Interspecies Fellowship

for High School Aged Youth

The Interspecies Fellowship Program 

Every year, Side by Side supports ten high school aged youth in exploring their relationship with birds through an art/science lens. Students are paid fellows and during an intensive on the CU Boulder Campus they explore the natural world through scientific observation and artistic creation. Each summer ends in a public sharing where Fellows author new climate stories to move us towards a more equitable world for all species!

Apply to Join the Interspecies Fellowship!

  • The Side by Side program is looking for 10 high school students who identify as young women, gender expansive youth, or feel they would benefit from a gender informed perspective to participate in a paid "Interspecies Fellowship."

    Through an art-science approach, Side by Side Interspecies Fellows will partake in a series of activities combining biological observation with performance-based puppetry to increase a sense of belonging in science and as a part of the natural world.

    Fellows will be guided through the process of scientific exploration and artistic expression to create uplifting human-bird narratives that soar towards an equitable, survivable, and thrive-able world for all life and the ecosystems upon which all life depends!

  • Interest in art, science, and exploration of the natural world

    Availability at least two of the following dates: May 18th, May 25th, June 8th

    Availability to stay at CU Boulder from June 16-23 for all day and night

  • Interspecies Fellows will receive free room and board to stay on the CU Boulder campus for easy access to immersive experiences in Boulder’s Open Space Mountain Parks green spaces and CU campus amenities.

    Fellows will have the opportunity to be mentored by both graduate and undergraduate CU Boulder students, representing a broad range of art and science disciplines. Fellows will also receive a stipend of $2000 for their participation in the full fellowship.

  • The Side by Side Interspecies Fellowship was developed to provide an intensive environment for high schoolers who are ready to deepen both their scientific and artistic skill sets while working to address the critical climate issues facing our world today. If you are an emerging scientist and/or artist with an interest in the intersection between the two, then this is the right fellowship for you! This program is ideal for female-identifying and gender expansive high school students who want to participate in an artistic hands-on STEM learning experience.

    The Interspecies Fellowship will take place at University of Colorado Boulder campus between June 16th - 23rd. The fellowship also includes pre and post readings and writings.

    For 8 days and 7 nights, fellows will call the CU Boulder campus and Boulder’s Open Space Mountain Parks their home. The fellows will partake in scientific and artistic observations of birds as field research. They will learn about the ecology, anatomy, and biology of birds through interactive and experiential lessons, all taught outside in spaces where birds live in order to build a deeper connection with birds and nature. Fellows will then select a migratory bird species that is observable in Boulder County as well as global locations of the World Migratory Bird Day events. This bird will serve as the focus for an exhibit that each fellow will create. These exhibits will then travel around Colorado and across the Americas, helping to engage young people in learning and thinking through identity, ecology, and climate.

  • Increase Fellow’s feeling of belonging in science-related fields through art science integration

    Explore the use of an art-science approach for studying the human-bird relationship expressed through costumes and large-scale bird puppets

    Explore an intersectional eco-feminist grounding for this expression

    Joyfully disrupt public spaces with pro-environmental expression-climate

    communication

    Enliven ecological awareness and action

    Highlight and validate youth voices for positive climate communication

  • Submit your application by March 22nd to be considered for this year’s cohort!

Apply Now!