BLM-(WO), Nature Areas Association Education and Outreach | L17AS00228

Opportunity Information: Apply for L17AS00228

The grant opportunity titled "BLM-(WO), Nature Areas Association Education and Outreach" (Funding Opportunity Number L17AS00228) is a Bureau of Land Management (BLM) discretionary funding announcement issued by the U.S. Department of the Interior. It is offered as a cooperative agreement under the Natural Resources activity category (CFDA 15.231). The opportunity was created on August 2, 2017, with an original closing date of September 2, 2017. BLM anticipated making one award with a maximum funding amount (award ceiling) of $99,000.

At its core, the opportunity is designed to continue and strengthen outreach and information-sharing efforts that BLM and partners have been building over the prior five years. The focus is on practical, field-relevant education and communication around plant conservation, development and use of native plant materials, pollinator-related work, and broad implementation of the National Seed Strategy. The intended audience includes people and organizations actively involved in identifying, protecting, managing, and studying natural areas and biological diversity across different landscapes and ecosystems, with an emphasis on helping these practitioners apply current science and best practices in day-to-day stewardship and restoration work.

A major driver of the project is direct support for the National Seed Strategy, which calls on federal and non-federal partners to expand the development, production, and use of native plants for restoration efforts nationwide. The partner supported through this award would contribute to multiple National Seed Strategy goals. Under Goal 1, which calls for a national assessment of native seed needs and capacities, the partner would function as a connector to natural area managers, gathering and relaying information so that on-the-ground needs, gaps, and capacity constraints are represented in broader national planning. This liaison role is important because seed needs and supply realities can vary widely by region, ecosystem type, and management priorities, and the strategy depends on credible input from practitioners who are actually planning and implementing restoration.

Under Goal 3 of the National Seed Strategy, which centers on developing decision tools for managers, the award envisions a strong translation component. Rather than leaving guidance in purely technical formats, the partner would help turn scientific findings into actionable, manager-friendly information delivered through a webinar series. In practice, that means packaging research, methods, and lessons learned into training-style sessions that support real-world decisions related to restoration planning, native seed sourcing, monitoring approaches, and other stewardship actions tied to native plant materials and conservation outcomes.

Under Goal 4, which emphasizes communication, the partner would publish a quarterly journal featuring scientific articles and applied stewardship content related to natural areas. The journal is intended to serve as a consistent outlet for sharing research and management experiences, with example topic areas explicitly including ecological monitoring, inventorying techniques, restoration practices, and native seed. The point is not just to circulate academic research, but to build a steady pipeline of credible information that supports practitioners and encourages coordination across organizations working in natural areas and biodiversity conservation.

Eligibility for the opportunity is listed as unrestricted, meaning it is open to any type of entity, with the caveat that applicants must still comply with any eligibility clarifications contained in the full funding announcement. Overall, the opportunity is structured to fund one partner organization capable of acting as a national communications and coordination hub for natural area managers, strengthening two-way information flow between field practitioners and national strategy efforts, while also delivering practical education products (webinars) and ongoing publication-based outreach (a quarterly journal) aligned with the National Seed Strategy.

• The Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management in the natural resources sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "BLM-(WO), Nature Areas Association Education and Outreach" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 15.231.
• This funding opportunity was created on Aug 02, 2017.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Sep 02, 2017. (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 $99,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 1 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Unrestricted (i.e., open to any type of entity above), subject to any clarification in text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility.

Apply for L17AS00228

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