National Wildlife Refuge Friends Group Grant Program

Request for Proposal

2007 Application Kit

The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, along with its partners, recognizes the important role refuge Friends organizations play in building critical community support for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's National Wildlife Refuge System. As such, we are requesting proposals for projects that assist organizations to be effective co-stewards of our Nation's important natural resources within the National Wildlife Refuge System. This program provides competitive seed grants ($1,500 - $5,000) to creative and innovative proposals that seek to increase the number and effectiveness of organizations interested in assisting the Refuge System nationwide.

The National Wildlife Refuge System hosted more than 40 million visitors last year. The Refuge System provides Americans with special places to connect with nature and offers unparalleled outdoor activities to experience and showcase wildlife. Where compatible, the Refuge System prioritizes wildlife-dependent recreation uses involving hunting, fishing, environmental education, interpretation, wildlife observation, and wildlife photography. By enjoying these wildlife-dependent activities, the American public further develops its appreciation for fish and wildlife. This year's grant program will prioritize those proposals that facilitate wildlife-dependent recreational opportunities on refuges and reach new audiences to increase their understanding of and support for the Refuge System’s mission.

Who is eligible to apply?
Eligible applicants are non-profit organizations or organizations that have applied for non-profit status, including refuge Friends organizations, Cooperative and Interpretive Associations, Audubon Chapters and other citizen support organizations interested in assisting a National Wildlife Refuge or group of refuges and the Refuge System as a whole. Applicants must either be tax exempt under section 501(c), OR be in the process of applying for 501(c)(3) status and submit with their grant application a copy of their 501(c)(3) application filing.

What kinds of proposals will be accepted?
Grants will be provided to support proposals that fall within the following areas of emphasis:

Start-up Grants - Funds will be provided to assist starting refuge Friends organizations with formative and/or initial operational support. For example, funds may be requested for such things as membership drives, training (tuition), brochure and newsletter development, logo design, or consultant fees for planning a mission and strategic plan;
CapacityBuilding Grants - Funds will be provided to strengthen the capacity of existing refuge Friends organizations to enable them to be more effective. For example, activities may include outreach efforts, strategic planning, membership development, board or leadership development, designing exhibits for community outreach, or training; and
Project Specific Grants - Funds will be provided to non-profit organizations seeking support for a specific project. For example, funds may be requested for developing outreach and conservation education programs for local schools, communities, and private landowners, habitat restoration projects, building an observation tower, developing and providing interpretive materials and programs, or watchable wildlife programs.

While this grant program focuses on three areas of emphasis, overarching goals of the program are to help refuge Friends organizations gain experience in developing projects, expand and increase their capacity and skills, meet local refuge challenges, gain and build community recognition and support for the refuge and refuge Friends organizations, and build long-term relationships. Within each area of emphasis, priority will be given to applications that demonstrate their ability to meet these programmatic goals.

What information should be included in my proposal? See the attached "Guidelines for Writing and Submitting a Competitive Proposal."

What are the funding limitations for this grants program?
The Refuge Friends Grant Program will NOT fund requests for:

Printing for Professional Publishing Purposes
Political advocacy or litigation activities;
Travel;
Salaries;
Non-profit filings;
Food or beverages;
Shortfalls in government agency budgets; and
Multi-year grants (applicant may reapply)

When are proposals due and when will applicants be notified of award status?
This call for proposals covers two different project cycles with the following deadlines:

April 2, 2007 - with final funding decisions and applicant notification by TBA; and
September 4, 2007 - with final funding decisions and applicant notification by November 22, 2007.

Proposals can be submitted anytime throughout the year. Proposals postmarked by April 2 will be reviewed in April. Proposals postmarked after April 2 will be reviewed in September. Proposals postmarked after September 4 will not be reviewed until the subsequent project cycle–for which no date has been set.

Contact Information:
National Fish and Wildlife Foundation
1120 Connecticut Avenue, NW, Suite 900
Washington, DC20036
Program Contact: Ellen Gabel
(202) 857-0166; fax (202) 857-0162; email:

Grant Guidelines

Guidelines for Writing and Submitting a Competitive Proposal

The following guidelines are provided to assist grant applicants in preparing competitive grant proposals for the National Wildlife Refuge Friends Grant Program. Following the six steps below will ensure that your submission is complete. Each proposal will be evaluated on its ability to address the questions detailed in Step 3. As such, it is important that applicants take a few moments before writing their proposal to determine how best to answer the questions. Proposals should also demonstrate the applicant's ability to organize and implement the proposed project. Representatives from each of the partnering organizations will participate in the review and selection of projects. Good luck!

Step 1 - Fill Out the Application and Project Budget Forms

Complete the two documents that make up the National Wildlife Refuge Friends Grant Application Form. The first page of the application form requests general applicant, project and grant request information. The second page of the application form, the Project Budget Form, requests summary and detail on your project budget (** Please use the Project Budget Form provided and not your own budget form**). Remember to carefully read the directions throughout the document. This is essential to assure that each project item is placed in the proper category, see Sample Budget Form. Also remember to indicate any contributed funds or in-kind donations to the project under the "Matching Funds" column in the budget form. As noted on the Project Budget Form, matching funds are not required as part of this program. However, your ability to raise funds or in-kind contributions (contributed goods and/or services) for your project from other sources, other than the grant applicant, will be considered as part of the proposal evaluation process. We encourage your organization to seek in-kind and/or pro-bono services within your community. It's a great way to invest others in your organization and increase your name recognition.

Step 2 - Prepare a Project Summary

Prepare a brief paragraph (3-5 sentences) summarizing your project. The project summary should be written on a separate page. This paragraph will be used for quick reference during the proposal review process.

Step 3 - Prepare Your Proposal

Prepare a project proposal. Your proposal must address the following questions:

Need:
What specific refuge or organizational need does your project address?
Why is your project important?
Objectives:
What do you want to accomplish (goals) with your project? Please be as specific as possible.
How will your project directly benefit fish, wildlife, plant, and habitat resources at your refuge?
Who will benefit from your project (i.e. local Refuge, National Wildlife Refuge System, local community, etc.)?
How will each group identified above benefit from your project?
Will your project increase community awareness of the Refuge and/or the National Wildlife Refuge System?
How will your project help strengthen your group and its relationship with the Refuge and your community?
Methodology:
Describe how you will implement your project and your timetable for completing each activity. Please provide specific detail as to how you plan to meet your objectives. Having this information is critical to the review process.
How will you involve your membership in the project?
Partners:
Are there other organizations that will work with you on your project, and if so:
Who are they?
What will each partner contribute?
How will your project benefit each partner?
Evaluation:
What short and long term changes do you expect as a result of the project in:
the capacity of your group to meet organizational demands and local refuge challenges?
your community's attitude, interest and involvement in the refuge?
your Refuge's ability to meet its mandates?
How will you measure these changes/outcomes?

Other important things to keep in mind when preparing your proposal . . .

Project implementation to achieve specific goals:
In developing your proposals, please strive to completely describe your project from start to finish. For example, if your project is a membership drive, tell us how you plan to recruit members, not just that you plan to do so (e.g., Who will you mail your newsletter/brochure to? How many people will you mail them to? Who is your target audience?). Describe your specific goal for membership (e.g. the number of members you hope to recruit, etc.). If your proposal includes a website component, please fully describe how you intend to use and market it in the context of your proposal's goals. We recognize the internet as a useful tool; however, a website should not be the end goal of a project.

Computer equipment
Similarly, if your proposal includes purchasing computer equipment, be sure to provide specific information as to how this equipment will be essential to achieving your project's outreach or conservation goals, along with how and where it will be stored and who will have access to it. It will be important for the review process to describe final products to be produced under the project with purchased equipment. While we do understand that computers are a "must have" in running almost any organization, we generally do not provide support solely for purchasing computer equipment- a greater outreach or conservation need must be demonstrated.

Future funding
Lastly, if your organization has received several grants from us previously, we encourage you to begin using your successful grant writing skills to apply to other foundations and sources. Our hope is that this grant program can be used as a stepping-stone to further development opportunities for refuge Friends organizations.

Step 4 - Include Attachments

Include ONE SET of the following organizational and financial materials:

Organization:

Mission and goals statement;
List of Board of Directors or Trustees (if available); and
Letters of support from each partner (as applicable)

Financial:

Non-profit IRS determination letter or a letter from the IRS stating they have received your application;
Most recent fiscal year audited financial statement, if an audit is not available please submit a balance sheet from the most recent fiscal year. (See attached Sample Balance Sheet)*; and
Most recent IRS Form 990, if a 990 is not available please submit a balance sheet from the most recent fiscal year. (See attached Sample Balance Sheet.)*

*If your organization has not had an audit or has not been required to file a Form 990, please make a note of this to include with your financial materials. The Form 990 and financial statements should reflect the same fiscal year.

Step 5 - Assemble Your Materials

Include FIVE (5) sets of your proposal package, which should include your application form, project summary, budget, and proposal. Assemble the various pieces into one package. Please do not put your application package in any sort of folder or binder. Your submission should be organized in the following way from top to bottom:

First: Application Form
Second: Project Summary
Third: Project Proposal
Last: Attachments

Step 6 - Mail Your Proposal In

Mail FIVE (5) STAPLED COPIES and ONE (1) UNSTAPLED COPY to:

Ellen Gabel National Fish and Wildlife Foundation 1120 Connecticut Avenue, NW, Suite 900Washington, DC20036

Program Contacts
The following partner contacts are available to applicants to discuss proposal ideas and answer questions about this program.

Ellen Gabel, National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, 202-857-0166,

Trevor Needham, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 703-358-2029,

Desiree Sorenson-Groves, National Wildlife Refuge Association, 1-877-396-NWRA,

Connie Mahan, National Audubon Society, 202-861-2242 ext 3036,

The National Wildlife Refuge Friends Grant Program is a collaborative effort between the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, National Wildlife Refuge Association, and National Audubon Society. For further information, please contact Ellen Gabel at NFWF, 1120 Connecticut Avenue, N.W., Suite 900, Washington, DC20036, or call (202) 857-0166

Project Budget Form

I.Budget Summary:

NFWF Funds– This column details how grant funds will be spent on the project. Budget categories must be line items that specifically describe project costs, not program items or acronyms. For example, program categories such as “Education,” “Restoration,” or “Workshops” are unacceptable because they do not indicate what is being paid for. These categories must be broken down into specific line items such as “Supplies,” “Materials,” or “Contractual Services.” Please include itemized expenses for each budget category and be as specific as possible. Indirect costs,overhead, contingencies, and miscellaneous costs are not allowed.

Matching Funds- These are funds or in-kind contributions--contributed goods and/or services—that have been or will be donated to support the proposed project. While raising additional support for the project is not required, it is encouraged. The ability to raise additional support will be considered as part of the proposal evaluation process. All matching funds must be obtained within the project period listed on the applicant information form. Indirect costs, overhead, contingencies, andmiscellaneous costs are not allowed.

Total Funds per Category– This column reflects the total costs designated for the project, grant and matching funds combined.

Budget Summary:

Budget Category / NFWF Funds / Matching Funds / Total Funds per
Category
Other*: / $3,000 / $1,750 / $4,750
Equipment**:
(Only matching funds are allowed to
be spent in this category) / $0 / $0
TOTAL / $3,000 / $1,750 / $4,750

* Other represents a summary of expenses such as contractual services, supplies and materials, printing, travel, contributed goods and services, and any additional line items.

** Equipment is defined as tangible nonexpendable property having a useful life of more than one year and an acquisition cost of $5,000 or more per unit.

SAMPLE BALANCE SHEET

Statement of Financial Position

December 31, 2006

Assets

Current Assets

Cash in bank $101,737

Cash- restricted 2,877

Inventory 1,863

Prepaid Expenses 3,533

Grants and accounts receivable 51,062

Total Current Assets 161,072

Property and Equipment, at cost

Building 493,368

Building Improvements 5,279

Computers and Equipment 36,124

Total Property and Equipment 534,771

Less accumulated depreciation (50,995)

Property and Equipment, net $483,776

Total Assets $644,848

Liabilities and Net Assets

Current Liabilities

Accounts Payable $11,320

Total Current Liabilities 11,320

Total Liabilities 11,320

Net Assets

Unrestricted $630,651

Temporarily restricted 2,877

Permanently restricted -

Total net assets 633,528

Total Liabilities and Net Assets $ 644,848