With ten thousand members and two hundred and fifty grottos (chapters), the National Speleological Society is the largest organization in the world dedicated to the exploration, study, and protection of caves and their environments and fostering fellowship among cavers. For more than seventy years, NSS has promoted safe and responsible caving practices, effective cave and karst management, speleology, and conservation.

To advance this mission, NSS will award Research Grants of up to $1,500 to qualified individuals or teams in support of research in a cave-related branch of study. This includes but is not limited to the natural sciences (e.g., cave biology, geology, paleontology, and hydrology), social sciences (e.g., archaeology), and the humanities (e.g., speleological history). Interdisciplinary proposals are encouraged. Preference will be given to projects with the potential to generate new information and insights that are suitable for submission to peer-reviewed publications.

Proposals may be submitted at any time. Funding decisions are made twice annually, in January and June. Proposals should be received at least one month in advance to be considered. To be considered for January 2019 funding, applications should be received no later than December 1, 2018.

To be eligible, applicants must be a member of the NSS at the time of the submission of the proposal.

For complete program guidelines, information about previously funded projects, and application instructions, see the National Speleological Society website.