Announcement for Program Funding for NRCS' Conservation Innovation Grants (CIG) for Federal fiscal year (FY) 2018 | USDA NRCS NHQ CIG 001

Opportunity Information: Apply for USDA NRCS NHQ CIG 001

The USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) Conservation Innovation Grants (CIG) opportunity for federal fiscal year 2018 is a discretionary grant program intended to encourage new, practical conservation ideas and speed up their real-world adoption. The core purpose is to stimulate the development, demonstration, and use of innovative conservation approaches and technologies that can improve how natural resources are managed, especially in agriculture and related working lands contexts. In short, NRCS is using this funding to help move promising conservation concepts from theory into applied, on-the-ground practice.

This funding opportunity is national in scope and open across a broad geographic footprint. Applications are accepted from eligible entities located in any of the 50 U.S. states and the District of Columbia, as well as U.S. island and territory areas specifically named in the announcement. That includes the Caribbean Area (Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands) and the Pacific Islands Area (Guam, American Samoa, and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands). The announcement is designed so that applicants from both the mainland and these covered areas have an equal pathway to compete for funding.

In terms of who can apply, eligibility is very broad and essentially unrestricted, with one clear exclusion. All U.S.-based non-federal entities and individuals may apply, but federal agencies themselves may not. That means the competition is open to a wide range of applicant types such as state and local entities, nonprofit organizations, academic institutions, businesses, and individual applicants, as long as they are not federal agencies. The listing characterizes eligible applicants as "unrestricted," reinforcing that the program is meant to attract a diverse pool of innovators and implementers from across the conservation and agriculture landscape.

Funding levels for FY 2018 are capped at a total program availability of up to $10 million. Individual awards are limited by an award ceiling of $2,000,000 per project, which sets the maximum amount any single award can receive under this announcement. Projects are expected to run between 1 and 3 years, giving applicants flexibility to propose shorter proof-of-concept pilots or multi-year demonstrations and adoption efforts, so long as the scope fits within that duration window.

From an administrative standpoint, the opportunity is published by USDA-NRCS-NHQ under Funding Opportunity Number USDA NRCS NHQ CIG 001, and it is categorized as a discretionary grant. The primary activity areas align with agriculture, environment, natural resources, and science and technology research and development, and it is listed under CFDA number 10.912. The announcement was created on December 18, 2017, and the original application closing date was February 26, 2018, which defines the submission window for applicants competing for FY 2018 funds.

Overall, this FY 2018 CIG announcement is a competitive federal grant opportunity aimed at generating and accelerating innovative conservation solutions, with broad eligibility for U.S.-based non-federal applicants, coverage across states and specified territories, project periods of one to three years, and funding up to $2 million per award within a total pool of up to $10 million.

• The USDA-NRCS-NHQ in the agriculture, environment, natural resources, science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Announcement for Program Funding for NRCS' Conservation Innovation Grants (CIG) for Federal fiscal year (FY) 2018" 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 2017-12-18.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2018-02-26. (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 $2,000,000.00 in funding.
• Eligible applicants include: Unrestricted.

Apply for USDA NRCS NHQ CIG 001

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