The European Geosciences Union (EGU) is launching a new grant scheme to celebrate and recognise excellent science communication in the Earth, planetary and space sciences. The EGU Public Engagement Grants are awarded to EGU members interested in developing an outreach project that aims to raise awareness of geosciences outside the scientific community. Two applicants who are judged to have proposed the most innovative and effective project will each be awarded a grant of €1000 to help further develop the idea and put it into practice. There will also be a short award ceremony at the 2016 General Assembly, where the recipients will be acknowledged.

There are no restrictions on the format of the applicant’s project or proposed activity. If you have an idea for a comic, podcast, documentary, set of experiments, or some other form of effective science communication that you want to promote, then please fill in the online application form and let us know why your project deserves to be funded.

Applications for the two EGU Public Engagement Grants are open from 15 November 2015 until 15 February 2016. All proposals will be evaluated by April 2016, with the winners being notified during the EGU General Assembly in Vienna and by email.

Please note that only active EGU members, who either have a regular, student, emeritus or complementary membership for 2015 or 2016, or who are life or honorary members of the EGU, are eligible to apply for the grants. To become a member or renew your membership please check http://www.egu.eu/membership/. You should also be pre-registered to attend the EGU 2016 General Assembly in order to receive the grant.

The grants are for a period of 12 months and are awarded in full in April/May 2016. After six months the winners are expected to submit an interim report on their projects, which will be evaluated by the EGU Outreach Committee. At this stage, the winners can request further (non-financial) help from the EGU, such as assistance in liaising with scientists or in further advertising their products. Winners are also expected to submit a final report at the end of the grant.

The EGU will not claim revenues from products resulting from the project, but should be given full access to these products for further dissemination via its communication channels. Further, the winners should make clear when using their products that they were supported through a Public Engagement Grant from the European Geosciences Union.

To apply for the grant, please use the application form at http://www.egu.eu/user-area/peg/.

• Application form (you will need to login with your EGU/Copernicus ID)