Connecticut Conservation Innovation Grants | Apply Online

Opportunity Summary:

The Connecticut Conservation Innovation Grants (CIG) program, run by USDA's Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), is a competitive grant opportunity designed to speed up the real-world use of innovative conservation practices and technologies in agriculture. The main goal is to improve environmental outcomes while keeping farms productive by helping proven or emerging conservation solutions move from limited use into broader adoption. Projects are expected to generate practical results that can be replicated and scaled, and ultimately lead to conservation tools, management systems, or market-based approaches being incorporated into NRCS technical guidance (like manuals and field guides) or adopted by the private sector.

CIG is focused on "on-the-ground" conservation work rather than basic research. The program supports pilot projects, field demonstrations, and applied efforts that show how a previously proven approach can work under farm conditions and how it can be adopted more widely. Standard academic or lab research is not the intent of this funding. The main exception is on-farm conservation research, which NRCS allows only when it is carried out on working farms using farm-scale equipment and a statistically valid study design. That means the project must be structured to answer a clear conservation question with proper replication and statistical analysis, and it must still be tied directly to innovative natural resource management alongside agricultural production.

Projects may be single-year or multi-year, but they cannot exceed three years in duration. The opportunity is open specifically to applicants from Connecticut, and eligibility is broad. Eligible applicants include federally recognized tribal governments, state and local governments (including counties, cities, townships, and special districts), public and private institutions of higher education, nonprofits with 501(c)(3) status, public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities, individuals, and small businesses. This wide eligibility reflects the program's emphasis on collaboration and knowledge-sharing across communities, government agencies, universities, nonprofit organizations, and private partners, so that conservation advances are accessible to more users and not limited to a single sector.

Funding is provided as a discretionary grant under CFDA 10.912, with an award ceiling of $75,000 per project. For this specific Connecticut competition (Funding Opportunity Number USDA NRCS CT CIG 16 01), NRCS anticipated making around 20 awards. The posting date for the opportunity was April 18, 2016, and the application deadline was May 20, 2016.

The selection process is structured and multi-step. After submission, proposals are first screened for completeness and compliance with the rules laid out in the notice. Applications that are incomplete or fail to meet requirements are removed from consideration, and applicants are notified. Proposals that pass the initial screening are reviewed by a technical peer review panel using the evaluation criteria identified in the solicitation instructions. Following that technical review, proposals and reviewer input move to the Connecticut Review Board, which makes recommendations to the NRCS State Conservationist. The NRCS State Conservationist makes the final funding selections.

In practical terms, this opportunity is best suited for applicants who already have a conservation practice, tool, or approach that has been shown to work and now needs a well-designed demonstration, pilot deployment, or farm-based evaluation that will drive adoption. Strong proposals typically show clear conservation benefits, a realistic plan for implementation under Connecticut conditions, and a credible pathway for transferring what is learned into NRCS guidance or broad use by producers and other land managers.

Browse more opportunities from the same agency: USDA-NRCS

Browse more opportunities from the same category: Agriculture, Environment, Natural Resources

Next opportunity: Enhanced Access to and Utilization of Quality Family Planning/Reproductive, Maternal, Newborn, Child and Adolescent Health (FP/RMNCAH) Services in Selected Counties and Sub-counties, Kenya – (AFYA FP/RMNCAH).

Previous opportunity: DoD Peer Reviewed Cancer Career Development Award

USGrants.org Applicant Portal:

Are you interested in learning about about how to apply for this government funding opportunity? You can create a free applicant account and receive instant access to our applicant portal that many business owners like you have benefited from.

Apply for USDA NRCS CT CIG 16 01

 

[Watch] how do funding administrators access proposals?

Applicants also applied for:

Applicants who have applied for this opportunity (USDA NRCS CT CIG 16 01) also looked into and applied for these:

 

Grant application guides and resources

It is always free to apply for government grants. However the process may be very complex depending on the funding opportunity you are applying for. Let us help you!

Apply for Grants

 

 

Premium leads for funding administrators, grant writers, and loan issuers

Thousands of people visit our website for their funding needs every day. When a user creates a grant proposal and files for submission, we pass the information on to funding administrators, grant writers, and government loan issuers.

If you manage government grant programs, provide grant writing services, or issue personal or government loans, we can help you reach your audience.

Subscribe to Leads

 

Request more information:

Would you like to learn more about this funding opportunity, similar opportunities to "USDA NRCS CT CIG 16 01", eligibility, application service, and/or application tips? Submit an inquiry below:

Don't forget to subscribe to our grant alerts mailing list to receive weekly alerts on new and updated grant funding opportunities like this one in your email.