impacts on vulnerable communities, and encourage the exploration of solutions and innovations to address these impacts.
    • Equip students and educators to take action and drive changes to foster protection of the social and environment discourse as well as the rights of those most affected by socio-environmental destruction.
  • See more requirement details or guidelines on Southeast Asia, Brazil, and Africa information at the top of this page.
  • Projects will ideally collaborate with the most affected communities; for example, co-conceiving ideas with Indigenous communities, community leaders, or local organizations working directly with disadvantaged communities; collaboration with smaller universities in local areas. 
  • The project must demonstrate a strong Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion approach. See the Pulitzer Center’s DEI statement for more information.

TIMELINE

PROCESS MILESTONES BRAZIL SOUTHEAST ASIA AFRICA
Proposal Submission March 10 - April 30 March 12 - April 30 March 12 - April 30
Selection Process May 1 - May 15 May 13 - June 13 May 13 - June 13
Announcement May 23 June 20 June 20
Contracting Process May 24 - 30 June 20 - 30 June 20 - 30
Project Implementation June 1 - November 30 July 1 - December 1 July 1 - December 1
Reporting December Week 2 - Week 4 December Week 2 - Week 4 December Week 2 - Week 4

For more information, please contact the responsible managers:

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