Creating Adaptation Strategies for Park Natural Resources Using E | P19AS00451

Opportunity Information: Apply for P19AS00451

The grant opportunity titled "Creating Adaptation Strategies for Park Natural Resources Using E" (Funding Opportunity Number P19AS00451) is a National Park Service (NPS) cooperative agreement action under the U.S. Department of the Interior. It was published on July 31, 2019, with an original closing date of August 9, 2019, but it is explicitly a Notice of Intent to Award rather than an open call for proposals. In other words, this announcement is meant to publicly document that NPS plans to fund a specific project with a specific partner under an agreement that was already competed earlier, so outside organizations are not being invited to apply through this posting.

The funding instrument is a cooperative agreement, which typically indicates that NPS expects to remain substantially involved during the work rather than simply issuing a hands-off grant. The eligible applicant category listed is 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations (other than institutions of higher education), and the named cooperator for this action is NatureServe. The announcement describes this work as a modification to an existing agreement (P15AC01470), meaning it is continuing or expanding previously funded efforts rather than starting from scratch. The award ceiling is $90,000, and NPS expects to make one award.

Programmatically, the project continues modeling work initiated under the NCR FY18 Ecological Integrity Assessment, which was implemented at the landscape scale. The core purpose is to strengthen and refine that modeling so it can be used more effectively to develop practical adaptation strategies for national park natural resources, with a particular focus on forest ecosystems. A central feature of the modification is that the cooperator will integrate ground-based field information into the existing model. This is important because field data can improve how well a model reflects real conditions in specific parks, reduce uncertainty, and help translate broad landscape assessments into park-level decisions.

The scope of work is organized into four main parts. First is an HCCVI Upgrade, referring to improving an index or modeling component used to assess habitat and climate-related vulnerability. While the notice does not spell out the acronym, the intent is clear: upgrade the vulnerability or condition assessment approach so it better supports adaptation planning. Second is a Landscape Connectivity Review, which focuses on how connected or fragmented habitats are across the broader landscape around the parks, and where there may be barriers or opportunities to improve movement corridors and ecological linkages. This matters for resilience because connected landscapes often allow species to move, shift ranges, and recover from disturbances more effectively, especially under climate change.

Third, the project incorporates Breeding Bird data. Including breeding bird information typically helps evaluate ecological condition, habitat quality, and changes in biodiversity patterns, and it can serve as a sensitive indicator of ecosystem shifts and stressors. Integrating these data into the modeling framework is meant to improve the ability to assess forest integrity and ecological health in a way that reflects on-the-ground biological responses, not just modeled stress exposure.

Fourth is Developing Park Habitat-Specific Adaptation Strategies. This component is the main applied outcome: translating the improved modeling and added datasets into concrete adaptation strategies tailored to different habitat types within the parks. The strategies are intended to address both climate stressors (such as warming temperatures, altered precipitation patterns, and climate-driven disturbance regimes) and non-climate stressors (such as land use pressures, invasive species, fragmentation, pests and disease, and other human-driven impacts). The emphasis is on identifying actions that maintain or enhance forest resilience, meaning the ability of forest ecosystems to withstand disturbances, recover, and continue functioning over time.

The primary deliverable is a report that summarizes forest integrity and resilience across the parks and lays out the adaptation strategies needed to maintain or improve resilience. The report is also expected to address opportunities to enhance landscape connectivity, linking the connectivity review to actionable recommendations. Overall, this funding notice describes a targeted continuation effort: upgrading an existing ecological integrity modeling approach with field data and additional biological information, then using the improved analysis to produce park-relevant adaptation guidance that accounts for multiple stressors and identifies practical connectivity improvements.

• The Department of the Interior, National Park Service in the employment, labor and training sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Creating Adaptation Strategies for Park Natural Resources Using E" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 15.944.
• This funding opportunity was created on Jul 31, 2019.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Aug 09, 2019 Notice of Intent to Award. This is NOT a request for application. This funding announcement is to provide public notice that the National Park Service will fund the following project under a already competed Cooperative Agreement with NatureServe.. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $90,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 1 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Nonprofits having a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education.

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