Funding Opportunities Newsletter
March & April 2025

Upcoming Grants

• The CA State Libraries: Sustainable California Libraries Program (due March 12) supports climate and sustainability programming and encourages libraries to serve as community hubs that respond to local concerns and interests, such as community disaster preparedness and biodiversity protection.
• The US Forest Service (USFS) Community Wildfire Defense Grant (due March 14—note new due date) helps communities plan for and reduce wildfire risks through development and revising of community wildfire protection plans (CWPPs) and the implementation of projects described in a CWPP that is less than 10 years old. This program provides large funding amounts, though some match is required.
• The USFS Community Wildfire Defense Grant for Indian Tribes (due March 14—note new due date) helps tribes plan for and reduce wildfire risks through development and revising of community wildfire protection plans (CWPPs) and the implementation of projects described in a CWPP that is less than 10 years old. This program provides large funding amounts, though some match is required.
• The US Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) Cooperative Endangered Species Conservation Fund: Conservation Planning Assistance Grants (due March 14) supports the development of new, or the renewal or amendment of existing, habitat conservation plans (HCPs) and conservation benefit agreements (CBAs).
• The US Department of Agriculture (USDA) Inflation Reduction Act Forest Legacy Program (due March 14) protects environmentally important forest areas that are threatened by conversion to non-forest uses, with a focus on large landscape projects, state-tribal partnership projects, and strategic small-tract projects.
• The US Department of the Interior (DOI) Office of Wildland Fire Slip-on Tanker Units Grant Program (due March 14—note new due date) provides local governments with funding to acquire slip-on tanker units to establish fleets of vehicles that can be quickly converted to be operated as fire engines.
• The National Recreation and Park Association Workforce Development Community of Practice Program (due March 24) provides financial and technical assistance to support rural park and recreation agencies, including local, municipal, or regional government agencies; nonprofit organizations; and tribal communities that currently provide workforce development programming through their out-of-school-time (OST) services to youth who are 14 to 21 years of age.
• The CA Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE) Tribal Wildfire Resilience Grant (due March 28) funds planning and implementation projects that serve California Native American Tribes and advance wildfire resilience, forest health, and cultural use of fire.
• The Kate Svitek Memorial Foundation (due March 30) supports a range of activities and educational opportunities related to outdoor and wilderness exploration, study, observation, and preservation.
• The Yamaha Motor Company Outdoor Access Initiative—Guaranteeing Access to Our Nations Trails Grant (due March 31) supports nonprofit organizations and government/municipal entities that promote safe, responsible use of off-highway vehicles (OHVs), educate the public on proper recreational land use and wildlife-conservation practices, and protect appropriate and sustainable access to public lands.
• The CAL FIRE California Forest Improvement Program (due April 1) provides support to eligible landowners to implement planning, reforestation, and resource-management activities that will improve the quality and value of forestland.
• The AmeriCorps State and Native Nation Grants (due April 9) fund planning and implementation projects from federally recognized tribes or tribal organizations to engage members in community-service projects and activities. (This program has been revised, check the website for guideline updates.)
• The CA Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) Fisheries Restoration Grant Program (due April 17) supports projects that restore, enhance, or protect salmonid habitat in anadromous watersheds of California or projects that lead to restoration, enhancement, or protection of anadromous salmonid habitat.
• The CAL FIRE Wood Products and Bioenergy Grant Program (due April 25) promotes healthy resilient forests throughout the state by supporting a diverse set of business-development and workforce-development projects.
• The USFS Temporary Bridge Funding Opportunity Program (due April 25) provides funding to state governments and Indian tribes to establish temporary bridge rental programs for portable skidder bridges, bridge mats, or other temporary water-crossing structures to minimize stream bed disturbance on nonfederal and federal land.
• The CA Dept of Parks and Recreation (DPR) Abandoned Watercraft Abatement Fund (due April 30) provides funding to remove, reduce, and prevent abandoned recreational vessels from entering waterways.
• The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Targeted Brownfields Assessment Program (rolling) conducts free brownfields assessments, such as phase I and phase II environmental site assessments, to units of government, tribes, and nonprofit organizations to provide a better understanding of potential contamination issues and to assist in redevelopment planning.
• The CA Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) Beaver Conflict Resolution Grant Opportunities: Nature Based Solutions: Beaver Restoration (rolling) support the implementation and promotion of human-beaver coexistence strategies, such as non-lethal beaver damage deterrence, in support of ecosystem restoration and protection.
• The USDA Rural Development Emergency Community Water Assistance Grant Program (rolling) helps rural communities prepare for or recover from an emergency that threatens the availability of safe, reliable drinking water.
• The USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service Emergency Watershed Protection Program (rolling) supports economically and environmentally defensible projects that provide protection from flooding or soil erosion, reduce threats to life and property, and restore the hydraulic capacity to the natural environment in situations of imminent threats to life and property caused by floods, fires, windstorms, and other natural occurrences that impair a watershed.
• The USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service Watershed Protection and Flood Prevention Operations Program (rolling) provides technical and financial assistance to support the planning and implementation of authorized watershed projects for the purpose of watershed protection, flood prevention, public recreation, etc.
• The AmeriCorps National Civilian Community Corps (NCCC) Program (rolling) provides a crew of eight to 12 NCCC members and one team leader to serve with sponsoring organizations for three- to 13-week projects in a variety of areas, including environmental stewardship and conservation.
• The Rural Community Assistance Corporation Community Facilities Loan Program (rolling) offers short-term loans for community-facility development in rural communities, including early property acquisition and predevelopment, interim construction costs, and long-term permanent financing.