Great Lakes Restoration Initiative: Community Forest and Open Space Conservation Program

About this funding opportunity

Federally recognized Indian Tribes, local government entities, and nonprofit organizations that are qualified to acquire and manage land may apply for up to $1,000,000 for the fee simple acquisition of private forest land in portions of the Lake Superior Basin of Michigan and Wisconsin. Projects submitted for funding consideration must be forested properties at least five acres in size that are threatened by conversion to non-forest uses and that provide community benefits including economic, environmental, educational, and recreational benefits. An additional focus of this opportunity is to protect, enhance and increase resilience of habitats necessary for sustaining native aquatic and terrestrial species important to the Lake Superior ecosystem. Competitive proposals will be those that demonstrate exceptional public benefits, meaningful community engagement, and strategic contributions to terrestrial habitat connectivity within the defined Terrestrial Habitat Connectivity Pilot Area.

For additional information and requirements, please refer to the Notice of Funding Opportunity document linked in both the "Related Documents" tab and the "Instructions" link located in the "Package" tab.

Topic areas: Social Innovation and Community Development, Energy and Environment, Circular Economy and Sustainability, Housing and Community Development.

Funding amount

This grant provides Up to $1M in funding, up to $1M per award.

Deadline

Applications are due Dec 08, 2026. Confirm the exact closing time on the official program page before applying.

Who can apply

This opportunity is open to the following applicant types:

• Public Authorities
• NGOs

Eligibility

The program did not publish a separate eligibility statement. See the official opportunity page for the full eligibility criteria.

Agency

Great Lakes Restoration Initiative: Community Forest and Open Space Conservation Program is administered by Forest Service (FS), listed via Grants.gov.