The Andrew M. Greller Graduate Student Research Award for Conservation of Local Flora and Ecosystems supports graduate student research focused on the conservation of local flora and ecosystems. It is presented in honor of Dr. Andy Greller, a past president of the Torrey Botanical Society and a longtime expert on the flora of the New York metropolitan region.
Number of Awards: 1
Amount: $1,000
Eligibility: Graduate students conducting research on plants, habitats, or plant conservation within 100 miles of New York City.
Allowable Expenses: Field work and/or laboratory work.
Apply Here
Application Deadline: January 15, 2026
Application Requirements:
Research proposal (maximum 2 pages), plus a separate literature cited page.
Itemized budget with a brief rationale for each expense.
Current C.V. of the applicant.
Letter from the major professor detailing the applicant’s current status and qualifications.
Formatting Guidelines:
Times New Roman, 12-point font
1.5 line-spaced
1-inch margins
For inquiries about the awards or application process, please contact grants@torreybotanical.org.
Previous awardees
2025
Hogyeum ‘Evan’ Joo, Rutgers University. “The Role of Urban Green Spaces for Conserving Plant Biodiversity in New York City“
Natan Charytan, Columbia University. “Investigating the Influence of Root Allocation, Sediment Dynamics, and Vegetation Composition on Salt Marsh Restoration Outcomes“
2024
Dusty Russell Prater, University of Tennessee, Knoxville. “Navigating deep time and global change: population dynamics and ecophysiology of a far-flung fern“
2023
Philippa Stone, University of British Columbia . “Phylogenetic relationships, species cirumscription, and the origin of carnivory in Triantha (false asphodel)“
2022
Melina Keighron, North Carolina State University. “The Effects of Climate Change-Induced Wild Bee Pollinator Declines on Plant Fitness”
2021
Cheyenne Moore, University of Pittsburgh. “Understanding invasion mechanisms and ecosystem impacts of invasive knotweed”
2020
Elisabeth Ward, Yale University. “Legacies of co-occurring invasive plants on soil nutrient availability in disturbed hardwood forests: implications for restoration and management”
2019
Jo-Marie Kasinak, University of Connecticut. “Restored vs. natural living shorelines: Comparison of ecosystem services”
2018
Kate Douthat, Rutgers University. “The plant communities of stormwater detention basins in New Jersey: Potential for conservation of biodiversity in the urban landscape”
2017
Amy Lou Gage, Rutgers University. “Coastal populations of Prunus serotina: a true NYC ecotype in need of conservation?”
2016
no award given
2015
Lauren J. Frazee, Rutgers University. “The diversification and homogenization of Plantago major populations in the New York City area”
2014
Marlyse C. Duguid, Yale University & The New York Botanical Garden. “Patterns and drivers of understory plant diversity and composition in northeastern forests“
2013
Angelica Patterson, Columbia University. “Temperature tolerance of the physiological processes controlling carbon gain in northeastern forests“
Sarah Whorley, Fordham University. “Algal biodiversity and function used to assess stream restoration in Delaware County, New York“
2012
no award given
2011
David Waring, Fordham University. “Population Dynamics of Alliaria petiolata (Garlic Mustard) along an Urban-to-rural Gradient“
2010
Elena Tartaglia, Rutgers University. “Mutualistic interactions in the urban landscape: can we restore specialized plant-pollinator interactions?“