Applications Invited for Coral Reef Stewardship Fund 2025

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About the Organization

Since our creation by Congress in 1984, NFWF has grown to become the nation’s largest private conservation foundation. We work with both the public and private sectors to protect and restore our nation’s fish, wildlife, plants and habitats for current and future generations.

About the Grant

The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) will award grants to improve the health of coral reef systems. Grants will be awarded to reduce land-based sources of pollution, advance coral reef fisheries management, increase capacity for reef-scale restoration, and to support management in their efforts to increase the natural recovery and resiliency of coral reef systems.

The Coral Reef Stewardship Fund is a partnership with the U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) Coral Reef Conservation Program (CRCP) and receives additional funding support from the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) and Aramco Americas. The Coral Reef Stewardship Fund expects to have approximately $3,500,000 available for funding this grants cycle.

The Stewardship Fund prioritizes projects that will directly support the conservation and management of U.S. coral reefs. Therefore, applicants under this program are strongly encouraged to contact a local manager that they feel is most applicable to their project scope and/or the coral liaison for the jurisdiction where they plan to work. Listing the name, title, and affiliation of the individual you have contacted is helpful in the pre-proposal but not required. A letter indicating knowledge of the project may be required at the Full Proposal stage depending on the scope of work.

This engagement should serve as an opportunity to:

• Share the conservation objectives of your proposed project;
• Learn of any similar projects you might build upon or adjustments that would make your outcomes even more useful to local needs;
• Discuss your intended scope of work for feedback on adjustments or requirements for local permitting and adapting to the local conservation context; and
• Share your intended products and communication, including how local managers would like to be engaged or informed during or after implementation, if your project is selected.

Program priorities

The most competitive applications under this funding opportunity will work directly with local coral reef managers to implement priority projects in the following conservation categories for reefs associated with the priority geographies above. U.S. coral reef conservation projects that either fall outside of or only indirectly address these priority categories or geographies are still eligible for funding but are considered a lower priority than those with a direct nexus.

Threat Reduction to Priority Reef Sites

• Projects under this category will support the implementation of activities identified in  watershed management plans, marine protected area plans, or fisheries management  plans, with an increased priority for activities that benefit reefs at the above locations.  Applicants should identify the specific plan – including the year it was finalized, how the  threat/activity is listed in relative priority to other activities in the plan, the measurable  goal/target for this activity in the plan, and the contribution to the target that the project seeks to achieve.

Increase Institutional Management Capacity in Coral Conservation

• In a recent survey of coral managers and practitioners in the U.S., responses indicated that the greatest barrier to coral conservation was local agency capacity in the way of staffing, grant-writing, project oversight, and even day-to-day tasks like procurement. This category seeks to identify creative solutions to increase the necessary capacity in our coral jurisdictions to address priority threats.

Grant size

The Coral Reef Stewardship Fund offers one grant cycle per year and available funding is expected to be approximately $3,500,000. Average grant awards will range from $80,000 to $600,000, with higher amounts going to threat reduction and BMP implementation projects, however there is no maximum or minimum requirement. Most awarded projects will be 6 months to 3 years in duration.

Eligibility

• Eligible applicants include non-profit organizations, state government agencies, local governments, municipal governments, Tribal governments and organizations, and educational institutions in the United States. For-profit entities and individuals are potentially eligible for Priority Category III. Increase Management Capacity for Coral Conservation. If this applies to your project, please contact Michelle Pico (pico@nfwf.org)
• Ineligible applicants include U.S. Federal government agencies and projects seeking to work on non-U.S. coral reefs.
• NOAA Coral Reef Conservation Program staff are available and encouraged to provide general information on programmatic goals and objectives, ongoing coral reef conservation programs/activities, and regional funding priorities; however, NOAA employees are not permitted to assist in the preparation of applications or write letters of support for any application. If NOAA employees will be a collaborator on a project, they may provide a statement verifying that they are collaborating with the project applicant, confirming the degree and nature of the collaboration, and acknowledging the utility of the proposed work. NOAA employee activities, including travel and salaries, are not allowable costs.

How to Apply

Pre-Proposal Due Date: February 12, 2025, 11:59 PM, Eastern Time

All application materials must be submitted online through National Fish and Wildlife Foundation’s Easygrants system.

• Go to easygrants.nfwf.org to register in our Easygrants online system. New users to the system will be prompted to register before starting the application (if you already are a registered user, use your existing login). Enter your applicant information. Please disable the pop-up blocker on your internet browser prior to beginning the application process.
• Once on your homepage, click the “Apply for Funding” button and select this RFP’s “Funding Opportunity” from the list of options.
• Follow the instructions in Easygrants to complete your application. Once an application has been started, it may be saved and returned to at a later time for completion and submission.

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