Federal Environment Grants

Federal Awarding Agency Name: U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), Commodity Credit Corporation (CCC) Funding Opportunity Title: Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP) Alternative Funding Arrangements (AFA) for Federal fiscal year (FY) 2024 Funding Opportunity Number: USDA-NRCS-NHQ-RCPPAFA-24-NOFO0001355 Assistance Listing: 10.932, Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP) Due Date: NRCS must receive proposals by 4:59 p.m. Eastern Time on July 12, 2024. Note: The RCPP AFA and Classic FY 2024 notices of funding opportunity (NFO) will run concurrently. For information on Classic proposals please see USDA-NRCS-NHQ-RCPP-24-NOFO0001354. The RCPP promotes the coordination of NRCS conservation activities with partners that offer valueadded contributions to expand our ability to address on-farm, watershed, and regional natural resource concerns. Through the RCPP, NRCS seeks to co-invest with partners to implement projects that provide solutions to conservation challenges thereby measurably improving the resource concerns they seek to address. RCPP promotes collaboration with partners, stakeholders, and various communities, which is paramount to achieving equity in NRCS programs and services. Using guidance contained in this notice, partners propose projects that generate conservation benefits by addressing specific natural resource concerns in a state or multistate area or by addressing one or more priority resource concerns within an NRCS-designated critical conservation area (CCA). NRCS and partners collaborate to design, promote, and implement RCPP projects on agricultural and nonindustrial private forest land. Through RCPP, NRCS may provide both financial assistance (FA) and technical assistance (TA) funds to project partners and agricultural producers for implementing projects. RCPP proposals are evaluated through a competitive proposal process based on three criteria: impact, partner contributions, and partnership and management. Up to $1.5 billion is available for RCPP projects through this announcement and the FY 2024 Classic announcement, which includes $300 million of the Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018 (2018 Farm Bill) funding and $1.2 billion of Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) funding. Proposals will be accepted from all 50 States, the Caribbean Area (Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands), and U.S. territories in the Pacific Island Areas (Guam, American Samoa, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands). NRCS will prioritize using IRA funds for projects that will implement climate-smart agriculture and forestry conservation activities as described in section F.3.a. of this announcement. Up to $100 million is being made available specifically for NRCS to enter into programmatic partnership agreements with Indian tribes. This set aside will be shared by this announcement and the FY 2024 Classic announcement. Any unused funds may be available for other partnership agreements. RCPP AFAs are intended to support project structures and approaches that cannot be carried out as effectively through the RCPP Classic NFO. RCPP AFA applicants must describe the innovative nature of the conservation approach they are proposing to justify potential funding through an RCPP AFA NFO rather than an RCPP Classic NFO. Moreover, applicants should consider the additional administrative and technical assistance responsibilities that accompany receipt of an RCPP AFA award. The 2018 Farm Bill provides the following examples of project types that might be implemented through RCPP AFA: projects that use innovative approaches to leverage the Federal investment in conservation; projects that deploy a pay-for-performance conservation approach; and projects that seek large-scale infrastructure investments that generate conservation benefits for agricultural producers and nonindustrial private forest owners. Although RCPP AFA provides flexibilities to partners, these projects share the overarching focus of RCPP, which is to engage with producers and landowners to implement conservation practices, systems, and approaches on (or for the benefit of) agricultural and nonindustrial private forest lands. NRCS can make up to 15 awards through this funding opportunity through Farm Bill funding. This limit does not apply to projects funded through the Inflation Reduction Act. Submissions: Proposals must be submitted through the RCPP portal. See section E of this announcement for information on using the RCPP portal to submit proposals. Access to the RCPP portal requires a level 2 eAuthentication credential or a Login.gov credential. Obtaining a new Login.gov credential involves multiple steps and can take several days to complete. Instructions are posted on the How to Apply to RCPP web page listed below. For More Information: Applicants are expected to contact the appropriate state conservationists and state RCPP coordinators prior to submitting a proposal. NRCS will use a state conservation questionnaire to record the results of these conversations. Proposals without a completed questionnaire may have their score and ranking reduced. A list of state RCPP coordinators (as of the date of this announcements posting) is on the NRCS How to Apply to RCPP web page. Applicants can also email the RCPP inbox ([email protected]) with any questions about the announcement. The NRCS RCPP website is also a great source of current information about the program. Interested applicants are encouraged to participate in one or more of the webinars below to learn about the program and how to apply. 2024 RCPP NFO Applicant Outreach Webinar This webinar will provide general information for applicants submitting proposals for the Regional Conservation Partnership Program (RCPP). The same material will be covered at both webinars followed by a question-and-answer section. Please refer to the RCPP website for more information. Regional Conservation Partnership Program Natural Resources Conservation Service (usda.gov) April 23, 2024, RCPP Applicant Outreach Webinar Registration Link 2pm to 4pm EDT - https://events.gcc.teams.microsoft.com/event/e2f45f75-7ea4-410b-b1c9-567537cd2454@ed5b36e7-01ee-4ebc-867e-e03cfa0d4697 May 30, 2024, RCPP Applicant Outreach Webinar Registration Link 2pm to 4pm EDT - https://events.gcc.teams.microsoft.com/event/226dcb51-0b57-43b1-b340-95e535238713@ed5b36e7-01ee-4ebc-867e-e03cfa0d4697 NRCS will schedule additional webinars on RCPP easements and providing outreach to tribal applicants. Information on all webinars will be posted to the RCPP how to apply page.

The purpose of the Mentored Quantitative Research Career Development Award (K25) is to attract to NIH-relevant research those investigators whose quantitative science and engineering research has thus far not been focused primarily on questions of health and disease. The K25 award will provide support and "protected time" for a period of supervised study and research for productive professionals with quantitative (e.g., mathematics, statistics, economics, computer science, imaging science, informatics, physics, chemistry) and engineering backgrounds to integrate their expertise with NIH-relevant research. This Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) is designed specifically for applicants proposing to serve as the lead investigator of an independent clinical trial, a clinical trial feasibility study, or a separate ancillary clinical trial, as part of their research and career development. Applicants not planning an independent clinical trial, or proposing to gain research experience in a clinical trial led by another investigator, must apply to companion FOA.

This funding opportunity provides financial support for projects that enhance marine education and training, particularly for indigenous Pacific Islanders and underserved communities in Hawaii and the Pacific Islands, focusing on sustainable fishing practices and traditional knowledge integration.

This funding opportunity provides financial support to Minority Serving Institutions to conduct research on the environmental and societal impacts of future air transportation technologies, with a focus on benefiting overburdened communities and promoting diversity in the STEM workforce.

This funding opportunity provides financial support for projects that monitor and improve water quality in the Gulf Coast region, targeting state agencies, local governments, educational institutions, nonprofit organizations, and federally recognized Tribes.

This grant provides funding to local organizations and nontraditional partners to promote community-led development, enhance equity, and foster innovative solutions in conflict prevention and recovery efforts.

This funding opportunity provides financial support to researchers with active NIH grants to address unexpected costs and enhance their projects without changing the original research scope.

The U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs (OES) announces an open competition (see eligibility information in Funding Announcement), under the Toxic Chemicals earmark to measurably and sustainably, reduce and mitigate environmental and human exposures to lead arising from occupational sources in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) in Central America, South America, South Asia, Central Asia, and East Asia. Programming under this competition is intended to reduce lead pollution as well as promote and advance environmentally sustainable consumption and production at international, national, and subnational levels.

This grant provides funding for non-federal partners to model oyster larval transport and hydrodynamics in Herring Bay, Maryland, to support ecological restoration efforts in the Chesapeake Bay.

This program provides financial support to U.S.-based developers of hydropower technologies, enabling them to access testing facilities that will help improve their innovations and accelerate commercialization.

This funding opportunity supports state fish and wildlife agencies, nonprofit organizations, and educational institutions in developing regional and national conservation projects that enhance wildlife management and promote hunting and recreational shooting participation.

This funding opportunity provides financial support for high schools and organizations in the Gulf states to engage students in creating art and slogans that promote awareness and reduce plastic pollution in freshwater and marine environments.

The NIH Research Education Program (R25) supports research education activities in the mission areas of the NIH. The over-arching goal of this R25 program is to support educational activities that foster a better understanding of biomedical, behavioral and clinical research and its implications. To accomplish the stated over-arching goal, this FOA will support creative educational activities with a primary focus on research experiences for high school or undergraduate students or science teachers during the summer academic break. The proposed program needs to fit within the mission of the participating IC that the application is being submitted to and should not have a general STEM focus (see below and Table of IC-Specific Information and Points of Contact).

This funding opportunity provides financial support for partners in the South Florida and Caribbean CESU network to conduct research and technical assistance focused on improving the conservation and management of imperiled sea turtle populations through data integration and analysis.

This funding opportunity supports graduate students in the U.S. conducting innovative research on wildland fire and related sciences to address real-world management challenges.

This funding opportunity supports research, education, and innovative projects that enhance understanding and management of ocean resources, targeting a wide range of eligible applicants including universities, nonprofits, and governments.

The U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific Affairs Office of Conservation, and Water (OES) announces the Notice of Funding Opportunity (NOFO) for a program to help address and identify solutions to shared water challenges in the Mekong sub-region by developing and hosting the 4th Mekong Research Symposium (MRS), under the Mekong-U.S. Partnership (MUSP). The MRS will convene stakeholders (including academia, private sector, media and journalists, local government, donors, development and financing partners, non-profits, civil society organizations, and indigenous communities) to present on advancements in science and technology, including local solutions, and raise awareness of existing initiatives and resources to provide long-term, equitable benefits across the sub-region.

This funding opportunity provides financial support for public entities and federally recognized Indian Tribes to implement habitat restoration projects that improve conditions for salmon and trout in California's Sacramento Valley, addressing the impacts of drought and climate change.

Donnelly Training Area, Black Rapids Training Area, and Yukon Training Area Trail and Streambank Improvements, US Army Garrison-Alaska (USAG-AK), Fort Wainwright, Alaska - The primary objectives of this requirement are to assist the USAG-AK with the optimal management of training lands, to minimize restrictions to the military mission due to natural resource related constraints, to protect and enhance ecological health on all USAG-AK lands, and to ensure compliance with all environmental laws and regulations. See full Funding Opportunity Description in Section I.

Tanana Flats Training Area All Season Road and Gravel Production, Fort Wainwright, Alaska SOW 21-108. The objectives of this scope of work are to implement the Integrated Natural Resources Management Plan to provide healthy and resilient environments that are sustainable, high-quality settings for military training, to protect and enhance biological diversity and ecological health on all Department of Defense (DoD) lands, and to ensure compliance with all environmental laws and regulations. See full Funding Opportunity Description in Section I of the Funding Opportunity Announcement.