UNESCO AfriMAB GRÓ-LRT Land Restoration Fellowships 2027 (Fully-funded)

Deadline: September 21, 2026

Applications are open for the UNESCO AfriMAB GRÓ-LRT Land Restoration Fellowships 2027. AfriMAB, the network of UNESCO biosphere reserves across Africa, and Iceland’s GRÓ Land Restoration Training Programme (GRÓ LRT) have opened applications for the 2027 cohort of their joint fellowship for professionals from African biosphere reserves.

Selected candidates will spend six months, from 26 February 2027, at the Agricultural University of Iceland, combining coursework with an individual restoration project tailored to their home institution’s needs, before returning to their posts with a postgraduate diploma and university credits.

Benefits

• The fellowship is fully funded, covering tuition and academic expenses, travel and health insurance costs, and a stipend covering all living expenses during the six-month stay in Iceland.
• Institutions nominating a candidate are asked to grant them full study leave for the six-month training in Iceland, continue paying their salary and benefits throughout the programme, and reinstate them in their position upon their return.

Eligibility

Applicants should hold a prominent role in ecosystem restoration activity within a biosphere reserve, and hold at least one university degree relevant to GRÓ LRT’s field of work, such as ecology, natural sciences, environmental management or studies, and related disciplines.

Candidates must:

• have at least one year of relevant experience working in a biosphere reserve;
• be able to communicate in English (speak, read and write), the working language of GRÓ LRT;
• be under the age of 40.

In some cases, GRÓ LRT has accepted candidates who do not fulfil the education requirement but bring extensive working experience in a relevant area.

Application

Applicants must submit:

• a letter of motivation;
• a CV;
• a letter of endorsement from the biosphere reserve where they work;
• a letter of endorsement from the national MAB Focal Point or MAB Committee in their country, and;
• certificates of academic achievement.

All documents must be uploaded in PDF form as attachments via the online application form.

Click here to apply

For more information, visit AfriMAB GRÓ-LRT Land Restoration Fellowships.