Bridging traditional ecological knowledge with modern land management | F17AS00336

Opportunity Information: Apply for F17AS00336

The grant opportunity titled "Bridging traditional ecological knowledge with modern land management" (Funding Opportunity Number F17AS00336) was a discretionary funding opportunity offered by the U.S. Department of the Interior, Fish and Wildlife Service. It was structured as a cooperative agreement, which generally means the agency expected to be actively involved in the project beyond simply providing funds, often through collaboration, technical support, coordination, or shared planning. The activity areas tied to this opportunity fall under community development, environmental work, and natural resources, and it is associated with CFDA number 15.654.

At its core, the project focus was to connect traditional ecological knowledge (TEK), particularly Indigenous knowledge systems and practices, with modern land management approaches. The opportunity emphasized meaningful engagement with both Indigenous and urban communities through a variety of methods, including stewardship activities, conservation efforts, habitat or landscape restoration, and community-centered work that could include social justice, healing, and community-building elements. It also highlighted neighborhood-based solutions and academic seminars as possible ways to broaden participation and learning, suggesting the grant was meant to support both on-the-ground action and educational or convening components.

A central goal was workforce and leadership development for emerging Indigenous youth leaders and students. The grant aimed to create hands-on work experiences that build expertise in both TEK and contemporary natural resource management, with an explicit intent of creating career pathways and pipelines into natural resources fields. In practical terms, this could include internships, mentorship, project-based employment, training, and opportunities to learn directly from practitioners, elders, scientists, and land managers. Another major theme was long-term relationship building: the opportunity sought to deepen ongoing collaboration and shared learning between participating agencies and the communities they serve, rather than treating engagement as a one-time outreach effort.

In terms of basic funding details, the award ceiling listed was $55,000, with an expectation of one award. Eligibility was described as unrestricted, meaning a wide range of entity types could apply, although final eligibility could be affected by any clarifications in the full announcement. The opportunity was created on July 25, 2017, and originally closed on August 2, 2017. The notice also indicates that a recipient had already been selected, which typically means the competitive process had concluded or the award decision had been made by the time this posting was captured.

• The Department of the Interior, Fish and Wildlife Service in the community development, environment, natural resources sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Bridging traditional ecological knowledge with modern land management" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 15.654.
• This funding opportunity was created on Jul 25, 2017.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Aug 02, 2017 THE RECIPIENT HAS BEEN SELECTED. (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 $55,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 1 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Unrestricted (i.e., open to any type of entity above), subject to any clarification in text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility.

Apply for F17AS00336

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