Grants

The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF), through anticipated cooperative agreements from the Department of the Interior (DOI), Department of Defense (DoD), and the Department of Agriculture’s U.S. Forest Service (USFS) and Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), is pleased to announce the launch of the America the Beautiful Challenge (ATBC) 2022 Request for Proposals (RFP). The ATBC vision is to streamline grant funding opportunities for new voluntary conservation and restoration projects around the United States. This Request for Proposals is a first step toward consolidating funding from multiple federal agencies and the private sector to enable applicants to conceive and develop large-scale, locally led projects that address shared funder priorities spanning public and private lands.

In year one of the ATBC approximately $85 million will be awarded in nationwide funding to advance the America the Beautiful Initiative and its goals to connect and restore the lands, waters, and wildlife upon which we all depend. In the first year, ATBC will seek to fund projects across the following themes:

1. Conserving and restoring rivers, coasts, wetlands and watersheds 
2. Conserving and restoring forests, grasslands and other important ecosystems that serve as carbon sinks 
3. Connecting and reconnecting wildlife corridors, large landscapes, watersheds and seascapes 
4. Improving ecosystem and community resilience to flooding, drought and other climate-related threats
5. Expanding access to the outdoors, particularly in underserved communities

Collectively, these themes allow applicants to develop landscape-level ATBC proposals that address conservation and public access needs that showcase cumulative benefits to fish and wildlife, carbon sequestration and storage benefits, engage with and benefit underserved communities, support community access to nature, and help safeguard ecosystems through conservation, resilience-focused and nature-based solutions. 

Projects funded through the ATBC will advance the principles underlying the America the Beautiful Initiative, as described in the Conserving and Restoring America the Beautiful Report:

1. Pursue a collaborative and inclusive approach to conservation
2. Conserve America’s lands and waters for the benefit of all people
3. Support locally led and locally designed conservation efforts
4. Honor Tribal sovereignty and support the priorities of Tribal nations
5. Pursue conservation and restoration approaches that create jobs and support healthy communities
6. Honor private property rights and support the voluntary stewardship efforts of private landowners and fishers
7. Use science as a guide
8. Build on existing tools and strategies with an emphasis on flexibility and adaptive approaches

The SFI Conservation Grants Program supports collaborative projects engaging non-profit organizations, SFI-certified organizations, and other stakeholders to support SFI’s mission of advancing sustainability through forest-focused collaboration. Since 2010, SFI has awarded 66 Conservation Grants to foster research to better inform decisions and best practices for managing our forests.

The purpose of the Food and Agriculture Service Learning Program is to increase the knowledge of agricultural science. The program’s goal is to increase the capacity for food, garden, and nutrition education while fostering higher levels of community engagement between farms and school systems by bringing together stakeholders from distinct parts of the food system. The initiative is part of a broader effort to not only increase access to school meals for low-income children, but also to dramatically improve their quality.

River Network and the National Park Service (NPS) are excited to announce a funding opportunity for nonprofit organizations working on community watershed science activities on NPS administered Wild and Scenic Rivers and Partnership Wild and Scenic Rivers. Funding will range from $3,000-$10,000 per award for work occurring between July 15^th, 2020 and November 16^th, 2020. Grants are targeted at improving the water quality and health of Wild and Scenic Rivers and the watersheds that surround them.  Activities that meet the goals of this funding include monitoring, pollution source quantification, stream restoration activities, etc. https://www.rivernetwork.org/wild-scenic-rivers-community-watershed-science-funding/