The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) is pleased to announce the 2024 National Coastal Resilience Fund (NCRF) Request for Proposals (RFP). NFWF will make investments in planning, design, and implementation of natural and nature-based solutions. The goal is to enhance protection for coastal communities from the impacts of storms, floods, and other natural coastal hazards and to improve habitats for fish and wildlife.
NFWF will award approximately $140 million in grants to create and restore natural systems to increase protection for communities from current and future coastal hazards and improve habitats for fish and wildlife species. The availability of federal funds estimated in this solicitation is contingent upon the federal appropriations process; funding decisions will be made based on level of funding and timing of when it is received by NFWF.
Natural habitats such as coastal marshes and wetlands, coastal forests, rivers, lakes, and streams, dune and beach systems, and oyster and coral reefs – maintained at a significant size for the habitat type and natural hazard being addressed – can provide communities with enhanced protection and buffering from the growing impacts of natural coastal hazards, including rising sea- and lake- levels, changing flood patterns, increased frequency and intensity of storms, and other environmental stressors. NFWF’s regional coastal resilience assessments identify areas, called Resilience Hubs1, where natural resource restoration efforts will have the greatest impact for human community resilience and fish and wildlife. Projects need not be located in an area identified by NFWF as a Resilience Hub to be eligible, but applicants may find this tool useful to assess projects based on the dual benefits to habitats and human communities. Applicants may explore Resilience Hubs on the Coastal Resilience and Evaluation Siting Tool (CREST).
This program is primarily funded by, and coordinated with, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Limited funding is available in partnership with the U.S. Department of Defense (DOD) to support projects advancing nature-based solutions in the vicinity of but not within the boundaries of DOD installations and ranges that enhance military resilience to coastal hazards (for more information see the Funding Availability and Match section). Additional funding is provided by other partners, including Occidental and Shell USA, Inc. NFWF will also seek to leverage public or private funds that align with the goals of the NCRF projects to extend the impact of this program.
Tribal governments include all Native American tribal governments (both federally recognized tribes and those tribes that are not federally recognized).
For-profit applicants: please note that this is a request for grant proposals, not a procurement of goods and services; see the Budget section below for specific cost considerations.