00A01603

Description: The purpose of this agreement is to provide assistance to the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation to implement its project to support the Long Island Sound Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan to protect and restore Long Island Sound by:

1) Develop the request for proposals and associated materials;

2) Disseminate the request for proposals through multiple venues;

3) Provide multiple forms of technical assistance to applicants and subrecipients including one-to-one outreach, webinars, shared learning and networking opportunities, geographically focused technical assistance, and guidance materials;

4) Develop and manage grant evaluation;

5) Deliver a virtual grant announcement event;

6) Deliver and support multiple forms of education about Long Island Sound Futures Fund investments and impact;

7) Engage federal and nonfederal partnerships;

8) Support development of an enhanced community-facing community of practice networks;

9) Administer subrecipient grant agreements and the recipient cooperative agreement from inception to closure;

10) Manage and update a spatial decision tool which informs priorities for conservation investment for the Long Island Sound Futures Fund in the Long Island Sound watershed and related geography as part of the multi-year National Fish and Wildlife Foundation Northeast Watershed Business Plan;

11) Commission evaluation of Long Island Sound Futures Fund grant program by a third-party neutral expert team focused on closed grants 2015-2021; and

12) Participate in activities to revise the Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan.

Activities: Specifically, under this cooperative agreement the recipient will:

1) Develop Futures Fund request for proposal and associated materials;

2) Disseminate request for proposal through multiple venues;

3) Provide applicant and subrecipient technical assistance;

4) Develop and manage grant proposal evaluation;

5) Deliver virtual grant announcement event;

6) Deliver and support multiple forms of education about Futures Fund investments and impact;

7) Engage federal and nonfederal partnerships;

8) Administer subrecipient grants and recipient cooperative agreements;

9) Manage and update spatial decision tool to inform Futures Fund conservation investments;

10) Commission and manage a third-party evaluation of Futures Fund 2015-2021; and

11) Participate in activities to revise the Long Island Sound Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan.

Subrecipient: Subawards will be selected through a competitive grant process and will meet the objectives of the Long Island Sound Study Comprehensive Conservation Management Plan.

Outcomes: Specifically, under this cooperative agreement the recipient will produce the following deliverables:

1) Annual competitive grant program request for proposals and associated materials;

2) A diverse applicant pool;

3) Technical assistance;

4) Final slate of grant awards;

5) Grant announcement event;

6) Informational materials and presentations;

7) Enhanced federal and nonfederal partnerships;

8) Subrecipient and recipient award administration;

9) A spatial decision tool and investment strategy;

10) A program evaluation;

11) A revised Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan that includes considerations for the Futures Fund.

Direct beneficiaries of this program include the general population in the New York, Connecticut, and upper basin portions of the Long Island Sound watershed and their surrounding areas, schools, universities and other institutions of learning, environmental managers and policy makers, and the participants in the Long Island Sound Study with a focus on disadvantaged communities.

National Fish And Wildlife Foundation

66.437 - Long Island Sound Program

EPA Region 1: Boston [EPA - RO]

New Haven, Connecticut United States

County-Wide

EPA-CEP-01