2020 TECI Workshop Travel Awards

TECI is funded by Thirty Meter Telescope (TMT) International Observatory, which significantly reduces costs of attending the workshop. In addition, TECI works with TMT partners to identify funding sources that will cover travel expenses. Below is an itemized list of approximate costs and whether they are covered by TECI or must be covered by workshop participants.  Amounts are in Canadian dollars (CAD) and U.S. dollars (USD), using an approximate conversion rate of $1 USD = $1.32 CAD (October 2019).

Further down is a list of contacts for each TMT partner, who may be able to help with questions about travel support.

 

INSTRUCTIONAL FEE: The instructional fee to participate in the TECI workshop is USD $3,000. All participants accepted to TECI are provided fee waivers (do not pay the fee) because this fee is paid by the TMT Project Office in Pasadena, CA using TIO cash funds. The TECI instructional fee includes all costs of developing and managing TECI, and onsite workshop costs including lunches during workshop, poster reception, final dinner, and field trips.

On TECI Workshop application:

    • NO AWARD: instructional fee is covered by TECI
    • STANDARD AWARD: instructional fee is covered by TECI
    • MAXIMUM AWARD: instructional fee is covered by TECI

TRAVEL: TECI is able to offer travel awards for a limited number of participants. The application form includes a field for participants to request a travel award for some or all of these items. In some cases we may prioritize applicants who can cover these costs on their own. Funds for airfare are greatly limited and applicants able to support their own airfare costs will be given a higher priority if necessary.  Victoria International Airport (YYJ) is the closest airport to the workshop hotel.  Some itineraries to YYJ have a connecting flight in Vancouver (YVR).

  • Air travel: each applicant should estimate the cost of air travel from their home airport to Victoria International Airport YYJ.

On TECI Workshop application:

    • NO AWARD: air travel is covered by participant
    • STANDARD AWARD: air travel is covered by participant
    • MAXIMUM AWARD: air travel is covered by TECI
  • Lodging in Victoria in the Inn at Laurel PointCAD $980 / USD $742 (8 nights double occupancy, arriving May 25 and checking out June 2).  An additional night for arrival on May 24 is available to accommodate long travel times and adequate rest time prior to workshop for CAD $122 / USD $92

On TECI Workshop application:

    • NO AWARD: lodging is covered by participant
    • STANDARD AWARD: lodging is covered by TECI
    • MAXIMUM AWARD: lodging is covered by TECI

 

MEALS AND INCIDENTALS: TECI will not support the following costs, all participants must cover these on their own. The total estimated cost of meals and incidentals listed below is CAD $530 / USD $400 **.

  • Ground transportation to/from airport of origination (in home city)
  • Round-trip ground transportation between Victoria International Airport and the Inn at Laurel Point, which participants are expected to book individually
  • Meals and incidentals outside of workshop lunches.  The total estimate above includes all meals from May 24 through June 2, except lunches supplied by TECI May 26-29 and May 31-June 1.
  • Passport and visa fees: each applicant should determine the fees of any passport or visa they require to enter Canada.  See our FAQ page for more information on passport and visa requirements.

On TECI Workshop application:

    • NO AWARD: meals and incidentals are covered by participant
    • STANDARD AWARD: meals and incidentals are covered by participant
    • MAXIMUM AWARD: meals and incidentals are covered by participant

** Notes on our estimate above for local costs: Hotel rooms will have mini-refrigerators and a microwave oven is available in the hotel snack shop. We are hoping that participants can keep costs for meals not provided by the conference reasonably low, and far below the US Federal maximum per diem rate of US$125/day for meals and incidentals. We have made our best estimate of the cost of out of conference meals based on the availability of mini-refrigerators in hotel rooms, and that we will provide healthy snacks throughout the workshop, along with a hearty lunch. The total cost for meals not provided by the conference can vary widely depending upon the meals chosen by participants, so please keep in mind that we present our best guess.

TMT Partnership Contacts

TECI is funded by the TMT, and works with the TMT partnership to accept as many applicants as funding will allow. Each TMT partner has a representative on TMT’s Workforce, Education, Public Outreach, and Communication (WEPOC) Board, who can help applicants explore funding avenues for travel. In some cases, organizations have identified a local point of contact, as noted below.

  • Canada

    People applying through the TMT Canada partnership are encouraged to contact their advisor for travel funds. Additional questions can be directed to:

    Suresh Sivanandam, Dunlap Institute, University of Toronto: sivanandam@dunlap.utoronto.ca

    Eric Chisholm, TMT WEPOC representative: chisholm@tmt.org

  • China

    People applying through the TMT China partnership are encouraged to contact their advisor (supervisor, boss) for travel funds. Additional questions can be directed toward:

    Yang Fei, CIOMP: yangf@ciomp.ac.cn

    Su Lin, NIAOT: slin@niaot.ac.cn

    Lei Hao, SHAO: haol@shao.ac.cn

    People from other institutes in China are also encouraged to apply, and may direct questions to their supervisor or to Yiping Wang, NAOC, ypwang@bao.ac.cn.

  • India

    People applying through the TMT India partnership are encouraged to contact their advisor (supervisor, boss) for travel funds, but may also be eligible for travel funding and should contact:

    B. Eswar Reddy, Programme Director, India TMT Coordination Center, Indian Institute of Astrophysics: ereddy@iiap.res.in

    Samir Dhurde, IUCAA, TMT WEPOC representative: samir@iucaa.in

  • Japan

    People applying through the TMT Japan partnership are encouraged to contact their advisor (supervisor, boss) for travel funds, but may also be eligible for travel funding and should contact:

    Wako Aoki, Japan WEPOC Board representative, National Astronomical Observatory of Japan (NAOJ): aoki.wako@nao.ac.jp

  • Caltech

    People applying through the TMT Caltech partnership with questions about workshop expenses should contact:

    Mitch Aiken, TMT WEPOC representative, Caltech: aiken@caltech.edu

  • University of California (UC)

    People applying through the UC TMT partnership are eligible to apply for full travel awards through funding from University of California Observatories. For additional questions, contact:

    TECI Program Managers, teci@ucsc.edu

    Lisa Hunter, UC TMT WEPOC representative, lhunter@ucsc.edu