Hi Emily, I do understand of the need for the project and the funding for its execution. But I have volunteered before and volunteering itself means unpaid. But it does not mean pay and volunteer, that's just asking for funds indirectly. I joined this list to understand and work with researchers of the world so that it could help me help the wildlife and the environment. Joining such lists should be a booster for students and exciting as well. Learning and helping is what researchers and organisation should seek. I am from India and that much amount is a lot. I mean in that much amount, I could possibly do a short term course than volunteer. Stipend or no stipend, accommodation and food is/has been done by the organisation or the researchers seeking interns. And I don't think even the hosting country students would be able to afford it. We already pay a hefty amount for the education and then even pay for volunteering? That's a big disappointment for students who are so capable and talented but cannot afford. I liked that program as I wanted to experience marine life so that I can understand it more. In my country, interns are paid by managing the food and accommodation and after completion, reimbursement of the travel but the students get a good experience. That's how it should work. Those who can afford, well, they earn too to spend on such volunteering.
Zeenal. -----Original Message----- From: "Emily Moran" <[email protected]> Sent: 24-03-2017 00:12 To: "[email protected]" <[email protected]> Subject: Re: [ECOLOG-L] HUMPBACK WHALE RESEARCH ON THE GREAT BARRIER REEF,AUSTRALIA (JULY-SEPT 2017) ? RESEARCH ASSISTANT OPPORTUNITIES I have been collecting paid research/work experience postings from this list to forward to my undergraduate students (so that they can at least get an idea of the opportunities that are out there if they are interested), and fortunately there are a lot of them. It seems like most people doing research in the USA are offering $10-15/hour for assistant/technician positions. There are also a fair number of postings for REU positions that don’t necessarily pay a lot but usually at least cover living expenses (with maybe some stipend left over depending on local cost of living). It is unclear what the situation is for projects in other countries - perhaps Zeenal and others on this list from outside of the US could speak to that. The internships or training programs I have noticed on this listserve that are unpaid and/or actually require the student to pay seem to be mostly in more “exotic” locations (eg. mostly rainforest and marine). In some cases the rationale may be that running these programs (including transporting people and supplies to the field site) is so expensive that contributions from participants are needed for it to happen at all. I’m not sure if this is the case for the posting that sparked this debate, as in this case the organizing institution seems to be fairly close to the field site. If it starts to seem impossible to get experience in a particular field unless you have the funds to support yourself during an internship and/or pay a hefty fee, that is a very bad thing for students and for the field in general. While that doesn’t seem to be the case for, say, temperate-zone pollinator ecology or forestry, it could very well be a problem for tropical ecology and/or “charismatic megafauna” studies where the high cost of studies and the availability of people willing to pay to experience those environments could be tempting more and more study organizers to go this route. And that can lead to exploitation of students who can’t really afford these fees but really want to go into that area of research. Having some pay-to-learn or unpaid internships available is not necessarily a bad thing - “Voluntourism” seems to be growing in demand as people seek out more meaningful things to do on their vacations, and that can help an underfunded project get enough workers to carry on. But I definitely agree that unpaid or pay-to-learn internships should be clearly labeled as such. Moreover, we should as a research community have more discussions about how to keep our projects running without exploiting student labor. It can be difficult in a funding environment where a 20% success rate is terrific, and where grant sizes seem to increase slower than the amount of things you are expected to do with that money - but it is important. Perhaps we need to make stronger arguments to our elected leaders about the immediate economic benefits of research funding. That is, besides leading to new knowledge that could be important down the road, and training the next generation of scientists, a huge chunk of many grants goes toward employing people right now. Students are not only learning skills that will make them more successful in the future, they are getting cash they can spend in their local communities. I don’t know how much impact that argument would have, but I haven’t seen it made much, and it would be interesting to try. Emily Moran UC Merced On Mar 23, 2017, at 10:01 AM, Annette Narzynski <[email protected]> wrote: I am happy to see this being discussed. A similar discussion has recently started in Coral List. Steven Carrion has made an interesting point about the role that the listserv itself plays on these kind of posts. I think it would also be valuable to discuss what aspiring scientists, professors, researchers, and those involved in hiring can do regarding the issues associated with positions like these. On Thu, Mar 23, 2017 at 9:08 AM, John Anderson <[email protected]> wrote: Very much agree with Steve's post here. Given the already high cost of university, this seems sheer exploitation. Is also a really interesting demonstration of the "charismatic megafauna " issue in conservation... On Thu, Mar 23, 2017 at 6:54 AM CARRION Steven <[email protected]> wrote: The whole "unpaid" vs "paid" vs "exploitative" internships discussion has been discussed in ECOLOG before but I had to bring it up again after seeing this post. A "research assistant" position wherein students have to pay a almost 3 grand to participate in an activity less than a week? And this covers accommodation and food? This amount of money is what people pay to go on luxury cruises. This seems like it's a way to fund the organization's research costs while being provided with freely given labor. Exploitative is the nicest way I can put that. I don't think these types of posts should have a place on academic list serv. or if they are included they should more accurately be called for-profit/paid volunteering. Best Regards, Steven Carrion University of Edinburgh > On Mar 23, 2017, at 1:16 AM, Lesley Douglas > <[email protected]> wrote: > > The Great Barrier Reef Whale and Dolphin Research Programme is led by > Blue Planet Marine and operated in collaboration with the Cetacean > Ecology and Acoustics Laboratory at The University of Queensland, > Australia. http://gbr.blueplanetmarine.com. > > Running from July to September 2017, there are opportunities for > Research Assistants (RAs) to join the Programme. As a RA, you will work > in an exceptional location with world leading scientists. You?ll be > exposed to a variety of research techniques, including: the latest in > genetic sampling; acoustic recording of social sounds and whale song; > behavioural observations; video recordings; and photo-identification. > You?ll be involved in data management, and in the day-to-day activities > of the research vessels. > > The Programme is based on a live-aboard research vessel in and around > the world-famous Whitsunday Islands. The aim of the Programme is to > collect data on the breeding sub-stocks of south west Pacific humpback > whales. These data are important because organisations such as the > Scientific Committee of the International Whaling Commission don?t have > enough information to make decisions on whether these breeding sub- > stocks should be managed together or as separate populations. The IWC > Scientific Committee has even identified the collection of these data as > highest priority research for these populations of whales. The Programme > is targeted, it?s scientifically robust, it?s relevant and > it?s exciting. > > The Programme will: > * Identify areas of the Great Barrier Reef that are most important > for humpback whale breeding activities; > * Gather information regarding the structure of the east > Australian humpback whale sub-stock; and > * Gain a better understanding of whale acoustic communication and > the potential for anthropogenic impacts within the breeding grounds of > the Great Barrier Reef. > > This is a great opportunity to: gain valuable experience and skills to > further your career with marine mammals; make valuable connections with > some of the world?s most respected humpback whale researchers; work on a > meaningful research programme; and experience one of the seven wonders > of the natural world. > > * The participation fee for a six-day research trip is $2,995 > Australian dollars, including tax. > * The participation fee for a twelve-day research trip is $5,690 > Australian dollars, including tax. > > If you pay on or before 14 April 2017, you?ll receive an early-bird > discount of $300 Australian dollars off the Programme fee for each trip > booked. > > The Programme fee covers accommodation and food aboard the research > vessel. RAs are responsible for all costs associated with travel to and > from the Programme. > > No prior experience is necessary and training will be provided. > Preference will be given, however, to individuals involved in marine > mammal science courses or related institutions and/or with prior > volunteer marine mammal field experience. Places are limited to ten RAs > on each research trip. > > To find out more about The Great Barrier Reef Whale and Dolphin Research > Project (including the dates of research trips) visit: > http://gbr.blueplanetmarine.com or read the attached brochure. You can > secure your place today by paying online. > > Best regards, > Lesley > > Lesley Douglas, MSC. > Marine Scientist | Nelson Office| Ph: +64 (0)27 631-9000 | > Email: [email protected] | www.blueplanetmarine.com > PO Box 3639, Richmond, Nelson, New Zealand -- The University of Edinburgh is a charitable body, registered in Scotland, with registration number SC005336. -- John Anderson W.H. Drury Professor of Ecology/Natural History College of the Atlantic 105 Eden St Bar Harbor ME 04609
