Environment and Climate Scholarships for African Applicants

Environment and climate opportunities can fund study, research, professional training or climate storytelling, depending on your background and country. Check the eligibility, language, funding limits and deadline time zone before preparing an application.

Key facts

• UNESCO AfriMAB GRÓ-LRT Land Restoration Fellowship is a six-month, fully funded fellowship in Iceland for professionals from African biosphere reserves, with a maximum age of 40 and at least one year of experience.
• ARES International Training Scholarships – Belgium Study Funding supports eligible applicants from selected African countries for study or professional training in Belgium, with tuition, travel, insurance and a living allowance included.
• Africa No Filter Climate Justice Storytelling Grants offers up to USD 4,000, training and mentorship for climate justice storytellers from countries including Mozambique, Uganda, Nigeria and Tanzania.
• UNESCO/Japan Young Researchers’ Fellowship Programme is a Japan-based research fellowship for eligible master’s and PhD applicants, with a grant of up to USD 10,000 and no IELTS requirement.
• Leading Russian Universities Open Doors Scholarship is open to all nationalities for environment and climate study at undergraduate, master’s, PhD or postdoctoral level, but students must pay living and medical costs not covered by the award.
• The Beit Trust Postgraduate Scholarship Opportunity covers tuition, living costs, travel and specified visa and health charges for master’s and PhD applicants from Zambia, Zimbabwe and Malawi.
• Rainforest Alliance Kleinhans Community Forestry Fellowship provides USD 20,000 per year for two years for community forestry research, but does not pay academic tuition or fees.

Which environment and climate opportunities suit your level?

Your education and work history should determine where you start. Some options accept students at several stages, while others target professionals, researchers or storytellers.

Options for professionals

UNESCO AfriMAB GRÓ-LRT Land Restoration Fellowship matters if you already work in land restoration or a related role connected to an African biosphere reserve. It accepts professionals from all African countries, requires at least one year of experience, sets a maximum age of 40 and expects you to communicate in English. The programme is not remote, lasts six months and begins on 26 February 2027.

ARES International Training Scholarships – Belgium Study Funding matters if you are seeking undergraduate study, a master’s programme or professional training and hold nationality from one of its listed African countries. The eligible group includes South Africa, Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Côte d'Ivoire, Ethiopia, Guinea, Kenya, Madagascar, Mali, Morocco, Mozambique, Niger, Uganda, DR Congo, Rwanda, Senegal, Tanzania, Tunisia and Zimbabwe.

ARES requires at least two years of experience. You must complete the application in the language used for the selected course and show good written and spoken knowledge of that language. Some French knowledge is also useful for daily life in Belgium, but the stated requirement concerns the language of instruction.

Options for master’s, PhD and postdoctoral applicants

UNESCO/Japan Young Researchers’ Fellowship Programme matters if you are pursuing a master’s or PhD research project and can identify a proposed host institution in Japan. It is open to applicants from many African countries, including Angola, Botswana, Ghana, Namibia, Nigeria, Rwanda, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Africa and Zambia.

The fellowship also accepts eligible applicants from Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Chad, Congo, Côte d'Ivoire, DR Congo, Djibouti, Eritrea, Eswatini, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mauritius, Mozambique, Niger, Senegal, South Sudan, São Tomé and Príncipe, South Africa, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda and Zimbabwe. Türkiye is also listed as eligible.

Rainforest Alliance Kleinhans Community Forestry Fellowship matters if your research concerns community forestry and you are enrolled at master’s, PhD or postdoctoral level. It accepts all nationalities and allows applications in English, Spanish or Portuguese. The fellowship lasts 24 months and provides USD 20,000 per year for two years, but you must budget separately for tuition, fees and any transport vehicle or unnecessary equipment.

The Beit Trust Postgraduate Scholarship Opportunity matters if you are from Zambia, Zimbabwe or Malawi and have at least three years of experience before a master’s or PhD application. It can support study in the United Kingdom or South Africa, with full tuition and academic fees paid directly to the university, a living allowance, economy-class flights and specified visa, health surcharge, TB test and biometric costs.

Options that do not require a conventional academic level

Africa No Filter Climate Justice Storytelling Grants matters if you create climate justice stories rather than apply for a conventional degree. It accepts applicants at any level from Mozambique, Uganda, Nigeria, Angola, Chad, Congo, Tanzania, South Sudan, Malawi and Zambia. Content must be delivered in English or French. The 12-month programme includes training, mentorship, content amplification and grants of up to USD 4,000.

Which opportunities cover the full cost of study?

Funding labels require close reading. A scholarship may pay tuition and a stipend while leaving accommodation, food, transport or insurance to you.

UNESCO AfriMAB GRÓ-LRT Land Restoration Fellowship is described as fully funded. Its package covers tuition and academic expenses, travel, health insurance and a stipend for living expenses during the six-month stay in Iceland. This makes it a better fit when you cannot finance an overseas professional programme yourself.

ARES International Training Scholarships – Belgium Study Funding includes international travel, a subsistence allowance and insurance. Registration and visa-related costs depend on the level or type of training. Registration and exceptional visa costs are specified for undergraduate and specialised master’s programmes, while indirect mission costs apply to continuing training.

UNESCO/Japan Young Researchers’ Fellowship Programme provides a lump-sum grant of up to USD 10,000. It may cover approved international and domestic travel, accommodation, medical insurance, subsistence in Japan and other research expenses where applicable. It does not cover tuition, computer purchases or publication costs. Conference participation is excluded unless it is clearly justified as an integral and directly significant part of the research.

Leading Russian Universities Open Doors Scholarship covers tuition and supplies a monthly stipend. It does not cover transport, food, accommodation, communication services or medical insurance. Before applying, calculate these costs in your own currency and keep a separate budget for them, because the award does not remove those obligations.

Which opportunities accept applicants without IELTS?

UNESCO/Japan Young Researchers’ Fellowship Programme states that IELTS is not required. You still need sufficient reading and writing proficiency in the language used for instruction or supervision at the proposed Japanese host institution. Do not treat “no IELTS” as “no language evidence”. Check what the host institution accepts.

Other opportunities use different language rules. UNESCO AfriMAB GRÓ-LRT Land Restoration Fellowship requires the ability to speak, read and write in English because English is the working language of GRÓ LRT. ARES International Training Scholarships – Belgium Study Funding requires proof of good written and spoken knowledge of the course language. Africa No Filter Climate Justice Storytelling Grants accepts English or French content, while Rainforest Alliance Kleinhans Community Forestry Fellowship accepts applications in English, Spanish or Portuguese.

If a course is delivered in a language you cannot document, that mismatch can weaken or disqualify the application even when your academic field is suitable. The official page is the only reliable source for the accepted form of proof because the available facts do not specify whether a certificate, institutional letter or another document is required.

What documents and information should you prepare?

The available requirements identify eligibility, language and research conditions, but they do not provide a complete document checklist. You should therefore read the official application instructions before deciding that your file is complete.

Start with evidence of the stated threshold. A professional applying to UNESCO AfriMAB GRÓ-LRT Land Restoration Fellowship should be ready to show at least one year of experience and the connection to an African biosphere reserve. An ARES applicant should prepare evidence of at least two years of experience. A Beit Trust applicant should prepare evidence of at least three years of experience.

Research applicants need a clearly approved research stay or proposed supervision arrangement where required. UNESCO/Japan Young Researchers’ Fellowship Programme refers to a proposed host institution in Japan and funds costs directly related to the approved research stay. Rainforest Alliance Kleinhans Community Forestry Fellowship concerns community forestry research, so your proposed work must fit that field rather than environment and climate only in a broad sense.

Storytelling applicants should use the application to identify the climate justice story they intend to develop. The programme offers training, mentorship and content amplification, so explain the proposed content in a way that can be assessed against those activities. Do not claim that the grant covers expenses not listed in the funding terms.

What deadlines and time zones should African applicants watch?

The earliest stated deadline is 10 September 2026 for UNESCO AfriMAB GRÓ-LRT Land Restoration Fellowship. The next deadlines include 18 September 2026 at 12:00 UTC+1 for ARES International Training Scholarships – Belgium Study Funding, 25 September 2026 at 18:00 GMT for Africa No Filter Climate Justice Storytelling Grants, and 30 September 2026 at midnight Paris time for UNESCO/Japan Young Researchers’ Fellowship Programme.

Time zones can cause avoidable late submissions. Convert each closing time to your local time before the final day, then submit earlier. A deadline shown as midnight Paris time is not necessarily midnight where you live, and the ARES deadline is expressed as Belgian time, UTC+1.

Leading Russian Universities Open Doors Scholarship closes on 1 November 2026. Its registration system does not allow participants to add to or edit account information or portfolios after that deadline, so complete those fields before the closing date rather than waiting to upload a final item.

The Beit Trust Postgraduate Scholarship Opportunity opens on 1 December 2026 and closes on 12 February 2027. Rainforest Alliance Kleinhans Community Forestry Fellowship accepts applications from 31 August 2026 and closes on 28 February 2027. These dates do not mean applications are reviewed on a rolling basis, because no rolling or open deadlines are stated.

How can you avoid funding and eligibility mistakes?

Separate “covered” from “available”. A stipend is not the same as a full travel package. Leading Russian Universities Open Doors Scholarship provides no travel, insurance or accommodation funding, while Rainforest Alliance Kleinhans Community Forestry Fellowship provides a yearly grant but excludes tuition and fees. A budget that ignores those exclusions is incomplete.

Check nationality before writing a statement. ARES International Training Scholarships – Belgium Study Funding is limited to listed African countries, whereas Rainforest Alliance Kleinhans Community Forestry Fellowship accepts all nationalities. UNESCO AfriMAB GRÓ-LRT Land Restoration Fellowship accepts all African countries, but its professional and biosphere-reserve conditions still apply.

Check the level as well. A strong environment and climate profile cannot replace the stated level or experience requirement. The Beit Trust Postgraduate Scholarship Opportunity is for master’s and PhD applicants with at least three years of experience, while UNESCO/Japan Young Researchers’ Fellowship Programme is for master’s and PhD researchers and Leading Russian Universities Open Doors Scholarship also includes undergraduate and postdoctoral levels.

Finally, verify costs in the currency used by the award. The USD 4,000 ceiling in Africa No Filter Climate Justice Storytelling Grants and the USD 20,000 annual grant in Rainforest Alliance Kleinhans Community Forestry Fellowship should not be treated as interchangeable with a full scholarship. The official page should clarify any payment schedule, currency conversion rule or document requirement not stated here.

Frequently asked questions

Which environment and climate scholarship is fully funded?

UNESCO AfriMAB GRÓ-LRT Land Restoration Fellowship is described as fully funded, covering tuition and academic expenses, travel, health insurance and living expenses through a stipend during six months in Iceland. ARES International Training Scholarships – Belgium Study Funding also includes tuition, travel, insurance and a living allowance, although some registration and visa costs depend on the programme level.

Can I apply for an environment fellowship without IELTS?

UNESCO/Japan Young Researchers’ Fellowship Programme states that IELTS is not required. You must still show sufficient reading and writing proficiency in the language of instruction or supervision at the proposed Japanese host institution.

Which climate grant supports storytellers?

Africa No Filter Climate Justice Storytelling Grants is designed for climate justice storytellers at any level from its listed African countries. It provides training, mentorship, content amplification and grants of up to USD 4,000 during a 12-month programme.

Which environment scholarship is open to all nationalities?

Leading Russian Universities Open Doors Scholarship and Rainforest Alliance Kleinhans Community Forestry Fellowship are open to all nationalities. Leading Russian Universities Open Doors Scholarship supports study from undergraduate through postdoctoral level, while Rainforest Alliance Kleinhans Community Forestry Fellowship focuses on master’s, PhD and postdoctoral community forestry research.

Does the Rainforest Alliance fellowship pay tuition?

No. Rainforest Alliance Kleinhans Community Forestry Fellowship provides USD 20,000 per year for two years, but it does not subsidise academic tuition or fees. It also excludes transport vehicles and equipment considered unnecessary or unreasonable.

What should you do next?

Choose the opportunity that matches your nationality, level, experience and work rather than applying because the field name looks similar. Mark the correct deadline time zone, list every cost the award excludes and gather evidence for any stated experience or language condition.

Then check the official page for the complete document checklist and application instructions. Submit before the closing time, especially where the system locks account information or portfolios after the deadline.