Migratory Bird Joint Ventures Midwest Region - FY2018 Opportunities | F18AS00100

Opportunity Information: Apply for F18AS00100

Migratory Bird Joint Ventures Midwest Region - FY2018 Opportunities (F18AS00100) is a discretionary grant program run by the U.S. Department of the Interior, Fish and Wildlife Service, focused on supporting science-based migratory bird conservation in the Upper Mississippi River and Great Lakes Joint Venture (UMRGLJV) region. The main purpose is to help partners carry out projects that are grounded in the Joint Venture's Implementation Plan and related conservation strategies, especially where those plans identify priority needs for bird habitat, monitoring, and applied research tied to focal species. The program is designed to strengthen decision-making at meaningful geographic scales by filling information gaps and testing assumptions that were used when the Joint Venture plans were built.

The highest priority is given to monitoring and applied research projects that improve the Joint Venture's conservation decision tools at larger scales such as Bird Conservation Regions, rather than projects that only produce local, site-specific benefits. Proposals are also encouraged to connect directly to State Wildlife Action Plan priorities and to clearly call out benefits to Joint Venture focal species. While the emphasis is on research and monitoring that feeds back into better regional conservation decisions, the opportunity also notes that proposals involving coordination, outreach, planning, and habitat restoration or enhancement may be considered when funding allows, as long as they contribute to objectives already identified in the Joint Venture plans and the applicant can explain why the outcomes matter at a regional level.

Funding is relatively small and competitive: the award ceiling is $50,000, with an estimated five awards expected. Eligible applicants include state, county, and local governments; federally recognized tribal governments; public and private institutions of higher education; and qualifying 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations (excluding universities under the nonprofit category, since higher education has its own eligibility line). The funding activity category is Natural Resources under CFDA 15.637, which is commonly associated with Fish and Wildlife Service wildlife and habitat conservation assistance.

A major requirement is cost sharing. Each proposal must provide at least a 1:1 match of non-federal dollars to the amount requested from the Joint Venture, and the partners supplying that match must be identified with the match described as secured. If a project relies on multiple funding sources beyond this grant, the application needs to spell out every source and indicate whether it is confirmed or still pending. Applicants requesting indirect costs must have an approved Indirect Cost Rate Agreement to justify those charges.

Applications are expected to be detailed and structured like a professional project plan rather than a short concept note. Required elements include full contact information; a clearly developed scope of work with justification; objectives or hypotheses; the project scope and location; methods explained in a way that a reviewer can evaluate feasibility and rigor; anticipated outcomes and management implications; relevant citations; timelines (including both a proposed project timeline and a task timeline); and a budget table that identifies partners and match along with project cost details. A key review point is the explicit linkage between the proposed monitoring or research and the Joint Venture Implementation Plan, meaning applicants need to point to the specific plan needs they are addressing and explain how results will be used.

Reporting expectations are also spelled out. For multi-year projects, annual interim reports are required, and at the end of the project the grantee must produce a professional final report with an abstract, background, methods, results, discussion, and management implications. The notice also cautions that future-year funding for multi-year work cannot be guaranteed; continued support may be conditionally approved after initial selection, but applicants should not assume later-year funds are automatic.

The opportunity was posted March 30, 2018, with an original closing date of May 30, 2018, and applicants are directed to consult the attached Notice of Funding Opportunity for full instructions. Because federal appropriations can be delayed, projects should not plan to start earlier than October 1, 2018.

• The Department of the Interior, Fish and Wildlife Service in the natural resources sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Migratory Bird Joint Ventures Midwest Region - FY2018 Opportunities" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 15.637.
• This funding opportunity was created on Mar 30, 2018.
• Applicants must submit their applications by May 30, 2018 See attached NOFO for details.. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $50,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 5 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: State governments, County governments, City or township governments, Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized), Nonprofits having a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Private institutions of higher education.

Apply for F18AS00100

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