Promoting Communication and Engagement Initiatives of the 2017 PPJV Implementation Plan and 2013 PPJV Communications Plan in North Dakota | F19AS00257

Opportunity Information: Apply for F19AS00257

This funding opportunity, titled "Promoting Communication and Engagement Initiatives of the 2017 PPJV Implementation Plan and 2013 PPJV Communications Plan in North Dakota" (Funding Opportunity Number F19AS00257), is a U.S. Department of the Interior program administered through the Fish and Wildlife Service. It is offered as a discretionary cooperative agreement under the environmental funding activity category (CFDA 15.637). The core purpose is to support communications and citizen-engagement work that advances the Prairie Pothole Joint Venture (PPJV) priorities in North Dakota, specifically the goals laid out in the 2017 PPJV Implementation Plan and the 2013 PPJV Strategic Communications Plan.

The project is built around a practical idea: conservation succeeds more reliably when people can clearly see how habitat work benefits communities, not just wildlife. In PPJV planning documents, connecting conservation programs to tangible societal benefits was identified as a high priority, and this opportunity is meant to turn that priority into on-the-ground outreach. The funding is intended to help communicate why prairie and wetland conservation matters, how it supports ecosystem services, and how participation by local residents can strengthen long-term outcomes. A major emphasis is placed on engagement that is direct, visible, and rooted in local experience, rather than general awareness messaging.

A central audience for this work is private landowners. The opportunity description highlights that landowners can be some of the most effective advocates for prairie and wetland conservation, since many of the most important habitats in the Prairie Pothole Region occur on or are influenced by privately managed lands. By engaging landowners more intentionally, the PPJV aims to build durable support for habitat protection and management, encourage participation in conservation programs, and strengthen the social networks that help conservation efforts endure across changing economic conditions and policy environments. In other words, the grant supports relationship-building and communications strategies that make it easier for conservation actions to be understood, trusted, and championed by the people closest to the land.

The opportunity also recognizes that outreach cannot be limited to rural communities. Even in a state with relatively low population density like North Dakota, urban and near-urban engagement is described as increasingly important. The reasoning is straightforward: people living in or near cities still influence conservation outcomes through voting, public funding priorities, community norms, and consumer choices. The project therefore supports outreach that helps connect urban residents to prairie and wetland systems, making conservation feel relevant to everyday life and not just something that happens far from town. This includes communicating ecosystem services in ways that resonate with broader audiences, such as the roles wetlands play in water storage, flood reduction, water quality, and landscape resilience.

In terms of activities, the opportunity explicitly points to three engagement tracks. First, it seeks to directly involve K-12 students in learning about prairie and wetland ecology, which suggests hands-on education, school-based programming, field experiences, and age-appropriate curriculum or events that build ecological literacy early. Second, it supports programming for citizens focused on habitat and ecosystem services, which implies public-facing workshops, demonstrations, interpretive events, or community programs that explain what prairies and wetlands do and why management decisions matter. Third, it includes farm-to-table style events that highlight conservation ranching and prairie management farms, using food and local agricultural stories as a way to make conservation real and relatable while showcasing producers who are managing land in ways that sustain habitat values.

Administratively, the announcement notes it is a notice of intent to award a single-source cooperative agreement to Audubon Dakota, citing Department of the Interior policy (505 DM 2) related to unsolicited proposals and unique qualifications. That language indicates the agency anticipated working with a specific organization rather than running a fully open competition, based on the partner's demonstrated fit, experience, or specialized capacity to deliver the outreach work described. While the eligibility field is listed broadly as "Others" with additional eligibility details referenced, the single-source intent is the key takeaway about how the award was expected to be made.

The opportunity was created on June 20, 2019, with an original closing date of June 27, 2019, signaling a short administrative window typical of intent-to-award notices. The listed award ceiling is $30,000, and the opportunity references an expectation of five awards. Taken together, the funding level and the activity description suggest targeted, project-scale communications and engagement efforts designed to produce visible outreach deliverables and stronger community connections, rather than large capital projects or long-term research.

Overall, this grant opportunity is about translating PPJV conservation priorities into public understanding and participation in North Dakota. It funds outreach that frames prairie and wetland conservation in terms of shared benefits, builds support among private landowners and the broader public, and creates practical opportunities for students, residents, and consumers to connect with habitat conservation through education, ecosystem services programming, and events that highlight conservation-minded agricultural and ranching practices.

• The Department of the Interior, Fish and Wildlife Service in the environment sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Promoting Communication and Engagement Initiatives of the 2017 PPJV Implementation Plan and 2013 PPJV Communications Plan in North Dakota" 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 Jun 20, 2019.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Jun 27, 2019 This is a notice of intent to award a single source cooperative agreement to Audubon Dakota in accordance with DOI Policy 505 DM 2 (1) Unsolicited Proposal and (4) Unique Qualifications.. (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 $30,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 5 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Others (see text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility for clarification).

Apply for F19AS00257

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