Grant - People’s Garden Grant Program Request for Applications (RFA)

People’s Garden Grant Program Request for Applications (RFA)

This program is a joint initiative supported by USDA's Agricultural

Marketing Service, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service, Food and

Nutrition Service, Forest Service, and Natural Resources Conservation

Service, and is being administered by the National Institute of Food and

Agriculture (NIFA).

Funds from the People’s Garden Grant Program will be used to facilitate

the creation of produce, recreation, and/or wildlife gardens in urban

and rural areas, which will provide opportunities for science-based

informal education.

The total amount available in fiscal year 2011 for support of this

program is $725,000. The maximum award to a single applicant will be

$150,000. All applications are due Aug. 26, 2011 and funds will be

awarded before Sept. 30, 2011. Successful applicants will establish a

micro-subgrant program that will provide funding of $1,000 to $5,000 to

support smaller local projects.

Please feel free to forward this announcement to those that might be

interested in applying.

Deadline:  Applications must be received by Grants.gov by 5 p.m. Eastern

Time on Friday, August 26, 2011.

Funding Opportunity Number:  USDA-NIFA-OP-003503

NIFA Funding Opportunity Page:

http://www.nifa.usda.gov/fo/peoplesgardengrantprogram.cfm . This page

includes links to the request for applications (RFA), the NIFA

Grants.gov Application Guide, the application package, and abstracts of

funded projects.

Grants.gov Synopsis Page:

http://www.grants.gov/search/search.do;jsessionid=KzYXTv7Q09w7VLvlxsh43vTsqnhLDwp10CGNxXsTQ1PGVLxSF4RX!751481409?oppId=108453&mode=VIEW

.  This page includes a synopsis of the funding opportunity, a link to

the full announcement (RFA) and the application package.

Grants.gov Application Package:

http://apply07.grants.gov/apply/GetGrantFromFedgrants;jsessionid=tQ4bTv7Tjw2LQp8J2TwDlywV98z2McbzpGVmyF11K2xNr2pLxb2T!751481409?opportunity=USDA-NIFA-OP-003503&agencycode=USDA-NIFA

.  This page links to the application instructions and the application

package.

If you have questions regarding the RFA, please contact: Dr. Tom Bewick,

tbewick@nifa.usda.gov  or (202) 401-3356.

If you have any questions related to Grants.gov content, contact the

Grants.gov Contact Center:

Email:  support@grants.gov , Phone: Toll Free: 1-800-518-4726, 24 hour

support, excluding Federal holidays.

Useful Links:

NIFA Grant Application Information:

www.nifa.usda.gov/funding/application_info.html ;

Grants.gov Help:  www.grants.gov/help/help.jsp .

The People’s Gardens Grant Program will be administered by USDA’s

National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) with funds provided by

the following USDA agencies: Agricultural Marketing Service, the Animal

and Plant Health Inspection Service, the Food and Nutrition Service, the

Forest Service and the Natural Resources Conservation Service.

Interested potential applicants can participate on a teleconference to

get details about the People’s Garden Grant Program on Aug. 4, 2011 at 1

p.m., EDT. To participate, call toll-free (888) 858-2144; the access

code is 1059897. For those unable to participate in the call, NIFA will

post a summary of the questions and information provided to our website.

Dr. Tom Bewick is directing the program and can be reached at

tbewick@nifa.usda.gov or by telephone at (202) 401-3356.

Brownfield Grant Writing Tip

Excerpt from Stanley Group Brownfields Bulletin (07/26, Quast):

A couple of trends have impacted the number and types of EPA Brownfields grant winners.  The most obvious is the reduced funding, a trend which we expect to continue for at least the next year or so.  The second trend is not quite as obvious.  In an effort to focus on job creation, EPA is giving preference to Cleanup and RLF grants, equating cleanups with redevelopment and jobs.  This means that applicants will need to redefine their strategy for going after EPA Brownfields funding.  Here are some suggestions to increase your chances of winning funding:

Applying for an Assessment grant-

1. Link your brownfields sites directly to the health impacts of a nearby sensitive population (minority, low-income, elderly, etc.)
2. Connect the dots between conducting Phase I and II Environmental Sites Assessment (ESAs) and job creation.   For example, if you think most of your sites can be cleared with assessments and will not require cleanups state that clearly and discuss your plan for getting the site redeveloped after it has been cleared.

Applying for a Cleanup or RLF grant --

1. If you have 1 to 3 sites that need assessments, check to see if your state has a Targeted Brownfields Assessment (TBA) program to conduct Phase I and II ESAs.  Many states have funding from current or previous EPA Brownfields grants to the state for this purpose.  Once the Phase I and Phase II ESAs have been completed, you can apply for EPA Brownfields Cleanup or RLF grants to clean the sites up.
2. If you have a site owner that wants to donate contaminated property to your organization, insist that the owner pay for a Phase I and II ESA so you can apply for funding to clean it up.  (Make sure that the amount of cleanup required will not exceed the total of the funding you can leverage.)
3. If your organization has funding to conduct Phase I and II ESAs on your target sites, go ahead pay for them, then apply for the Cleanup or RLF grants to clean them up.

For all applications, get an early start so you can take the necessary time to build your case and consider taking a workshop for pointers or retaining an experienced consultant to assist you.

If you would like more information on brownfields redevelopment funding opportunities, or grant writing please contact Cynthia Quast, P.E., Brownfields Redevelopment Department Manager at quastcindy@stanleygroup.com or 319.626.5316.

Free EPA Brownfield Grant Writing Webinars

Free EPA Grant Writing Webinars

Don't miss this opportunity to receive grant writing advice directly from the funders! Western Brownfield Regions 8, 9 & 10 are jointly presenting six webinars to help you write your FY12 grant application.

EPA's Brownfields Program provides direct funding for brownfield assessment, cleanup, revolving loans, and environmental job training. Whether you're a seasoned grant writer or new to the funding process, these free webinars will provide a detailed review the FY12 grant guidelines and end with a Q&A session to help answer all of your application questions.

Schedule:

August 9 – 9am Pacific, 10am Mountain ** Brownfields 101 - Broad overview of the Brownfield Grant Programs. Intended for new applicants. August 17 – 12pm Pacific, 1pm Mountain ** Detailed review of guidelines for assessment, revolving loan fund (RLF) and cleanup proposals. August 24 – 10am Pacific, 11am Mountain ** Detailed grant guideline review for assessment applicants. August 25 – 1pm Pacific, 2pm Mountain ** Detailed grant guideline review for RLF applicants. August 30 – 1pm Pacific, 2pm Mountain ** Detailed grant guideline review for clean up applicants. October 6 – 10am Pacific, 11am Mountain **  Q&A - Last minute questions for all brownfield grant applicants.  To Register: Please take a look at the online registration form and follow the links to register. ** If you are unable to participate in a webinar, you may still register so that you receive copies of presentations and information on any webinar archives.

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