COST: Student participants are fully supported through a limited number of travel grants. All valid transportation, food, and housing are paid for by the grant while students are project participants. No stipend is included.  

ELIGIBILITY:  Undergraduates, recent graduates (within 1 yr), and graduate students are welcome to apply.

REQUIREMENTS:  Students who accept travel grants are expected to participate fully in the complete field season at either Boomplaas or Kasitu Valley (see dates above). Students may participate in both projects if desired.

HOW TO APPLY:  Please see instructions and submit your application through the HOMER SUMMER APPLICATION FORM.

DUE DATE:  March 1, 2023

NOTIFICATION:  We anticipate notifying all applicants of the award outcome by March 15, 2023.

ABOUT US:  The Human Origins Migration and Evolution Research consortium (HOMER) is a group of archaeological projects that share research aims, personnel, and resources. Although each individual project is operated independently of the others, all project members agree to work together in order to standardize their field and lab methods and maximize the information that can thus be extracted and compared between sites. The primary research question that they all share is that of the emergence of human uniqueness; in other words, when and where do we see evidence that people began to engage in hyper-prosocial behaviors at higher levels of organization than any other primate? Put briefly, the aim of HOMER is to cooperate in order to understand the origins of unique forms of human cooperation.

Students play a central role in HOMER in that their training and potential rotation through the projects is at the core of the cooperative ethos of the consortium. The Hyde Family Foundation awarded a $1M grant to the consortium via the Institute of Human Origins at Arizona State University, which began in January 2018. The Hyde Family Foundation has long supported work by Prof. Curtis Marean at Pinnacle Point in South Africa, and this generous contribution enables us to take human origins research to the next level of inquiry through cooperative endeavors. HOMER has a further interest in the advancement of archaeological science in general, and the development of models of field directorship that are visibly more inclusive than has been historically the case.

EXPECTATIONS FOR PARTICIPATION: If you are awarded and accept a grant, the following expectations apply:

• You will remain at the field sites for the duration of the project, unless a medical or family emergency unexpectedly arises.
• You will fully participate to the best of your ability for a regular field schedule of 6 full days/week.
• You will read the information packets and living conditions documents for each project well in advance, understand them, and sign a waiver that acknowledges you are aware of any potential hazards and voluntarily undertake to participate without holding HOMER or any university affiliate liable.
• You will operate as part of a team for an extended period of time and behave in a culturally appropriate and professional manner.
• If traveling to a foreign site, you will have a valid passport (not covered by the grant) with at least six months’ validity beyond the final date of your travel.
• You will take personal responsibility for applying for and documenting any visas or other requirements that may be specific to the country to which you are traveling (note – US citizens do not currently need to apply for a visa for travel to South Africa for periods of less than 90 days).
• You will provide your own clothing, luggage, sleeping bag, and basic working attire appropriate for the environment in which you will be working (e.g. sturdy boots, warm clothing, etc.).

OUR VALUES: HOMER projects are committed to providing a safe and fair working environment and will provide all technical personal protective equipment (NOT basic clothing) necessary for participation. All HOMER projects are committed to offering a harassment free workplace and a professional but informal working and living environment. HOMER projects do not discriminate against participants based on age, gender identity, sexual orientation, citizenship, or ethnic/racial background. Selection for grants will be based on a combination of the quality of the student’s academic background, their statement of intent, and the recommendations of their references. Students may be given preference if they have previously participated in a HOMER project member’s field or lab work and thus already demonstrated commitment to the discipline and familiarity with the materials. Application materials will be evaluated by all HOMER project directors.

HOMER PROJECT DIRECTORS: