ESIP Community Fellows

The ESIP Community Fellows are graduate students and postdoctoral researchers interested in bridging the gap between informatics and Earth science.

About

The application period for the 2027 cohort will be opening soon.

This fellowship provides early career researchers a chance to work closely with Earth science data professionals in an interdisciplinary, cross-sector group by working with one of the ESIP Collaboration Areas and supporting the ESIP Meetings.

Community Fellows help with behind-the-scenes collaboration, supporting group activities on monthly calls and at ESIP’s two meetings, with occasional networking and training events. As Fellows become more familiar with ESIP activities, they may choose to integrate their own research, which can lead to publication and additional funding opportunities.

The fellowship earns a $2,000 stipend and runs from December through the following November. Fellows are required to attend both ESIP Meetings in January and July; ESIP covers all travel for the in-person meeting in July.

Description

Title: ESIP Community Fellows

Award: $2,000/year + registration to attend January virtual meeting + registration, lodging, travel to attend July in-person meeting

Eligibility: Graduate students or post-doc (less than two years beyond PhD); U.S. Citizen or authorized to work in the U.S.

Contact: [email protected]

Deadline: Application period for 2027 cohort will be opening soon

# of awards: Up to 7

Eligibility Requirements

Participate for the full one-year duration of the program
Be enrolled in a graduate program (MS or PhD) or in a postdoctoral research position less than two years beyond your PhD
Available to attend the full duration of both the virtual ESIP meeting in January and the in-person meeting in July
Legally authorized to work in the United States or your legal status allows you to receive non-employee income

What We Look For

Prior involvement with ESIP and previous formal leadership experience are not required. We welcome applicants who are ready to learn, contribute, build relationships, and grow through the program.

Strong applicants will demonstrate:

A clear connection between the Fellowship and their professional-development goals
Experience helping a group or community work toward a shared goal
An understanding of how their work may contribute to scientific, environmental, educational, community, or societal benefit
An interest in building belonging and meaningful professional relationships
Perspectives and experiences that can contribute to cohort learning
Readiness to participate consistently and learn from people across disciplines and sectors

Meet the 2026 Cohort

Benefits

ESIP Community Fellows network with professionals in relevant research fields, share research with a broader audience, learn leading practices in collaboration, and get exposure to potential job tracks in government, industry, and academia. They receive:

A stipend of $2,000, paid in two installments (one following the July ESIP Meeting and one at the conclusion of the Fellowship year).
Registration to attend both the January and July ESIP Meetings.
Travel, lodging, and other participant support costs to attend the in-person July Meeting.

Duties

Support one of ESIP’s 30+ Collaboration Areas that align with your research interests
Attend the Collaboration Area’s monthly meeting (about one hour/month)
Assist Collaboration Area leaders through collaborative technologies including Google workspace, Zoom, Slack, GitHub and more
Attend the January ESIP Meeting (January 26-29)
Attend and assist with room and Zoom support for the July ESIP Meeting (July 20-23). Fellows should arrive the day before the meeting starts, July 19
Share your research with the community at the Research Showcase (poster or demo) during the July Meeting

Term

ESIP Community Fellows will serve a year-long term starting in December of the application year through the following November. Near the end of year 1, interested Fellows may apply for a limited number of second-year opportunities focused on visible leadership, deeper community contribution, and career progression. Selection for Year 2 is separate and is not guaranteed when a Fellow is initially admitted.

Application Procedure

Applicants for the fellowship should complete the application form

The application includes:

Eligibility and contact information
Five short-answer responses of up to 250 words each
Preferences for up to three ESIP Collaboration Areas
Information about the mentoring, structure, or accessibility support that would help you succeed
A resume or CV for context and placement

Unlike previous application years, a cover letter, academic transcript, and recommendation letter are not required.

Applications for the next cohort will open in September 2026.

Applications are evaluated based on the substance, specificity, and reflection in the short-answer responses. Reviewers consider:

Professional growth and fit with the Fellowship
Community-centered leadership and collaboration
The broader relevance or potential benefit of the applicant’s work
Commitment to networking and relationship-building
Perspectives and potential contributions to cohort learning

Applicants are not evaluated on institutional prestige, academic grades, prior familiarity with ESIP, polished prose, formal leadership titles, or the perceived rarity of their identity. Collaboration Area preferences are considered during placement and are not part of the merit score.

Community Fellows

Evolution of the Community Fellows Program: Piloting a New Vision for the Future

Jun 26, 2026

Meet the 2026 ESIP Community Fellows

Jan 02, 2026

Guest Blog: Introducing fluxtools – A New Tool for Visualizing and Exploring Flux Data

Dec 09, 2025

Past ESIP Community Fellows

2025 Fellows

2024 Fellows

Abel Aragon | George Mason Univ. Earth Systems Science | Data Stewardship
Anthony Pignatelli | Univ. of S. Carolina Biological Sciences | Envirosensing
Chenyue Jiao | Univ. of Illinois Urbana-Champaign School of Information Sciences | Council of Data Facilities
Colette Brown | Univ. of California Berkeley Energy & Resources Group | Wildfires
Debasish Mishra | Texas A&M Biological & Agricultural Engineering | Soil Ontologies & Informatics
Jiyin Zhang | Univ. of Idaho Computer Science | Semantic Technologies
Lauren Holian | Univ. of S. Carolina Biological Sciences | Open Science
Md Sariful (Sharif) Islam | MIT Media Lab Space Enabled Research Group | Information Technology & Interoperability
Natalie Raia | Univ. of Arizona School of Information | Physical Sample Curation
Nelofar Qulizada | Univ. of Arkansas – Fayetteville Geosciences | Disaster Lifecycle

2023 Fellows

Jake Gearon | Indiana University | Envirosensing Cluster
Chhaya Kulkarni | University of Maryland, Baltimore County | Data Readiness Cluster
Chad Lanctot | University of Tennessee | Physical Samples Cluster
Michael Mahoney | State University of New York | Information Technology & Interoperability Committee
Sruti Modekurty | Erasmus Mundus Joint Masters in Urban Climate and Sustainability | Community Resilience Cluster
Kyla Richards | Hawaii Pacific University | Biological Data Standards Cluster
Daniel Segessenman | George Mason University | Data Stewardship Committee
Morgan Wofford | Univ. of Michigan | Open Science Cluster

2022 Fellows

James Coll | Univ. of Kansas | Cloud Computing Cluster
Sahara Ali | Univ. of Maryland Baltimore County | Air Quality Cluster
Jake Gearon | Indiana Univ. | Envirosensing Cluster
Qian Huang | Univ. of South Carolina | Disaster Lifecycle Cluster
Sara Lafia | Univ. of Michigan | Semantic Technologies Committee
Michael Mahoney | State Univ. of New York | Machine Learning Cluster
Morgan Wofford | Univ. of Michigan | Community Resilience Cluster
Daniel Segessenman | Univ. of Wisconsin-Madison | Data Stewardship Committee

2021 Fellows

Christine Gregg | Community Resilience Cluster | University of Michigan
Qian Huang | Disasters Lifecycle Cluster | University of South Carolina
Ned Molder | Public-Private Partnerships Cluster | University of Wisconsin, Madison
Kristina Fauss | Envirosensing Cluster | University of California, Santa Barbara
Sara Lafia | Discovery Cluster | University of Michigan
Cindy Lin | Machine Learning Cluster | University of Michigan
Jackie Guz | Ag & Climate Cluster | National Socio-Environmental Synthesis Center
Marion McKenzie | Community Data Cluster | University of Virginia