Please note: Due to OWU’s Theory-to-Practice Grant (TPG) eligibility requirements, current seniors are not eligible to participate in this project.
Are you a Biology, Zoology, Environmental Science, Communication, Economics, or Sociology major? This proposed June 2026 Theory-to-Practice Grant aims to explore rewilding and conservation efforts across northern Peru and Chile, focusing on community-based initiatives that restore ecosystems, protect endangered species, and promote coexistence between people and wildlife.
Participants would work alongside local conservation teams at Chaparri Ecological Reserve in northern Peru—a pioneering community-led project dedicated to protecting species like the Spectacled Bear and Andean Condor through habitat restoration, reforestation, and camera trap research. Students would also travel south to northern Chile, studying guanaco rewilding efforts and desert ecosystem management near the Atacama region.
The project’s ultimate goal is to highlight people and communities behind conservation work in South America, strengthen OWU’s global conservation connections, and provide students with hands-on field experience that supports future work in wildlife conservation, sustainability, and environmental communication.
Email mmklinzing@owu.edu w/ questions and if you’re interested!
Contact: Cal Klinzing at mmklinzing@owu.edu