Deadline: 20-Apr-23
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 America the Beautiful Challenge (ATBC) 2023 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 RFP consolidates 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.
Themes
- The ATBC seeks to fund projects across the following themes:
- Conserving and restoring rivers, coasts, wetlands and watersheds
- Conserving and restoring forests, grasslands and important ecosystems that serve as carbon sinks
- Connecting and reconnecting wildlife corridors, large landscapes, watersheds, and seascapes
- Improving ecosystem and community resilience to flooding, drought, and other climate-related threats
- Expanding access to the outdoors, particularly in underserved communities
Priorities
- Benefit At-Risk Fish, Wildlife, and Plant Species.
- Expand Habitat Connectivity
- Provide a Range of Ecosystem Services
- Strengthen Ecosystem and Community Resilience
- Expand Public and Community Access to Nature
- Engage Local Communities
- Support Tribally Led Conservation and Restoration Priorities
- Contribute to Local or Tribal Economies
- Contribute to Workforce Development
- Advance Sentinel Landscape Partnership Priorities
Types of Grants Categories
- Implementation Grants: Grants to implement projects that address program priorities on public, Tribal, and/or private lands; partnerships with NGOs and others through subawards are encouraged.
- Planning Grants: Grants that enhance local capacity to implement future on-the-ground actions that address program priorities through community-based assessments, partnership building, planning, project design, and other technical assistance activities. Projects in this category should include multiple partners, be at a significant scale for the landscape/watershed/seascape, and clearly demonstrate how efforts will lead to implementation projects.
- Sentinel Landscape Grants: Grants will be funded through the Readiness and Environmental Protection Integration (REPI) Program and will be prioritized to Sentinel Landscapes or areas that preserve or enhance military readiness. Projects in this category should include multiple partners and clearly contribute to outcomes identified in a Sentinel Landscape implementation plan or other applicable conservation or restoration implementation plan, by enhancing local capacity to implement future on-the-ground actions or by directly contributing to on-the-ground outcomes. Projects in this category must demonstrate benefit to DOD facilities and be in the vicinity of or ecologically linked to a DOD installation or range. DOD funds may not be used for work directly on military lands.
- National Forest Grants: Grants will support projects on National Forest System lands to achieve the restoration of a forest ecosystem through the removal of vegetation, the use of prescribed fire, or the decommissioning of an unauthorized, temporary, or system road. Projects should target outcomes identified in a conservation or restoration implementation plan Projects completing vegetation management should be connected to a watershed protection plan.
- Private Forests, Rangeland and Farmland Grants: Grants will support outreach and engagement with private landowners for voluntary conservation efforts on working lands to advance NRCS Working Lands for Wildlife Framework and Initiatives (e.g. sagebrush, grasslands, bobwhite quail, northeast turtles, golden-winged warbler).
Funding Information
- Approximately $116 million will be available for 2023 through five categories of grants.
- Implementation Grants: Size: $1 million to $5 million, Landscape scale restoration requests beyond $5 million may be considered on a limited case-by-case basis. Please contact NFWF program staff to discuss.
- Planning Grants: Size: $200,000 to $2 million
- Sentinel Landscape Grants: Size: $250,000 to $1.5 million
- National Forest Grants: Size: $250,000 to $1.5 million
- Private Forests, Rangeland and Farmland Grants: Size: $200,000 to $500,000
Geographic Focus
- ATBC is a nationwide program. Projects throughout the U.S., U.S. territories, and Tribal Nations are eligible for funding. Projects can be on public lands, Tribal lands, and private lands, and ideally span multiple landownership boundaries and jurisdictions. Locations will be prioritized where projects are guided by existing conservation or restoration plans as well as the program priorities
Eligibility Criteria
- Based on legislative funding authorities, the DOI funding in this round can only support states, territories, and federally recognized Tribes.
- Eligible and Ineligible Entities
- State government agencies, territories of the United States, and Indian Tribes3 are eligible to apply for all five grant categories.
- Non-profit 501(c) organizations, local governments, municipal governments, and educational institutions are eligible to apply for grants in categories (3) Sentinel Landscape Grants, (4) National Forest Grants and (5) Private Forests, Rangelands and Farmlands Grants.
- Ineligible applicants include U.S. Federal government agencies, businesses, unincorporated individuals, and international organizations.
For more information, visit NFWF.