Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit, Great Plains CESU | Apply Online

Opportunity Summary:

The Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit, Great Plains CESU funding opportunity (Funding Opportunity Number G15AS00124) was a US Geological Survey (USGS) Wildlife Program solicitation designed to strengthen monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus) conservation, with a particular focus on the eastern migratory population. The opportunity was framed around an urgent conservation context: the eastern monarch population had fallen to historically low numbers, estimated at about 42 million butterflies during the winter of 2014-2015, compared with a roughly 20-year average of more than 230 million. This steep decline contributed to a formal petition to list the monarch under the Endangered Species Act, a decision that the US Fish and Wildlife Service was considering at the time. In response to widespread interest from agencies, NGOs, researchers, and other stakeholders, USGS sought to support coordinated, actionable work that could help improve monarch status and inform near-term management decisions.

The award was offered as a discretionary cooperative agreement, reflecting that USGS expected substantial involvement and collaboration between the agency and the recipient rather than a hands-off grant. The program emphasis was twofold: first, to create and maintain effective partnerships that can coordinate monarch conservation across organizations and jurisdictions; and second, to deliver relevant, high-quality, and timely research products that resource managers can use. In practical terms, this kind of work typically includes assembling or strengthening multi-organization conservation networks, aligning research priorities with management needs, improving information flow among partners, and producing science outputs (such as analyses, datasets, decision-support tools, or technical guidance) that directly support on-the-ground conservation planning and implementation.

Eligibility was limited to participating partners within the Great Plains Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit (CESU) Program. CESUs are structured partnerships that link federal agencies with universities, tribes, states, and other organizations to provide research, technical assistance, and education, often with an emphasis on applied science that can be put into use by managers. Because the announcement was issued under the CESU mechanism, applicants needed to already be part of the Great Plains CESU partnership to be considered eligible, which narrows the applicant pool to established partners rather than the general public or all research institutions.

The opportunity anticipated a single award, with an estimated total funding amount of $275,000. The listing did not specify an award ceiling or floor (both shown as 0), which often indicates the agency did not publish a hard per-award cap in the summary fields even though the total available funding was known. No cost sharing or matching funds were required, meaning applicants were not obligated to contribute non-federal funds as a condition of the award. The activity category was classified under Science and Technology and other Research and Development, and it was associated with CFDA number 15.808 (US Geological Survey Research and Data Collection), signaling its alignment with USGS research and data-related assistance programs.

Timing for the solicitation was short. It was posted and created on July 9, 2015, with an original and current closing date of July 17, 2015, and it was later archived on December 9, 2015. The primary public entry point for the full announcement was Grants.gov, and the listed point of contact for access issues was Faith Graves at USGS (phone 703-648-7356, email fgraves@usgs.gov). Overall, the grant opportunity was built to quickly mobilize a qualified CESU partner to help coordinate monarch conservation efforts and deliver actionable science products during a period of heightened concern about monarch population declines and potential federal listing considerations.

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