NFWF Releases Longleaf Landscape Stewardship Fund 2022 Request For Proposals

The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) has announced the release of the 2022 request for proposals under the Longleaf Landscape Stewardship Fund.

The Longleaf Landscape Stewardship Fund is a public-private partnership supported with Federal funding from USDA’s Forest Service and Natural Resources Conservation Service; the Department of Defense; the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service; and private funding from the Bezos Earth Fund, International Paper’s Forestland Stewards Partnership, Southern Company and Altria Group.

In 2018, NFWF’s board of directors adopted the Business Plan: Longleaf Forests and Rivers. The longleaf pine component of this 10-year plan builds upon the efforts of the America’s Longleaf Restoration Initiative and includes a goal of restoring, enhancing, or maintaining longleaf pine habitat to improve populations of the species dependent on this ecosystem.

The plan also outlines goals for the red-cockaded woodpecker, gopher tortoise, Bachman’s sparrow, and northern bobwhite, species that are representative of a broader suite of wildlife that will also benefit from a healthy longleaf pine ecosystem.

This request for proposals (RFP) expects to award approximately $5.6 million in federal and private sector funding in support of projects that restore, enhance and maintain longleaf pine on private and public lands to improve wildlife habitat and water quality. Limited funding also is available to support bottomland hardwood restoration and enhancement activities as outlined within the RFP.

In pursuit of habitat and species restoration goals, applicants are encouraged to prioritize projects that also address co-benefits and engage local communities and historically underserved landowners:

• Conservation Co-Benefits: Projects that will implement habitat restoration or improvement practices that benefit wildlife while also sequestering carbon and/or protecting and improving water quantity or quality are encouraged.
• Community Impact and Engagement: Projects that incorporate outreach to communities, foster community engagement, and pursue collaborative management leading to measurable conservation benefits are encouraged.

All proposals must specifically address how projects will directly and measurably contribute to the longleaf pine and associated species goals outlined in the Longleaf Forest and Rivers Business Plan.

Full proposals are due Tuesday, March 15, 2022 by 11:59 PM Eastern Time.

An applicant webinar will be held on Thursday, February 3, 2022 at 2:00pm Eastern Time [Register here]

For more information or questions about this RFP, please contact Jon Scott (jonathan.scott@nfwf.org).

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