Australia & Pacific Science Foundation (ASPF) Grants

The Australia & Pacific Science Foundation (APSF) offers competitive project grants of up to A$15,000 per year for a maximum of three years, aimed at supporting high-quality research in biological and biophysical sciences within Australia and the Southwest Pacific. The foundation prioritizes projects that align with its guidelines, fostering collaboration and capacity building while complementing other funding sources. Eligible projects must demonstrate clear objectives and impactful outcomes, ensuring sustainable benefits for the region's natural environment and biodiversity.

Background of the Foundation
In the early 1960s a group of benefactors established the New Guinea Biological Foundation and invested trust funds in a cocoa plantation at Arawa, Bougainville. This foundation funded a variety of projects aimed at the promotion, advancement and study of biological science in all its branches. Later, in 1985, another foundation was formed in addition to the New Guinea Biological Foundation, to broaden the geographic location of projects to Australia and other countries in the southwest Pacific.
In 2000, the Australia and Pacific Science Foundation was established to sponsor activities within Australia and managed by Australian entities. In 2005 sponsorship was extended to include projects with components within the south west Pacific, managed by Australian institutions or other entities within those countries.
In seeking to achieve its aims, The Australia & Pacific Science Foundation provides support, on a competitive basis, for the following activities:
The Foundation seeks to complement, rather than compete with, other funding bodies. Experience has shown that modest support can be particularly effective if used as “seed money” to initiate projects, which may subsequently expand and attract major funding from other sources. Foundation grants have also supported specific components of large projects financed primarily by other agencies.
Application Overview
Typically the APSF provides project grants up to A$15,000 (ex GST) per year for up to three years. Grants are awarded to institutions within Australia or other countries of the South West Pacific region for activities within those countries or within the region.

Eligibility

Conformity with the Foundation’s guidelines as presented on this web site , including that the project will be undertaken within Australia or other countries of the South West Pacific region under the umbrella of a university or other appropriate institution within those countries;that funding will be limited to no more than three years and A$15,000 (ex GST) annually, and that salaries for research scientists and stipends for students are available from other sources.The project forms an identifiable element of work that would not be undertaken without the support of the Foundation.If the project is a sub-project of a larger investigation it must be sufficiently discrete for the outputs and outcomes to be independently evaluated.(Projects that may be seminal to subsequent larger grants from other sources are attractive to the Foundation.)The project is in the biological or biophysical sciences or has application in those areas, as exemplified in projects described on this web site, and is not medical research.The components of the project budget for which funds are sought from the Foundation must be justified — both travel and equipment for which funding is sought must be essential for this project.

Ineligibility

Administrative costs are not funded, but APSF may be assessed by Australian Universities as Category 1 Australian Competitive Grant Income.The Foundation does not fund costs associated with attendance at conferences, either domestic or international.Publication costs levied by scientific journals are not supported by the Foundation.Applications from students as project leaders are not accepted.