Grants

Grants, Grants, Grants, and More Grants - Language Deception is the bait covering the Big Hook

November 17, 2004

By Julie Kay Smithson

Below my few terse comments and pithy warnings you will find the latest ‘bunch of carrots’ being held out to property owners. I started out to simply forward it, as it was, with no ‘forward’ from me. Knowing how innocuous such things are -- and how many people are sucked into the ‘grant program’ quicksand -- the thought could not be denied that you needed a warning. Here ‘tis.

Folks, this "grant money" is YOUR taxpayer dollars.

It is not being plucked from a money tree in the backyard of Congress.

YOUR taxpayer dollars are being used to take YOUR property rights.

Please, try to get past the seduction of your emotions being done below, which seeks to flatter you and paralyze your brain and stop you from seeing the danger.

When you read words like "manage", "restore", "conservation", "protect", you must realize that the real word is "Control", and that THAT is the agenda and the intent.

When you see phrases designed to pull your emotions ahead of your rational thinking -- for example, “your river”, “interested folk”, “community partnerships”, “cooperative conservation”, etc. -- please, realize that you are being expected to “partner” and “collaborate” in the loss of your property rights, i.e., your freedom. All this hoopla about “saving” “endangered” or “threatened” “species” – where, amid all this folderol, do you hear concern about saving YOUR way of life or the fact that YOU and your fellow responsible resource providers have become the REAL endangered and threatened species, and are, in fact, targeted for extinction in America?

You'll not hear that, but it is the undercurrent -- the very dangerous rip tide -- running throughout these schemes and “grant programs”.

I have come to expect a few mutterings about my "seeing black helicopters", but those people are still in denial and have not chosen to read the researched information that is out there, in the public domain. It is so easy, if you're ready to come to grips with the facts, to visit www.Google.com and put "epa.gov" in the search box along with "grant programs” and watch the array of bait appear. Then consider that every dollar being offered are taxpayer dollars -- whether federal, state or local taxes.

I noted with considerable interest: "Only Cooperative Extension Services at 1862 Land-Grant Universities are eligible to apply. Commercial, non-profit, and other organizations are not eligible. 1862 Universities are urged to partner with 1890 Land-Grant Institutions, including Tuskegee University and West Virginia State College, 1994 Land-Grant Institutions, and Hispanic-serving Institutions. HMMM, methinks -- WHY is THIS? Does this raise a few of your Red Flags, too, dear reader? There's an end run being done around something here!

and this one: "At this time, the Small Grants program is open only to projects proposed for the U.S..; it is not open to projects in Canada or Mexico." What a dangerous phrase is "At this time"!

1. Grant Programs - Interior Dept. Cooperative Conservation Initiative

2. Second of several forwarded notices regarding federal grant availability

3. Third grant program notice, bird habitat grants

4. Grants Available: Wetlands Conservation (FWS-NAWCA)

1. Grant Programs - Interior Dept. Cooperative Conservation Initiative

-----Original Message-----

From: Bess.Gillelan@usda.gov

November 16, 2004

Subject: Grant Programs - Interior Dept. Cooperative Conservation

Initiative

Dear AHRI River Navigators, Community Partners, and Interested folk:

As you think about what grant applications you may prepare in FY2005, here's a great website that lists major Dept. of Interior grant programs:

http://www.nbc.gov/cci/matrix.cfm

The FY2005 numbers shown are based on the President's Budget Request to Congress, so they are likely to change once Congress passes FY2005 Appropriation bills.

You can search for grants already awarded in your state on this site:

http://www.doi.gov/cci/

When Chris Kearney joined our AHRI conference call in June, he noted that the Cooperative Conservation Initiative wants to support more multi-year, capacity-building projects rather than a lot of small projects. He encouraged communities to contact nearby Interior Dept. units (National Park Service, [U.S.] Fish and Wildlife Service including National Wildlife Refuges, Bureau of Land Management, Bureau of Reclamation, USGS, etc.) about your interest in applying for DOI funding opportunities listed in the grant matrix above. bg

-----Original Message-----

From: Gillelan, Bess Bess.Gillelan@usda.gov

June 7, 2004

Subject: web links - Cooperative Conservation Initiative

Dear River Navigators, Community Partners, et al:

Chris Kearney, Dep. Assistant Secretary (Policy, Mgt, & Budget), Dept. of Interior, gave a great overview of the Cooperative Conservation Initiative on today's CP/RN Teleconference. If you want to follow up and look at the CCI opportunities in more detail, here are some links:

from:

http://www.whitehouse.gov/infocus/environment/key_bush_environmental_accomplishments.pdf

Increased Funding for Cooperative Conservation

The President's FY 2005 budget proposes $507 million for cooperative conservation programs at the Department of the Interior. Within that request is $130 million for the Cooperative Conservation Initiative (CCI), a 25 percent increase over last year. Through CCI activities, the Department of the Interior's land managers are joining with communities, non-profits, States, and citizens to remove invasive species, reduce stream bank erosion, and enhance habitat for threatened and endangered species.

May 24th News Release on 2004 CCI Challenge Cost Share grant awards:

http://www.doi.gov/news/040524a

Some statistics pulled from this press release and from Chris' overview:

(in millions of $)

FY Grant$ Match$ Total$ #Project #States #Partners

#Acres

non-Fed

2004 21 30 52 377 43 1,100 565,000

2003 13 24 36 256 40 800 135,000

Totals 34 55 88 633 43 1,900 700,000

This web page -- www.doi.gov/cci/ -- has links for:

- the two documents Chris Kearney mentioned today:

* Cooperative Conservation - Success Through Partnerships

* Cooperative Conservation: Program List and Total $ by Fiscal Year

(this is a GREAT list of programs under the CCI umbrella, including lead agency, eligibility, match requirements, etc.)

- State-by-State breakout of the 2004 grants - to look at projects funded in your river

From the CCI overview:

http://www.doi.gov/initiatives/conservation.html

- scroll down for links on:

* Landowner Incentives Program

* Partners for Fish and Wildlife Program

* and other summaries of accomplishments and programs

And just for fun, check out the Web cam from "the Window" at Big Bend National Park's Chisos Basin...looking southwest toward the Rio Grande (though it's just a bit too far to see).

Bess Gillelan

Director

Interagency Task Force on American Heritage Rivers

202-401-0226

______________________________________________________________________

2. Second of several forwarded notices regarding federal grant availability

-----Original Message-----

From: Bess.Gillelan@usda.gov

November 16, 2004

Subject: Grants -- USDA/CSREES -- Competitive Research & Small Business Innovation Research

Dear AHRI Community Partners, River Navigators, Working Group, and Interested Folk:

See research grant opportunities below, including:

--Selected National Research Priorities

--Small Business Innovation Research Priorities with upcoming deadlines. Thanks go to Jack Frost, NRCS for passing along. bg

CSREES LISTS OPEN REQUESTS FOR GRANT APPLICATIONS

CSREES posts a calendar of all funding opportunities on the CSREES Web site: http://www.csrees.usda.gov/fo/funding.cfm.

* National Research Initiative Competitive Grants Program -Various topic areas

For example -- these are just some of the topics:

Children Youth, Families at Risk Program: New Communities Projects -

December 1, 2004 deadline

The Cooperative State Research, Education, and Extension Service (CSREES), USDA, announces the Children, Youth, and Families at Risk (CYFAR) funding program to support community-based programs serving children, youth, and families in at-risk environments. CYFAR funds are intended to support the development of high quality, effective programs

based on research and to document the impact of these programs on intended audiences.

The CYFAR Program mission is "to marshal resources of the Land-Grant and Cooperative Extension Systems to develop and deliver educational programs that equip limited resource families and youth who are at risk for not meeting basic human needs with skills needed to lead positive, productive, contributing lives."

Only Cooperative Extension Services at 1862 Land-Grant Universities are eligible to apply.

Commercial, non-profit, and other organizations are not eligible.

1862 Universities are urged to partner with 1890 Land-Grant Institutions, including Tuskegee University and West Virginia State College, 1994 Land-Grant Institutions, and Hispanic-serving Institutions.

Rural Development - December 7, 2004 deadline

Rural America is home to 20 percent of the nation's population, 49 million citizens, and comprises 75 percent of the nation's land. More than 2,000 counties, almost 66 percent of all counties in the U.S., serve rural America. Rural people and places are challenged by profound social, economic, technological, and demographic changes. Although endowed with physical, natural, human, and organizational assets, many factors (geography, infrastructure, history, economy, leadership, civic engagement, and institutional capacity) affect the ability of rural

people and rural communities to mobilize these assets to address the changes and challenges they face and to capitalized on new opportunities. This program invites proposals that evaluate the policies and practices associated with creating and sustaining rural community vitality and rural prosperity. Proposals should include an examination of the social, economic, technological, and demographic factors that affect quality of life for rural residents.

Managed Ecosystems - January 10, 2005 deadline

This program are to understand the impact of agriculture, forest, rangeland and other natural resource management practices on ecological systems and to promote their sustainability for the production of food, fiber, and forage. Sustainable productivity depends on the ability to utilize the earth's renewable natural resources without depleting them.

This program strives to understand how agricultural practices for farm, forest, and rangelands affect natural and managed ecosystems, while developing improved management strategies to achieve sustainable production. Ecological issues in agriculture and natural resources management are complex, requiring a systems approach to integrate physical, biological, ecological, social, and economic factors. Proposed ecosystem research should be multidisciplinary, explore differing spatial and temporal scales, evaluate the synergisms among system components and examine the potential for increased system sustainability. This program invites fundamental and mission-linked research proposals and integrated proposals.

Hispanic-Serving Institutions Education Grants Program - February 16, 2005 deadline

This competitive grants program is intended to promote and strengthen the ability of Hispanic-Serving Institutions to carry out higher education programs in the food and agricultural sciences. Programs aim to attract outstanding students and produce graduates capable of enhancing the Nation's food and agricultural scientific and professional work force. Only public or other non-profit Hispanic-Serving Institutions are eligible to apply for this program. To qualify as an

Hispanic-Serving Institution, applicants must: (a) at the time of application, have an enrollment of undergraduate full-time equivalent students that is at least 25 percent Hispanic students; and (b) provide assurances that not less than 50 percent of the institution's Hispanic students are low-income individuals, as defined in the full Request for Applications.

Watershed Processes and Water Resources - March 1, 2005 deadline

The nation's water resources are fundamental to the productivity and health of crop, range and forested lands, as well as to human health and well being. Continued production of food and fiber, and long-term sustainability of healthy, natural and managed watersheds are dependent on a reliable and sustainable supply of fresh, unpolluted water.

Research in the Watershed Processes and Water Resources program is aimed at advancing our understanding of the processes that influence the quantity and quality of water resources available in these watersheds.

This program invites both fundamental and mission-linked applications for innovative research in understanding fundamental processes and developing appropriate technology for watersheds and water resources.

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* Small Business Innovation Research: Rural & Community Development -

February 3, 2005

This is one of 11 topic areas in the USDA SBIR program. The primary focus of this program is not the development of new technologies, but rather the innovative application of new or existing technologies to address important problems and opportunities affecting people and institutions in rural America. The emphasis is on new or improved income opportunities for rural residents, improved service delivery capability of rural governments and institutions, and improved homeland security capability for rural communities and institutions. The table below

includes information for the entire SBIR program; click the link for more detailed SBIR information.

URL: http://csrees.usda.gov/fo/fundview.cfm?fonum=1126

CSREES contact: Siva Sureshwaran 202-720-7536 or ssureshwaran@csrees.usda.gov

* Small Business Innovation Research: Marketing and Trade