Join First Nations and the U.S. Forest Service for online office hours on the Community Forest Program (CFP) on December 12, 2024, at 1 pm MT. An overview of the CFP will be provided, and participant questions will be addressed.
The CFP offers a competitive grant opportunity that provides matching funds to purchase forested lands for a community forest. Applications are due to state foresters or equivalent tribal government officials by January 13, 2025.
First Nations has small capacity grants of up to $10,000 and technical assistance to support tribal applications to the CFP. For more information about First Nations resources please visit here. Additional information about the program is available on the Community Forest Program website.
THIS WEBINAR WAS NOT RECORDED.
Addressing wildfire risk reduction, watershed protection and restoration, invasive species management, and wildlife habitat connectivity requires a holistic landscape scale approach across jurisdictional boundaries. To encourage these efforts, the U.S. Forest Service created the Landscape Scale Restoration Program (LSRP), a competitive federal grant opportunity that seeks to promote collaborative, science-based restoration across priority forest landscapes.
This webinar will feature presentations on tribally led LSRP projects, along with an overview of the LSRP funding opportunity from a U.S. Forest Service representative. The LSRP offers a competitive grant opportunity for federally recognized tribes, Alaska Native corporations/villages, and tribal organizations. Applications are being accepted through December 16, 2024.
In the webinar, the following tribes will discuss their work to promote collaborative restoration of priority forest landscapes:
- Kuskokwim Corporation, Will Hartman, Kuskokwim Climate Resilient Forestry and Harvest Program
- Kalispel Tribe of Indians, Mike Lithgow, Improved Forest Management through Biochar Air Curtain Burners Project
- Natural Resource Specialist, Sherri Wormstead: State Forest Action Plans and Landscape Scale Restoration Grant Program, U.S. Forest Service
- Cooperative Forestry Program Manager, Laura Moser; U.S. Forest Service Southwestern Region – State Private and Tribal Forestry
The webinar was held on Tuesday, October 29, 2024, at 1 pm MT.
As part of our Fortifying Our Forests project, this hands-on webinar will explore funding opportunities for land return, restoration, and management objectives. The webinar will walk through what to expect when applying for the USDA Forest Service’s Community Forest and Open Space Conservation Program, what’s needed to make a robust application, and how to use geospatial data to determine eligibility and changes in landscapes of interest.
The webinar was held on Thursday, September 12, 2024, at 1 pm MT.
Wednesday, November 18, 2020
Tribes and Native-led 501(c)3 conservation organizations are eligible to apply for funding through the USDA to establish a community forest. The funding can cover up to 50% of costs to purchase forested lands in fee simple acquisitions for community benefit. In this one-hour webinar and Q&A session, participants will learn how the USDA Community Forest Program works and how to write and submit an application.
Wednesday, March 24, 2021, 12 pm Mountain
Join representatives of the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians and the Kalispel Tribe of Indians to learn about their efforts to reacquire ancestral lands to protect tribal values and cultural resources, promote forest resilience, and provide opportunities for public education and recreation. Speakers will share how they leveraged resources and partnerships to advance goals surrounding restoring healthy forests , increasing access to culturally important plants, and more.
Thursday, November 4, 2021, 12 pm Mountain
Moving beyond land acknowledgements to support tribal acquisitions of traditional homelands is needed. Transferring lands to tribes not only supports community well-being, but also helps protect ecological and cultural resources from development. Partnerships between tribes (including tribes that benefited from funding through the US Forest Service’s Community Forest Program), nonprofits and foundations have been integral to the success of many tribal land acquisition projects in the past. Partnerships can provide a range of opportunities for funding, land donations, or technical assistance such as planning, resources, and valuable connections.
Join us for a panel discussion with representatives from Indian Land Capital Company, The Trust for Public Land and American Forests who will share examples of partnerships that support tribal land acquisition, and learn how leveraging these partnerships can also help tribes be competitive applicants for the USDA Forest Service’s Community Forest and Open Space Conservation Program.
