Diversity Enhancement and Underserved Audience Grant Program (US and Canada)

Deadline: 10-Jan-25

The National Conservation Foundation (NCF), in collaboration with the USDA Forest Service (USDA FS) and the NCF-Envirothon, is excited to announce the 2025 cycle of the Diversity Enhancement and Underserved Audience Grant (Diversity Grant) program.

Recognizing that historically underserved communities and students frequently encounter substantial barriers to participation, the NCF-Envirothon Diversity Grant program provides mini-grants to states, provinces, tribal nations, and territories that are either interested in starting an Envirothon program in historically underserved communities or have projects that improve diversity, equity, inclusion, justice, and/or access (DEIJA) to hands-on, outdoor natural resource education opportunities. The program’s goals are to improve access to hands-on outdoor natural resource education opportunities, encourage education exploration, and educate young adults on the importance of conservation education.

Mini-grants will be awarded for projects that aim to expand the reach of environmental education and Envirothon programming to students who would not normally have access due to a variety of barriers, including but not limited to socioeconomic status, geographic location, lack of school resources, limited educational opportunities, physical or mental disabilities, and learning differences.

Eligible Expenses

• Stipends for teachers (advisors) or substitute teachers, to allow teachers (advisors) to attend Envirothon trainings.
• Team registration fees or team travel funds to attend local/area/regional, and state/provincial Envirothon competitions.
• Some Travel/lodging for grantee (e.g., project manager).
• Materials specifically purchased for Envirothon trainings.

Ineligible Expenses

• Operating and/or maintenance expenses of organizations, including salaries, fees, rents, and honorariums.
• Virtual or online testing programs for state/provincial Envirothon competition.
• Envirothon competition awards or scholarships.
• Project activities or components that occurred or were purchased before the official Project Start Date.

Eligible Projects

• Applications for a wide variety of projects are encouraged. The following are some examples of Diversity Grant project categories that they have seen in the past. However, your project does not have to be limited to one of these categories:
• Participation Projects that provide travel and registration cost assistance to teams who have been prohibited from participating in Envirothon events in the past due to lack of funding.
• Outreach and Engagement Projects that initiate a training and/or outreach program for historically underserved communities and students currently lacking access to outdoor education or opportunities to learn about the Envirothon, conservation, natural resources, and more. These may also improve environmental literacy and provide students with access to hands-on learning experiences.
  • “Passive” campaigns (e.g., a grant request to print posters, brochures, DVDs, etc., without a plan for onsite, virtual, or in-person interaction with target audiences) to reach proposed target audiences will receive lower consideration than “active” outreach proposals (e.g., in-person training, etc.).
• Cultural Inclusion Projects that incorporate underrepresented cultures into state/provincial Envirothon competitions and/or programs (in the form of ceremonies, histories, oral traditions, indigenous systems of science, traditional ecological knowledge, etc.) or translation of education materials into languages other than English.
• Accessibility Projects that seek to adapt training and testing materials for hearing, visually, or mobility impaired students.

Eligibility Criteria

• In U.S. states and Canadian provinces WITH established Envirothon programs:
  • State and Provincial Envirothon programs that are current on all membership dues may apply.
  • Schools, organizations, conservation districts, or other nonprofit entities:
    • The support/approval of the local state/provincial Envirothon program is required.
    • The state/provincial Envirothon program must agree to act as the fiscal agent administering the grant funds for the project (e.g., the grant funds will be sent to ‘XYZ State Envirothon’ program to be administered to ‘ABC Conservation District’ for the Diversity Grant project).
• In U.S. states or territories currently WITHOUT an existing Envirothon program:
  • Be located in one of the following states or territories: Alaska, Hawaii, Nevada, Wyoming, American Samoa, Guam, Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, or the U.S. Virgin Islands
  • Meet one of the below criteria:
    • 501(c)3, Nonprofit Organizations (NPO), or Non-Governmental-Organization (NGO), State or Territory Conservation Districts and/or Associations, Educational Institutions, or Government Agencies, including Tribal Governments and Instrumentalities.

Selection Criteria

• The NCF-Envirothon Diversity Grant Subcommittee will consider the following factors when selecting projects to fund:
  • Audience: Has the target audience been described? Does the project reach a diverse and underserved audience?
  • Needs Addressed: Is the project clearly outlined? Does the project fulfill an environmental/natural resource/conservation education need? Is the project consistent with the goals of the NCF-Envirothon?
  • Timeline: Has a realistic timeline been developed? Are tasks sufficiently outlined? Is there sufficient time to do the project?
  • Benefits: Are the goals clearly stated? Is there a full description of the plan of work?
  • Budget: Is the project cost-effective? Is the budget detailed and itemized? What are the extent and sources of other matching funds being raised for the proposed project?
  • Additional Partners: Are partnerships developed within the targeted audience? If so, who are key partners and how are they involved with the proposed project?
  • Sustainability of the project: How will the project be sustained upon competition of the NCFEnvirothon Diversity Grant period?
  • Evaluation: How will the success of the proposed Diversity Grant Project be measured?

Application Requirements

• Supporting Documents:
  • Letter of Support Upload: Required
    • From the local state or provincial Envirothon program for this project (if your U.S. state/territory has an established Envirothon program)
• Supporting Documentation: Optional
  • Any additional documents deemed imperative to the grant application, including documentation of match (e.g. letters from Boards verifying match, etc.), or that will help the grant selection committee understand the project.

For more information, visit NCF.