The Explorers Club

For over a century, The Explorers Club has united the world's leading scientists, researchers, and adventurers to push the boundaries of human knowledge. The organization champions field research, scientific exploration, and resource conservation, ensuring our planet's most remote places (and the people and species who inhabit them) are studied, understood, and protected.

In FY25, Kensington renewed its partnership with The Explorers Club and launched the Kensington Conservation Grant, a $1 million initiative supporting vital, on-the-ground conservation projects now, and in the future. The annual grant program will fund research which deepens our understanding of the world around us. This year, the first two grantees are Kim Frank and Octavio Del Río—two remarkable individuals whose work bridges science, storytelling, and preservation.

Award-winning writer and multimedia storyteller Kim Frank leads “From Conflict to Coexistence: Asian Elephants Along the Eastern Himalaya,” documenting conservation efforts that unite local communities with endangered elephants across the Himalayan foothills. Her work amplifies the connection between people and wildlife, illuminating paths toward peaceful coexistence.

In Mexico, underwater archaeologist Octavio Del Río explores “Tulum's Underwater Caves – Insights into the Oldest Human Fossils in the Americas.” His groundbreaking research uncovers how these submerged cave systems once supported early human life and now serve as fragile ecosystems vital to understanding our shared past.

These projects embody the spirit of exploration and conservation, seeking not only to uncover the unknown but to protect it.

Projects Funded

Kim Frank
From Conflict to Coexistence: Asian Elephants Along the Eastern Himalaya

Octavio Del Río
Tulum's Underwater Caves – Insights into the Oldest Human Fossils in the Americas