Facebook Instagram
Donate

The 2027 Deconstructed El Niño Expeditions

An atmospheric and ecological cascade of change

Lead Organizations

For North America’s driest peninsula, El Niño is more than a marine climate signal. In prior iterations, the warming of the tropical Pacific has brought significant rainfall to much of Baja California. These events briefly transform how water moves through the landscape. When storms activate normally dry arroyos, they connect mountain catchments, springs, pools, desert lowlands, wetlands, and the coast. These short-lived connections can recharge soils and aquifers, move nutrients and organisms, trigger recruitment and dispersal, and reveal species that remain undetectable through long dry intervals. The 2026–2027 El Niño event by all measurements and predictions will be the strongest yet recorded.

A coordinated scientific El Niño response offers a rare chance to document ecological change while it is happening. This will allow researchers to establish sites that can be revisited in subsequent wet and dry cycles, in a future likely to be driven by elevated temperatures and extreme pulses.

The 2027 Deconstructed El Niño Expeditions will combine one focused main expedition to the Sierra Guadalupe with small satellite expeditions distributed across poorly studied parts of the Baja California peninsula. Together they will capture a climatic event at multiple scales without the logistical burden of one oversized team, allowing for increased breadth and participation.

Satellite Expeditions - Call For Proposals

Open now! 

Deadline to apply: 16 October 2026

The 2027 Deconstructed El Niño Satellite Expeditions will support small teams distributed across the Baja California peninsula. These individually organized teams will capture a climatic event at multiple scales without the logistical burden of one oversized team, allowing for increased breadth and participation.

  • Individuals can apply for between $1,000 and $3,000 USD. Funds can be used for field and project costs, but are not intended to cover the time of the project leaders.
  • Preference will be given to terrestrial and fresh water projects, though coastal and marine proposals are welcome.
  • The funds will be transferred once the selection has been made and the agreement signed. Funds will be directly transferred to selected project leads via wire transfer.
  • A final report, communications, and project updates will be required from all grantees.
  • Projects may begin as early as the start of November 2026, with project end no later than September 30, 2027.

Scientific priorities

  • Document how episodic rainfall reconnects freshwater habitats and influences biodiversity from upland watersheds to downstream desert and coastal ecosystems.
  • Promote repeatable baselines and practical monitoring plans that allow future expeditions to measure persistence, recovery, and change across climatic cycles.
  • Other areas of focus are encouraged to apply.
Apply Here

Main Expedition

A compact, science-led expedition to Sierra Guadalupe will be undertaken in early 2027. The team will emphasize terrestrial and freshwater systems, underrepresented taxa, local participation, and achievable field objectives.

A call for participation to the larger N-Gen community will be announced in the Fall of 2026. Stay tuned for more details!