Ran and Ginny Fiennes Award Grant

Ran and Ginny Fiennes Award Grant

Status: ACTIVE
Funder: Royal Geographical Society
Amount: Up to £5,000
Last Updated: July 31, 2025

Summary

The Ran and Ginny Fiennes Award supports humanitarian, scientific, or educational projects that embody the spirit of the Transglobe Expedition. With grants ranging from £2,000 to £5,000, it encourages emerging travelers and expeditioners to pursue ambitious goals. The award reflects the values of perseverance and inspiration, aiming to foster experiences that shape the next generation of explorers. Applications are accepted annually from October to April, ensuring a wide range of impactful projects can be funded.

Overview

The Ran and Ginny Fiennes Award is given in support of humanitarian, scientific or educational projects which follow in the Transglobe Expedition’s tradition of challenge and perseverance, and enable those benefiting from the Award to achieve worthwhile ambitions and inspire others to do likewise. The Transglobe Expedition, led by Sir Ranulph Fiennes, was the first expedition to achieve a longitudinal circumnavigation of the Earth using only surface transport. This remarkable journey, spanning over 52,000 miles, took place from 1979 to 1982, and remains one of the greatest feats of exploration and endurance in modern history. Find out more on the Transglobe Expedition website. The Ran and Ginny Fiennes Award is designed to support the next generation of emerging travelers and expeditioners, reflecting the spirit, dedication and inspirational values of the Transglobe Expedition. Grants are historically given for between £2,000 and £5,000, with applications for smaller amounts, as well as larger bids under exceptional circumstances, welcomed.

Eligibility

You can learn more about this opportunity by visiting the funder's website. Applicants may only apply for one grant within an annual cycle (deadlines October to April), with the exception of the Gilchrist Fieldwork Award which can be applied to in addition to any other post-PhD researcher grant, the Postgraduate Research Awards - PhD students may apply for the Frederick Soddy Postgraduate Award while an application to the Postgraduate Research Awards is pending, and the Henrietta Hutton Research Grant and Monica Cole Research Grant which can be applied to at the same time. An individual may only be awarded one grant in any one cycle.If funding is sought for a component of a larger project, the sub-project should be free-standing with its own objectives.All funds awarded must be used for the purposes set out in the application submitted for the award. These purposes include travel, maintenance, data collection and temporary research assistance (as appropriate to a specific grant). The costs of additional childcare, beyond that required to meet the normal contracted requirements of the job, and that are directly related to the field elements of the project, may be requested as a directly incurred cost. However, childcare costs associated with normal working patterns may not be sought.

Ineligibility

Salary costs of the PI/costs to buy-out staff time will not be funded.Grants may not be used to fund conference attendance (with the exception of the 30th International Geographical Congress Award).Expenses for equipment, lab costs and sample analysis should not exceed 20% of the amount awarded.  Applications for fieldwork which is currently taking place or has already been completed will not be considered.Grants are not transferrable to individuals or organisations.The Society will not fund projects that take place, in full or in part, in locations to which the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Development Office (FCDO) advise against all travel prior to departure.The Society is unable to provide additional funds for medical expenses, trip cancellation or abandonment, or loss of belongings or money during any project.