Deadline: 14-Feb-25
The National Forest Foundation Ski Conservation Fund (SCF) and Forest Stewardship Fund (FSF) provide funding for action-oriented on-the-ground or citizen-based monitoring projects that improve forest health and outdoor experiences on National Forests and Grasslands.
Program Focus Areas
- The NFF requires that all projects proposed for funding must include community engagement and hands-on stewardship activities that are completed by project participants and benefit the Lincoln National Forest.
- Community Engagement
- Community engagement, defined as in-person involvement of the public, must be the primary focus of every project funded under SCF. The National Forest Foundation recognizes that communities have varied histories and experiences with public lands and expects that effective and appropriate engagement experiences will vary.
- Eligible occasions for community engagement in public lands include, but are not limited to:
- Public lands days, cleanup days, and similar events
- Field trips for schools or collaborative groups
- Outdoor skills training
- Indigenous ecological practices
- Ceremonies or celebrations related to natural resources
- Trail or site ambassador programs
- Community science projects
- Implementation by community members of natural resource stewardship projects
- Stewardship Activities
- In addition to a focus on public engagement, stewardship activities must be a component of every project proposed to SCF. Specifically, the participants of the groups engaged must complete eligible stewardship-oriented activities that result in benefits to the Lincoln National Forest. The NFF recognizes that different activities are appropriate for different types of participants, therefore a variety of activities are allowed, resulting in either large- or small-scale stewardship benefits.
- Eligible participant stewardship activities include, and are not limited to:
- Recreation area cleanup
- Native tree and shrub planting
- Trail maintenance
- Invasive species control
- Forest and watershed restoration
- Hazardous fuels reduction
- Ecological or social monitoring to inform management decisions
- Educating other people using public land
- Community Engagement
Funding Information
- There is not an official minimum or maximum award amount for the SCF program and successful proposals vary in budget size. Historically, NFF has considered applications ranging from less than $35,000 to over $100,000.
Duration
- Performance Period: Projects funded in this round will begin in March 2025 and may run for up to 18 months
Eligible Projects
- SCF and FSF support the implementation of on-the-ground conservation and restoration projects that have an immediate, quantifiable impact on the National Forest System. These projects provide a lasting impact to the lands, waters, and wildlife of the National Forest System through the alteration of the physical environment.
- Key additional requirements include:
- All SCF and FSF projects must advance NFF’s strategic focus areas for each fund.
- SCF and FSF projects are geographically restricted to the same National Forests from which individual guests contributions originated.
- SCF and FSF awards require a 50% nonfederal match of cash or in-kind contributions.
- All applications must include a letter of support from the District Ranger of each National Forest or Grassland unit included in a proposal.
Eligibility Criteria
- Eligible Organizations: Nonprofit organizations, Tribal governments and organizations, state and local governments, and universities.
- Both NFF and matching funds:
- Must be received by the same organization;
- Must support the same project activities and be expended within the same one-year project period;
- Cannot support general administrative purposes beyond recovered indirect costs;
- Cannot support litigation or advocacy;
- Cannot be directed to the U.S. Forest Service or any other federal entity;
For more information, visit NFF.
