Funding

Deadline Passed. Latest Deadline: July 11, 2022. The USDA is seeking applications for grants to preserve and repair housing for very-low- and low-income families living in rural areas. The funds are being made available through USDA Rural Development's Housing Preservation Grant program. USDA does not provide funding directly to homeowners under this program.

Communities receive direct technical assistance from team of national experts in one of two areas: policy analysis (e.g., reviewing state and local codes, school siting guidelines,transportation policies, etc.) or public participatory processes (e.g., visioning, design workshops, alternative analysis, build-out analysis, etc.). The assistance is tailored to the community's unique situation and priorities. EPA provides the assistance through a contractor team –not a grant. Through a multiple-day site visit and a detailed final report, the multi-disciplinary teams provide information to help the community achieve its goal of encouraging growth that fosters economic progress and environmental protection.

Deadline passed as of August 11, 2016. Deadline for 2017 unknown. EPA's Office of Water supports the National Tribal Water Council (NTWC), composed of tribal governmental representatives, to increase communications, promote sharing of technical information and best management practices for Indian country, raise awareness of tribes on priority water issues, and facilitate tribal input on actions to protect water quality and provide safe drinking water in tribal communities. EPA supports the efforts of the National Tribal Water Council through a multi-year cooperative agreement to a recipient who manages and supports the operations of the Council, and assists in developing and completing products in coordination with the NTWC. Eligible recipients interested in managing the NTWC under this cooperative agreement may apply by submitting applications to EPA for this competitive process.

Most recent deadline: January 13, 2023. Successful applications will focus on the management/control of invasive species on tribal trust lands, individual Indian allotment lands, or in areas managed by tribes through treaties or agreements. Instead of focusing on the definition of “Invasive Species,” this program will focus on the damage caused to Tribal Trust Resources and leave it to the discretion of the applicant to describe whether the species is “invasive” or represents an instance in which a native species is behaving as an invasive species due to altered environmental conditions. This funding can cover all invasive species (plants/animals) outside of noxious weeds in agricultural settings. BIA Northwest region: https://www.bia.gov/regional-offices/northwest

Deadline passed. Most recent deadline: April 10, 2023. The BLM Alaska Threatened and Endangered Species Program works to conserve and recover federally-listed and Bureau sensitive animal and plant species and their habitat on public lands. The BLM Alaska Threatened and Endangered Species Program priorities in FY 2023
are addressing the impact of the climate crisis and ecosystem approaches for managing multiple listed and sensitive species, pollinator conservation and management, ensuring habitat connectivity, and updating outreach/education materials, including the Program’s public facing website. The Alaska program is looking for projects that will result in or facilitate national implementation or outreach of tangible on the ground actions that will improve species populations (numbers, representation, or resilience) or reduce population level threats. This program supports project funded through the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, Section 40804 (b) Ecosystem Restoration. This program supports projects funded through the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), Sections 50221 Resilience, 50222 Ecosystems Restoration and 50303 DOI.

Deadline passed. Most recent deadline: April 10, 2023. The Bureau of Land Management Alaska Wildlife Program is focused on ensuring self-sustaining populations and a natural abundance and diversity of wildlife on public lands for the enjoyment and use of present and future generations. The program is responsible for managing habitats for wildlife species that depend on public lands for all or part of their lifecycle. Program activities address habitat maintenance, restoration, and species conservation in cooperation with federal, state, Tribal governments, private landowners, and non-governmental organizations (NGOs). This program will fund projects under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act PL 117-58, Section 40804(b) Ecosystem Restoration. This program supports projects funded through the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), Sections 50221 Resilience, 50222 Ecosystems Restoration and 50303 DOI.

Most Recent Deadline: September 26, 2023. President Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act authorized the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to implement the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund (GGRF), a historic $27 billion investment to combat the climate crisis by mobilizing financing and private capital for greenhouse gas- and air pollution-reducing projects in communities across the country. As part of this program, EPA is launching a $7 billion Solar for All competition — designed to spur the deployment of residential distributed solar energy to lower energy bills for millions of Americans and catalyze transformation in markets serving low-income and disadvantaged communities. Solar for All will tackle the financial and non-financial barriers that limit the ability of low-income and disadvantaged communities across the country to benefit from the rapid growth in distributed solar capacity, thus advancing the Biden-Harris Administration’s climate and environmental justice goals. This Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) is for the $7 billion Solar for All competition. This competition will award up to 60 grants to states, territories, Tribal governments, municipalities, and eligible nonprofit recipients to expand the number of low-income and disadvantaged communities primed for distributed solar investment—enabling millions of low-income households to access affordable, resilient, and clean solar energy. Grantees will use funds to expand existing low-income solar programs or design and deploy new Solar for All programs nationwide. EPA will not fund individual projects under this competition. EPA’s $7 billion Solar for All competition will help deliver on the climate and environmental justice goals of the United States. To achieve these goals, Solar for All grantees will provide subsidies and other financial assistance to residential rooftop and residential-serving community solar projects in and benefiting low-income and disadvantaged communities in addition to project-deployment technical assistance such as workforce development, community outreach, and other project-deployment support (e.g., interconnection technical assistance, siting and permitting support) to help overcome barriers to solar deployment.

Letter of Interest Application Window: July 10-September 29, 2023. The goal of the PACE Program is to support clean, affordable energy growth across America. The PACE Program provides loans to eligible entities, with varying levels of loan forgiveness, for Projects that generate and/or store electricity from Renewable Energy Resource. The Agency encourages applicants to consider projects that will advance the following key priorities:
• Assisting rural communities to recover economically through more and better market opportunities and through improved infrastructure;
• Ensuring all rural residents have equitable access to Rural Development (RD) programs and benefits from RD funded projects; and
• Reducing climate pollution and increasing resilience to the impacts of climate change through economic support to rural communities.

There are three different categories for application, one of which provides up to 60 percent total loan forgiveness if the project serves areas with Tribal populations of 60 percent or greater, are owned by a Tribal government, or are in a Substantially Underserved Trust Area.

Deadline passed on September 22, 2020. This notice announces the availability of funds and solicits applications from eligible entities, including nonprofit organizations, to deliver Environmental Workforce Development and Job Training programs that recruit, train, and place local, unemployed and under-employed residents with the skills needed to secure full-time employment in the environmental field. While Environmental Workforce Development and Job Training Grants require training in brownfield assessment and/or cleanup activities, these grants also require that Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response (HAZWOPER) training be provided to all individuals being trained. EPA encourages applicants to develop their curricula based on local labor market assessments and employers’ hiring needs, while also delivering comprehensive training that results in graduates securing multiple certifications.

Deadline passed. Most recent deadline: Feburary 25, 2022. The purpose of this program is to establish an Extension presence and support Extension outreach on Federally Recognized Indian Reservations and Tribal jurisdictions of Federally-Recognized Tribes. This program seeks to continue the Land Grants mission of inclusion - providing education and research-based knowledge to those who might not otherwise receive it. Learn more and apply here.

Deadline passed. Most recent deadline: April 3, 2023. To better support land management decisions regarding grazing and other range management treatments, soils management, and invasive species, the BLM will place a priority on collecting data through the use of consistent, comparable, and common indicators, consistent methods, and an unbiased sampling framework which will allow for analyses that are repeatable and comparable across a region, and decisions based on science and data that are legally defensible. Funded projects under this program will focus on high priority work such effecting the program nationally crossing state boundaries, such as, activities that support maintaining or achieving land health and productivity, increasing carbon sequestration, and creating resilient landscapes to benefit current and future generations. These activities could include, but are not limited to, such things as:
• Facilitating the conservation and restoration of range lands to combat climate change.
• Soils mapping and development of ecological site descriptions.
• Engagement of community members and other stakeholders, through mentoring, training,
and educational programs.

Deadline passed. Most recent deadline: April 3, 2023.  The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) Headquarters (HQ) is seeking applicants for national Master Cooperative agreements for qualifying Youth and Conservation Organizations. This program’s projects provide employment for participants and opportunities to learn about and gain work experience in public lands and natural resources management while promoting long-term interest in public lands stewardship and the BLM. The BLM Youth Program partners with qualified youth and conservation corps to engage individuals between the ages of 16 and 30 (inclusive) and veterans up to age 35 (inclusive) including tribal members.

Deadline passed. Most recent deadline: May 31, 2023. On August 4, 2020 the Great American Outdoors Act was signed into law. The bill provides $900 million in permanent and dedicated annual funding for the Land & Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) and invests up to $9.5 billion to address priority repairs in our national parks and other public lands. The Outdoor Recreation Legacy Partnership (ORLP) Program, created in 2014, is an urban park grants program funded through the Land & Water Conservation Fund. The ORLP offers nationally competitive grants to support the creation or significant renovation of state or locally-owned parks and other outdoor recreation spaces located in urban areas. Funded projects help the public access or re-connect with the outdoors, and specifically target economically disadvantaged neighborhoods that lack adequate parks and recreational opportunities. The sixth application round with $192 million available is now open. Grants range from $300,000 to $10 million. Applications are being accepted in Grants.gov through May 31, 2023, with an early submission deadline of January 31, 2023 for those that have application requirements completed. Interested jurisdictions should contact their state lead agency for LWCF.

The Great Basin Landscape Conservation Cooperative intends that awards under this announcement will support its mission and goals regarding how climate change and other stressors affect natural and cultural resources within the geographic range of the GBLCC.