Up to $119M available for conservation projects
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News from the Dept. of the Interior
RALEIGH, NORTH CAROLINA — On Feb. 26, the Biden-Harris administration announced the release of the 2024 Request for Proposals for the America the Beautiful Challenge, as part of President Biden’s Investing in America agenda. The program, which was launched in 2022 with support from President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, is dedicated to funding landscape-scale conservation and restoration projects that implement existing conservation plans across the nation. In 2024, the program expects to award up to $119 million in grants to communities nationwide.
The America the Beautiful Challenge advances President Biden’s America the Beautiful initiative, which set the nation’s first-ever goal to conserve and restore 30 percent of U.S. lands and waters by 2030. The 10-year, locally led and nationally scaled initiative lifts up efforts to protect, conserve, connect and restore the lands, waters and wildlife upon which we all depend. In his first two years in office, President Biden invested more dollars in conservation than any other President in a two-year period, and he is on track to conserve more lands and waters than any President in history.
“Nature is our greatest ally in the fight against climate change – and President Biden’s Investing in America agenda is helping ensure we have the resources we need to reach our conservation goals,” said Acting Deputy Secretary Daniel-Davis. “Through the America the Beautiful Challenge, we are deploying historic resources to restore our nation’s lands and waters in partnership with Tribes, local communities and private landowners. This work is making an impact across landscapes, benefiting endangered species, expanding our use of Indigenous knowledge and helping us to build an environment fit to pass down to future generations.”
“The America the Beautiful Challenge is supporting locally led conservation and restoration projects in communities across the country thanks to historic investments from President Biden’s Investing in America agenda,” said White House Council on Environmental Quality Chair Brenda Mallory. “For the third year, communities are encouraged to submit proposals for projects that will help ensure everyone can access the benefits nature has to offer for years to come.”
America the Beautiful Challenge grants support projects that conserve, restore and connect wildlife habitats and ecosystems while improving community resilience and access to nature, which also advance President Biden’s ambitious environmental justice goals. The White House launched the Challenge in 2022 as a partnership with the Departments of the Interior, Agriculture, and Defense, and Native Americans in Philanthropy and is administered by the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation.
“At USDA, we specialize in not only managing the lands in our care, but working across boundaries, jurisdictions and ownerships to steward the entire landscape,” said Dr. Homer Wilkes, U.S. Department of Agriculture undersecretary for natural resources and environment. “Working alongside Tribes and our many partners, and with historic resources from President Biden’s Investing in America agenda, we are making our country’s lands healthier and more resilient, while safeguarding the communities that depend on them for subsistence uses, cultural resources, recreation, clean air and water, jobs and more.”
“The Department of Defense (DOD) is pleased to continue expanding local capacity and advancing on-the-ground outcomes in partnership with the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, the Department of the Interior, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and Native Americans in Philanthropy through this year’s America the Beautiful Challenge,” said Brendan Owens, Department of Defense Assistant Secretary of Defense, Energy, Installations, and Environment. “The 2024 America the Beautiful Challenge presents a unique opportunity for DOD and conservation partners to restore vital natural landscapes outside our installations and ranges. This year’s America the Beautiful Challenge will directly contribute to DOD’s strategic priorities, including the new Resilient and Healthy Defense Communities Strategy, by building strong external partnerships, establishing nature-based solutions, and improving access to outdoor recreation opportunities.”
In its second year, the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes received $3,499,900 for Bio-Cultural Restoration within the Crown of the Continent. In addition, Montana Fish Wildlife and Parks received $4,972,300 for Landowner-led Carnivore Conflict Reduction in Western Montana and the Fort Peck Tribes received $4,999,6000 for the Northern Plains Bison Range Conservation Improvements with the Fort Peck Buffalo Program.
America the Beautiful Challenge grant pre-proposals are due April 4, 2024, and the full RFP can be found on NFWF’s Request for Proposals webpage. Awards are expected to be announced in November 2024. Proposals are reviewed by a public-private committee of partners and technical experts, and funding decisions are based on the extent to which they meet the criteria listed in the RFP.
Additional information about the program can be found on NFWF’s America the Beautiful Challenge webpage.
