Pacific Islands Area Conservation Innovation Grant (CIG) FY2023 Announcement | USDA NRCS HI CIG 23 NOFO0001293

Opportunity Information: Apply for USDA NRCS HI CIG 23 NOFO0001293

The Pacific Islands Area Conservation Innovation Grant (CIG) FY2023 Announcement is a competitive federal grant opportunity offered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), with funding authority tied to the Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) assistance listing (ALN) 10.912 under 16 U.S.C. 3839aa et seq. The purpose of this program is to stimulate the development, testing, and adoption of innovative conservation approaches and technologies. In practical terms, NRCS is looking for projects that go beyond standard or already widely used conservation practices, helping move promising ideas into real-world use and broader adoption.

This particular competition is for the Pacific Islands Area and supports projects carried out in Hawaii, American Samoa, Guam, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI). For FY 2023, NRCS set aside up to $500,000 total for this regional competition, with an expectation of making about four awards. Individual awards are relatively modest and are designed to support pilot-scale innovation: the federal share per award is expected to fall between a $50,000 funding floor and a $150,000 funding ceiling, with $150,000 being the maximum award size for a single project in this cycle. Projects can run from one to three years, giving applicants flexibility to propose shorter demonstrations or longer test-and-evaluate efforts depending on the innovation being advanced.

Eligibility is broad and intentionally inclusive, with the main exclusion being federal agencies. The opportunity is open to non-federal entities and individuals, including state, county, and local governments; special districts; independent school districts; public and private institutions of higher education; federally recognized tribal governments and other tribal organizations; public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities; nonprofit organizations (both 501(c)(3) and non-501(c)(3)); for-profit organizations (including small businesses and other for-profits); and individuals. This wide eligibility reflects the program's emphasis on encouraging innovation wherever it originates, whether from academia, community organizations, the private sector, or local practitioners.

Applications had to be submitted electronically through Grants.gov, with the deadline set for 11:59 pm Eastern Time on June 5, 2023. NRCS emphasized that applicants are responsible for managing their Grants.gov registrations and submissions, and that technical help for Grants.gov issues must go through Grants.gov Applicant Support rather than NRCS staff. For questions about the notice itself, applicants were directed to the federal awarding agency contact listed in the notice (Section G), but with an important boundary: agency staff would address questions tied to the written requirements (dates, clarifications, resolving discrepancies) and would not provide feedback on whether an applicant is eligible in a specific situation or whether a proposed idea is likely to be competitive.

To help applicants prepare, NRCS scheduled an informational webinar for May 4, 2023 at 1:00 pm Hawaii Standard Time, held via Microsoft Teams, with a call-in option and an accommodation contact for participants with disabilities (requesting at least 48 hours advance notice). NRCS also encouraged applicants to use the Pacific Area CIG website as a central resource for program background and updates. After submission, NRCS projected an accelerated timeline, estimating selections by June 16, 2023 and award execution by September 15, 2023, while noting these dates were estimates and could change.

Finally, NRCS highlighted that this funding is considered federal financial assistance and encouraged prospective applicants, especially those less familiar with federal grants, to complete the public "Grants 101" training hosted at CFO.gov. The referenced modules cover the core compliance areas that commonly affect grant recipients, including governing laws and regulations, the types of financial assistance mechanisms, the Uniform Guidance administrative requirements, federal cost principles, and risk management and single audit concepts. This emphasis signals that, beyond having a strong technical conservation idea, applicants should be prepared to manage federal award rules, budgeting, documentation, and reporting expectations that come with receiving and administering a USDA NRCS grant.

• The Department of Agriculture, Natural Resources Conservation Service in the agriculture, environment, natural resources sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Pacific Islands Area Conservation Innovation Grant (CIG) FY2023 Announcement" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 10.912.
• This funding opportunity was created on Apr 21, 2023.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Jun 05, 2023 Applications must be received by 1159 pm Eastern Time.. (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 $150,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 4 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: State governments, County governments, City or township governments, Special district governments, Independent school districts, Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized), Public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities, Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments), Nonprofits having a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Nonprofits that do not have a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Private institutions of higher education, Individuals, For profit organizations other than small businesses, Small businesses.

Apply for USDA NRCS HI CIG 23 NOFO0001293

[Watch] Creating a grant proposal using the step-by-step wizard inside the applicant portal: