Forest Service Urban and Community Forestry Challenge Cost Share Grant Program - FY 2025
| Agency: | U.S. Department of Agriculture |
|---|---|
| CFDA: | 10.675 |
| Office: | U.S. Forest Service |
| Multipart Grant: | No |
| Next Due: | 02/27/2025 (Proposal) |
|---|---|
| Solicitation Date: | 11/26/2024 |
| Match Required: | Yes |
| Match Type: | Cash/In-Kind |
| Actual Funds: | $1,000,000 (Estimated) |
Summary:
The purpose of this program is to restore, sustain, and manage urban and community forest lands for the benefit of the nation's communities. For FY 2025, projects must address goals three and five of the funding agency's 2016-2026 National Ten-Year Urban and Community Forestry Action Plan, which are to cultivate diversity, equity, and leadership within the urban forestry community; and to improve urban and community forestry management, maintenance, and stewardship.
Specifically, the funding agency seeks projects to identify or develop successful sustainable green workforce development programs for urban and community forestry/green infrastructure for disadvantaged communities. Key factors to be included in an existing or proposed sustainable workforce development program are:
- Safety standards and procedures must be a priority
- Use of American Nursery Stock standards
- Adaptability and suitability for different geographical areas around the country, territories, and Indian nations
- Identification of successful existing program(s) and how they could be improved.
- Training certifications that are to be scalable at different size levels, as applicable
- Programs lead to certification recognized by the green industry, local government, and/or state organizations
- Inclusion of partnering or collaboration with key professional organizations for feedback and technical support
- Identification of geographical pay rates, as applicable
- Identification of barriers that may prevent disadvantage community members from participating
- Translations to languages other than English
Refer to pages 2-3 of the NOFA file for additional information regarding key factors to be included in workforce development programs.
Successful workforce development pilots will be compiled, published online, and made available to interested public.
Last Updated: May 21, 2025
Eligibility Notes:
Eligible applicants are:
- Nonprofit organizations
- Any U.S. state or territory
- Local governments
- Educational institutions of higher learning
- Federally recognized tribal organizations, including those operating in U.S. territories
Partnership collaboration is required, as two or more related partners must be involved in the proposal and include formal letters of partnership. Letters of support from other key stakeholders may also be included, as applicable.
Private entities are not eligible, but may be partners in the project.
Eligible Applicants:
Local GovernmentAcademic Institutions
Consortia
Non Profits
State Government
Tribal Organizations/Institutions
Application Notes:
Proposals must be received by 5:00 p.m. ET on February 27, 2025.
Proposals must be submitted online using the link that will be made available at ucfgrants2025.urbanandcommunityforests.org.
The contents of the application will become available upon initiation of the online application process. Proposals must include a proposal narrative that does not exceed ten single-spaced pages and is submitted as a .pdf file. Proposals must also include a budget narrative/justification submitted as a separate .pdf file.
The following are required in order to submit an application:
- Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) number
- SAM (System for Award Management) registration
Applicants may obtain a UEI number and verify or renew SAM registration status at www.ecivis.com/sam.
Proposals will be evaluated according to the following criteria:
- Proposal description (20 points)
- Literature review (5 points)
- Product (15 points)
- Collaboration (15 points)
- National distribution/scalability of messaging campaign (10 points)
- Project evaluation (5 points)
- Experience/personnel/adequacy of resources (15 points)
- Budget justification (15 points)
Refer to the NOFA and NarrativeTemplate files for additional application information.
| Match Required: | Yes |
|---|---|
| Match Type: | Cash/In-Kind |
| Actual Funds: | $1,000,000 (Estimated) |
Match Notes:
Applicants must provide at least a one-to-one match of the total award amount via nonfederal contributions, which may include in-kind donations, volunteer assistance, and private and pubic monetary contributions.
While other federal dollars or technical support may contribute to the project, they may not be used as matching contributions.
Funding Notes:
Approximately $1 million is available to support awards through this program.
The proposal review and award process may take up to six months.
All projects must be completed within three years.
Funds may not be used for federal employees' salary, travel, or per diem.
Contacts:
Nancy Stremple
National Urban and Community Forestry Specialist
SM.FS.nucfac@usda.gov
nancy.stremple@usda.gov
Agency Address
U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)
U.S. Forest Service
1400 Independence Ave., SW
Washington, D.C. 20250-0003
Contact Notes:
Questions should be directed to Nancy Stremple.
Proposals must be submitted online using the link that will be made available at ucfgrants2025.urbanandcommunityforests.org.
The agency address provided is for reference purposes only.
Files:
NOFA File: US0987_NOFA_FY2025.pdf (210.6 Kb)Other Pre-Award File: US0987_Definitions&Resources_FY2025.pdf (235.6 Kb)
Other Pre-Award File: US0987_NarrativeTemplate_FY2025.doc (75.5 Kb)
Award File: US0987_Award_FY2025.pdf (363.1 Kb)
File Notes:
The NOFA file contains detailed program information and application guidelines. The Definitions&Resources file contains definitions and additional resources for this program. The ProjectNarrativeTemplate file contains a sample of the project narrative portion of the online application and should be used for reference purposes only. The Award file contains information on previous award recipients. Additional program resources are expected to be made available online at ucfgrants2025.urbanandcommunityforests.org.
| Project: | Trees and Residential Electricity Demand: A Large -Scale Multivariate Analysis (490.7 Kb) |
|---|---|
| Applicant: | Auburn University |
| Summary: |
The purpose of the Urban and Community Forestry Challenge Cost-Share Grant Program is to establish sustainable urban and community forests by encouraging communities of all sizes to manage and protect their natural resources. Auburn University requested $116,438 to conduct multivariate analyses to determine the electricity savings generated by shade-producing trees in a suburban environment. The university provided $122,739 in matching funds. |
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Training & Vocational ServicesEnvironment/Natural Resources
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