Federal Natural Resources Grants

This grant provides funding to U.S.-based marine mammal rescue organizations to support the rescue, rehabilitation, and release of stranded marine mammals, while enhancing their operational capacity and training.

The USDA Forest Service’s funding opportunity, "Recreation Sites and Visitor Services: Creating Quality Recreation Experiences," aims to cultivate partnerships to improve recreation opportunities on National Forest System lands. This Outreach of Interest (OOI) is not a traditional grant program but serves as a mechanism to engage potential partners in identifying collaborative projects. It seeks to generate ideas for programs or initiatives that address recreation needs, enhance visitor experiences, and support infrastructure improvements. By fostering partnerships, the USDA Forest Service aims to build capacity, improve recreational offerings, and ensure the long-term stewardship of public lands. The primary goal of this initiative is to create and maintain high-quality recreational experiences. This includes addressing the increased demand for outdoor recreation, enhancing access to public lands, improving safety, and maintaining or upgrading the extensive infrastructure on National Forest System lands. The USDA Forest Service manages 160,000 miles of trails, 10,000 developed recreation sites, and 196 million acres of forest and grasslands, which are visited by millions annually. Partnerships are vital for meeting growing recreational demands, maintaining infrastructure, and engaging communities in conservation and stewardship. This funding opportunity does not specify a monetary award ceiling or floor, as its primary purpose is to explore project ideas rather than allocate direct funding. Eligible applicants include a wide range of entities, such as for-profit and non-profit organizations, institutions of higher education, federal, state, local, and Native American tribal governments, and other public entities like school districts and conservation districts. The USDA Forest Service values collaborations that address shared goals and create opportunities for community engagement, job training, conservation education, and improved access to public lands. Applications should outline ideas for programs or projects that align with the USDA Forest Service’s objectives. Potential projects might involve enhancing infrastructure resiliency to weather events, improving access for activities like hunting or fishing, or increasing the capacity of recreational sites to serve visitors. Submitted proposals should demonstrate how partnerships will help address the challenges of maintaining high visitor standards while accommodating growing demand. Applicants are encouraged to innovate and propose solutions that foster long-term sustainability and stewardship. Submissions must follow specific guidelines outlined in the "Outreach of Interest Template Instructions" document. Applicants should save their forms under a new name before uploading them to ensure proper submission. While this OOI does not include specific funding terms, successful partnerships could lead to future agreements or collaborative initiatives under the USDA Forest Service’s legislative authority. The application period closes on **January 23, 2025**, with an original deadline extension previously set for February 7, 2025. Interested parties should ensure their proposals are submitted promptly and in compliance with submission requirements. For additional information or assistance, applicants can contact Robin Taylor-Davenport from the Outreach and Partnership Engagement Branch. This opportunity provides a platform for diverse entities to collaborate with the USDA Forest Service in supporting outdoor recreation. Through innovative partnerships, it aims to enhance the recreational experience for millions of visitors while promoting sustainable land stewardship and community involvement.

This funding opportunity provides financial support to U.S. small businesses developing innovative technologies for faster and more cost-effective mineral resource evaluation, particularly for rare earth elements and critical minerals essential for clean energy and advanced technologies.

This grant provides funding to state and local organizations for projects that preserve and promote the maritime heritage of the United States through education, historic property restoration, and the transmission of traditional maritime skills.

This funding opportunity provides financial support for conservation projects aimed at protecting threatened and endangered species in Colorado, targeting state and local governments, educational institutions, tribal organizations, and nonprofits.

This funding opportunity provides financial support to state, county, and tribal governments in Wyoming for collaborative projects that restore landscapes, improve ecosystem health, and enhance resilience against climate change and wildfires.

The F25AS00011 - NAWCA 2025 U.S. Small Grants program is a competitive funding opportunity that supports partnerships focused on long-term protection, restoration, and enhancement of wetland and associated habitats for migratory birds in the United States, requiring a 1:1 non-federal match and excluding research funding.

This funding opportunity is designed for partners of the Great Rivers Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit to conduct research on groundwater nitrate modeling in the Illinois River Basin, addressing critical water quality and ecosystem health issues.

This grant provides funding for organizations to conduct research and enhance habitats for invertebrate species at military sites in Colorado, focusing on biodiversity conservation and ecological management.

This funding opportunity provides financial support to the National Association of Counties Research Foundation to strengthen partnerships between county governments and the Department of Defense, enhancing military readiness through improved land management and conservation practices.

This funding opportunity provides financial support for California-based research organizations to enhance the resilience of desert ecosystems at a military training site by using advanced modeling techniques to study and manage key species and habitats.

Through Planning and Project Design Grants, Reclamation provides funding for collaborative planning and design projects to support water management improvements. This includes funding for: (1) Water Strategy Grants to conduct planning activities to improve water supplies(e.g., water supplies to disadvantaged communities that do not have reliable access to water, water marketing, water conservation, drought resilience, and ecological resilience); (2) Project Design Grants to conduct project-specific design for projects to improve water management; and (3) comprehensive Drought Contingency Plans. Note that funding to develop a water marketing strategy formerly funded through Water Marketing Strategy Grants, a stand-alone funding opportunity under WaterSMART - is now available through (1) Water Strategy Grants.

This funding opportunity provides financial support for projects that protect and restore aquatic ecosystems on public lands, with a focus on engaging underserved communities and addressing climate challenges.

This funding opportunity is designed for U.S. higher education and nonprofit organizations previously designated as Coral Reef Research Centers to establish institutes that will enhance research, monitoring, and management of coral reef ecosystems in the Atlantic and Pacific regions.

Overview: Island-wide population assessments support compliance with the San Clemente Island (SCI) Integrated Natural Resource Management Plan (INRMP), and also provide a benefit to the black abalone species as required under section 4(a)(3)(B) of the Endangered Species Act (ESA) (16 U.S.C. 35). The SCI INRMP main objective for black abalone is to continue to monitor and support the recovery of the black abalone population in suitable rocky intertidal habitat to increase the population at SCI, which specifically calls for efforts to continue to refine knowledge of, and monitor, the black abalone population and density at SCI. Endangered black abalone are currently present on SCI, managed under the SCI INRMP, and continued critical habitat exemption is still crucial to support the Navys mission on SCI. Thus, it is imperative that the present black abalone population size and density estimates are investigated. Details of the location, abundance, and habitat suitability for endangered black abalone on SCI will assist natural resource managers in conservation of the species, aid in recovery efforts for the species on SCI, and will support ongoing and future Navy operations to support the Mission. Please see the statement of Objectives, provided as a separate document, for a full description of the project.

This funding opportunity provides substantial financial support for state and local governments, tribes, educational institutions, and nonprofits to conduct long-term monitoring of zooplankton, Mysis, and benthic invertebrates in the Great Lakes, assessing ecosystem health and water quality.

This funding opportunity provides financial assistance to state and local governments, in partnership with nonprofit organizations, for the acquisition and preservation of significant Revolutionary War, War of 1812, and Civil War battlefields.

This program provides financial support to federally recognized Tribes for conservation projects that benefit fish, wildlife, and their habitats, focusing on species of cultural significance and promoting local conservation efforts.

The overarching goal of the Risk MAP Program is to enhance flood-resilient communities, including underserved communities. The CTP Program supports this goal by establishing, maintaining, and improving collaborative working relationships; ensuring timely and accurate delivery of data to communities to support flood risk reduction and mitigation; and program ownership. Additionally, CTP supports Risk MAPs goal of ensuring the long-term flood resiliency of communities, including underserved communities. The objectives of the CTP program are primarily to support the mission and objectives of the NFIPs Flood Hazard Mapping Program through FEMAs flood hazard identification and risk assessment programs, including the Risk MAP program. Objectives include: Ensure extensive stakeholder engagement throughout the lifecycle of a project so that stakeholders have access to flood hazard data and risk information to validate and use for community resiliency. Stakeholders in CTP projects typically include community and tribal leaders; business and property owners; regional, tribal, and state partners; and local elected officials. Enhance communities ability to make informed decisions on development using updated information by ensuring it is delivered to communities in a timely manner and on budget. Improve acceptance and use of the flood hazard data and risk information, through delivery of high-quality products to communities. Increase understanding of flood hazard and risk elements, leading to quality partnerships between CTPs and their communities, and between FEMA and CTPs, by providing training and engagement throughout the project.Applicants can submit applications for this funding opportunity through FEMA Grants Outcomes (GO). Access the system at https://go.fema.gov/

This funding opportunity provides financial support to local watershed groups for collaborative projects that improve water sustainability and resource management.