Scientific Exploration Society (SES) is a UK-based charity (No. 267410) founded in 1969 by Colonel John Blashford-Snell and colleagues. A non-profit making organisation, SES leads, funds and supports scientific discovery, research and conservation in remote parts of the world.

Echoing SES’s long and impressive history of worldwide exploration and pioneering leadership, it is the Society’s quest to enable the next generation of scientific trailblazers and pioneers with purpose through the Explorer Awards programme.

Each year, SES aims to encourage and enhance chosen careers by providing high-profile awards for scientific exploration at the frontiers of human discovery, and projects that will also leave a lasting legacy and benefit. SES seeks rising stars, whose passion for environmental sustainability, health and conservation, set them out to become major influencers for future generations.

SES Explorers need to be prepared to take on monumental physical, logistical, and global challenges and share the values of grit, curiosity, integrity and leadership that pioneers like SES Founder and Honorary President John Blashford-Snell exemplify.

Each winner receives a grant to support an expedition that they will lead*, and that will focus on scientific discovery, research, and conservation. Expedition reports detailing the scientific research undertaken are produced by the winners and disseminated to relevant organisations, and via SES channels.

Successful applicants will be able to demonstrate how they will use the knowledge and experience gained from leading their expedition to play a part in the important issues of today, and be an ambassador for the advancements that are essential to the environmental, conservation and scientific challenges that we all face.

This person will also demonstrate how experiences gained in leading the expedition will clearly demonstrate the tangible (rather than purely observational) scientific value of their expedition, the legacy it will create, and the way experiences and scientific findings will be communicated. All this, combined with a clear and meticulously planned adventurous expedition that will capture imaginations and inspire others.

SES ENCOURAGING DIVERSITY

SES welcomes applications from around the globe and is committed to equal opportunities for all, ensuring that no one is denied opportunities or discriminated against through prejudice or exclusion on the basis of race, colour or nationality, sex, gender reassignment, sexual orientation, marital or civil partner status pregnancy and maternity, disability, religion or belief, age or any other ground on which it becomes unlawful to discriminate under the laws of England and Wales (referred to as Protected Characteristics).

Our mission is to continue to nurture and grow our community of explorers, ensuring that this community reflects and fully represents diversity, culture and differing perspectives.

Thank you for your interest in our 2025 Explorer Awards.

With the support of generous benefactors and members, SES has six 2025 Explorer Award grants available for funding scientific expeditions.

We have kept Stage 1 of our application process intentionally brief. Every word will count, so do take your time and consider your responses.

Please answer all questions.

If you are shortlisted for Stage 2, we will be asking for considerably more detail from you.

Before submitting your application, please consider the following:

• Will your expedition objectives honour the title and criteria of the award for which you are applying? This is important, please carefully read the 'criteria' document and include evidence of this in your application.
• Are you a true pioneer with purpose and a scientific trailblazer?
• How will your expedition help you to progress in your chosen field of scientific exploration?
• How will you ensure that you and your expedition will appeal to, and inspire a wider audience?
• How will you actively promote your Explorer Award, expedition, scientific outcomes, and SES?

The proposed fieldwork will be assessed to verify that it is capable of making a significant contribution to the project concerned and that it falls within the Society’s Objectives:

SES Objectives

To promote, organise or support (whether financially or otherwise) expeditions focused on scientific exploration in any of the fields of anthropology, archaeology, biodiversity, botany, economics, ecology, geography, geodesy, geology, geophysics, glaciology, psychology, history, human physiology, medicine, meteorology, sociology, topography and zoology. Expeditions will often take place in the more inaccessible and remote regions of the world and will aim to produce new scientific studies of the physical, social, economic, cultural, natural, environmental life of such regions or communities with the purpose of advancing knowledge of/research into, educational development, health and humanitarian support, medical aid and research or environmental, cultural, social awareness and support of those regions. 

Please submit your Stage 1 application by 12:00 (noon) GMT on 14 February 2025. 

THE APPLICANT:

• Must be aged 18 or over at the time of applying.
• Should demonstrate how receipt of an SES Award will make a difference to them individually and to the expedition.
• Should be responsible for putting together the required team and, where relevant, local collaborators to execute their expedition.
• Should evidence their leadership credentials to date, including how organising and/or participating in past expeditions has prepared them for the complexity of planning and leading their own successful scientific expedition.
• Will ensure SES ranks equally alongside any other sponsors or funding bodies with respect to any 'first exclusive' media rights for all output from the expedition, or alternatively secure an agreement that any other such bodies agree to reference the support of SES in all of its own marketing of the expedition.
• Past award winners cannot re-apply within 12 months of receipt of an award.

THE EXPEDITION:

• Should comply with the society's objectives as described above.
• Should not be a commercially organised venture, nor an expedition or fieldwork trip organised by a college/university.
• Must display clear and achievable objectives.
• Should contain a fieldwork plan as part of a research plan, with clear objectives allowing for a tangible legacy.
• Should provide thoughts on, and suggestions for solutions to problems rather than simply recording their existence.
• Should aim to provide a benefit to the host country or to local communities.
  Should involve local collaborators where possible.
• Should not commence before 16 October 2025 and must be completed by 1 August 2026. 
• Should have a clear communication plan to disseminate its output to the scientific community and to a wider audience.
• Should be conducted in an ethical manner.
• Must not be a commercially organised venture.
• Must not involve travel to a country or region where the FCDO* advise against travel.
• The health and safety of SES Explorers and those that they may meet are of paramount importance to SES and its supporters. If unavoidably delayed, the expedition must continue to meet all the original award criteria, and the aims, objectives, and outcomes must fundamentally remain the same. SES will honour the award sum providing all ‘Terms and Conditions are met. Any significant changes are to be agreed upon with the Society and its Trustees.

Our award winners will be formally recognised at our Explorer Awards Presentation Evening on 15 October 2025, but funds will only be released to the recipient when Government, and in-country guidance is clear that it is appropriate to do so.

IN ADDITION:

• The Trustees’ decisions are binding, confidential and final and SES will not engage in correspondence concerning the decision of its assessment panel.
• The completed application form and all accompanying documents will be treated as confidential and only shared between the Trustees and other persons involved in the selection process and with the supporter of an award where applicable. images and videos will become the property of the SES and will not be returned to the Applicant. These documents Videos may be shared publicly by SES.
• Award winners' names, expedition, details and award amounts will be published via SES and its supporter's online channels, and in printed materials.
• Application forms to be submitted in English and video statements in spoken English.
• SES welcomes applications from around the globe and is committed to equal opportunities for all, ensuring that no one is denied opportunities or discriminated against through prejudice or exclusion on the basis of race, colour or nationality, sex, gender reassignment, sexual orientation, marital or civil partner status, pregnancy and maternity, disability, religion or belief, age or any other ground on which it becomes unlawful to discriminate under the laws of England and Wales (referred to as 'Protected Characteristics').

*Please check current FCDO status https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice

*Please note: applicants for the Neville Shulman Explorer Award for Expedition Filmmaking and the Elodie Sandford Explorer Award for Amateur Photography need not be the instigator and leader of the expedition. But, they should be actively involved in the expedition planning and use their filmmaking/photography to communicate the aims and objectives of the expedition. 

Thank you for completing your 2025 Explorer Award Stage 1 Application Form.

You will now be asked to read and agree with our Terms & Conditions. If you are happy to proceed, please submit your application.

If you need any assistance, or have any difficulty completing or submitting this form, please contact me at the email address below.

Many thanks

Nikki Skinner

Explorer Awards Manager

nikki@ses-explore.org

Please read the following Terms and Conditions carefully:

By signing and submitting this application form, the Applicant confirms to SES that they;

1. GENERAL CONDITIONS

1.1. Have fully read and understood the Award Guidelines before submitting their application and agree to abide by the Award Guidelines if an Award is made.
1.2. Will use their best endeavours to lead and execute the expedition as detailed in their application and will regularly update the SES on developments during the lead up to the expedition and departure from the field.
1.3. Will give credit to, and publicly acknowledge the support from SES in all online and published mentions (including but not limited to social media posts, blog posts and other publications) of the expedition and include the SES logo on their expedition website with a live hyperlink to the SES website; and
1.4. Understand that funding will be withdrawn from any expedition which involves travel to or through areas where the Foreign and Commonwealth Office advise against travel.
 
2. USE OF AND PAYMENT OF FUNDS 
 
2.1. Will inform SES immediately of any changes to their expedition at which time the SES will determine if funding will be withdrawn or awarded to a revised expedition, at its absolute discretion.
2.2. Will return any unused portion of the Award to SES upon completion of the expedition. 
2.3. Will indemnify SES against any funds expended and return the full amount of an Award if an expedition is cancelled or postponed for whatever reason.
2.4. Will return all funds provided by SES if the Award recipient does not participate in the expedition.
2.5. Will return all funds provided by SES if the Award recipient does not carry out the expedition as outlined in their application or modifies any aspect of the original expedition plan and which in the opinion of SES requires all such funds provided by SES to the Applicant to be returned.
2.6. Payments will be paid into a personal bank account that is used for SES funds only. A full set of accounts and transactions are to be supplied post-expedition; and
2.7. Understand that a sum equal to 10% of the amount of the Award will be retained by SES and paid upon receipt of approved reports.  

3. INSURANCE, RISK & CONSENTS 

3.1. Has identified and obtained all the necessary approvals and permissions needed to perform the project, evidence of such to be provided to SES if requested.

3.2. Confirms to SES that adequate insurance coverage is in place for the expedition (SES accepts no responsibility for approving the adequacy of any cover or the reliability of such insurances); and

3.3. SES expects the applicant to have used due diligence and followed the guidelines of BS8848 or similar in preparing a risk assessment but will not comment on the adequacy of the risk assessment or its contents.
 
4. REPORTING
 
4.1. Will take images and video clips of themselves during the expedition (including SES flag photos) and send copies back to SES where possible.

4.2. Will provide to SES:

BRIEF EXPEDITION REPORT
No later than 28 DAYS AFTER RETURN and to be submitted online.

FULL EXPEDITION REPORT 
No later than 60 DAYS AFTER RETURN and to be submitted online and to include.

BUDGET
EXPEDITION IMAGES/VIDEOS

2025 AWARD WINNERS LOOK BACK FILM

We will request a short expedition 'look back' film of approximately three minutes which will be shown at our 2026 Explorer Awards Presentation Evening. We will guide you through this process.

You will also be asked to formally present a printed and digital copy of your reports, images and video to your award supporter once agreed and signed off by the Awards Committee.

4.3. Permit all documents, excerpts, film, and images from these reports to be shared by SES on all online channels and in its marketing material, publications and circulars; and

4.4. Will grant SES permission to identify one image from your photo submissions that will be for the sole use of SES, to be used as SES chooses for a mutually agreed period. This may be for reports, exhibitions and so on. The photographer will always be credited.

4.5. Will give a short presentation to SES members and guests or participate in an SES event(s) on a date and at a venue to be agreed.
 
5. LIMITATIONS 
 
5.1. In selecting the Applicant of an SES Explorer Award, the SES accepts no responsibility or liability in relation to the planning, execution or conduct of the expedition or any other aspect related to it. The Applicant is entirely responsible for the planning, execution and conduct of their expedition.

5.2. Should the Applicant’s application be successful, the Applicant will receive a monetary grant from SES to support the expedition as outlined in their application.

5.3. Individuals participate at their own risk in any expedition in receipt of a financial grant from SES. SES cannot be held responsible for any mishap to such individuals. SES cannot take responsibility for the consequences of strikes, war, sickness, quarantine, government action or other ‘force majeure’ circumstances on any expedition which SES may support.

5.4. All reasonable steps have been taken to confirm that each of the expedition team does not have any criminal convictions nor is subject to any criminal investigations in the UK or any other country.

5.5. Expeditions in receipt of a financial grant from SES involve exposure to accepted elements of risk, challenge, and adventure greater than those normally encountered in everyday life. Such expeditions often take place in remote areas where medical and/or rescue facilities may not be immediately available.  Individuals taking part in such expeditions accept they are prepared to accept such circumstances and will not hold SES, its trustees, supporters, volunteers, donors, employees, partners, or agents liable whether in contract or in tort or in delict or in negligence or for breach of statutory duty or otherwise for any loss, damage, personal injury, delay, or expense suffered or incurred by them.  Those on any such expedition acknowledge they are responsible for making themselves aware through UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office advice and any other sources available to them regarding the safety of the countries and areas in which they may be travelling. 

5.6. Any expeditions supported by SES shall maintain in force during the period of SES’s support adequate insurance with reputable insurers to cover all elements of the expedition and members of the expedition. Written evidence of such insurance shall be provided to SES prior to the departure date of the expedition.

5.7. Nothing in this agreement shall limit or exclude SES’ or the Applicant’s liability for death or personal injury caused by negligence.
 
6. GOVERNING LAW AND JURISDICTION
 
6.1. The terms of this agreement and any non-contractual obligations arising out of or in connection with it shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of England and Wales.

6.2. The Applicant shall comply with any applicable anti-bribery and corruption laws during the expedition and shall not engage in any conduct or behaviour that could bring the SES into disrepute by association.

6.3. The Applicant and SES irrevocably agree that the courts of England and Wales shall have exclusive jurisdiction to settle any dispute or claim (including non-contractual disputes or claims) arising out of or in connection with this agreement or its subject matter or formation.

*This is a requirement when applying for an Explorer Award. We will always treat your data/privacy with the utmost respect. Here is our Privacy Policy.

If you are shortlisted to Stage 2 we will contact you by 13 March. Please be prepared to provide the following by 1 April;

A completed Stage 2 online application form

Identification

• A copy of your passport or student union membership card, with your identity verified by an accompanying letter from a referee, supervisor, employer, or, if you are attending university, a letter from them confirming your identity.
• Proof of your home address that is not more than three months old (e.g. a certified utility bill or bank statement).

Personal Video Statement

• A video of no more than 2 minutes summarising your expedition, how you meet the award criteria, anticipated expedition objectives, outcomes and dissemination to the scientific and wider audience. We will give you more information regarding size and format at the next stage.

If you are shortlisted to Stage 3 we will request the following by 29 April. Please be prepared to provide the following by 18 May;
 
Stage 3 (Final Stage)

Financial Plan which will include:

• The overall budget for the project.
• The proposed use of SES funding.
• Other committed or anticipated sources of funding, current status, and any conditions imposed in terms of exclusivity, reporting etc.

Risk Assessment describing;

• The anticipated risks of the project.
• The plan for minimising and insuring against such risks.
• Unforseen circumstances and contingency plans.

References

• 2 references should be submitted (direct from the referee and as a signed attachment via email), one personal and one professional. 
• Referees should not be members of the research team, nor be directly involved in the planning of the research project. 
• If the applicant is a student, one should be from a university academic.  References will be validated as part of the selection procedure.

Should SES require any additional information from the Applicant at any stage of the selection process, the Applicant should provide this at the earliest opportunity. We have listed the details above so that you can start preparing now.

Please note timeline may be subject to change