2014 Sound Futures Fund Grant Program Announced

Sound Experiences (NY) Cornell Cooperative Extension provided educational experiences to more than 500 underserved students through land and shipboard-based activities about Long Island Sound’s marine ecosystem.
Sound Experiences: In this 2009-funded project Cornell Cooperative Extension provided educational experiences to more than 500 underserved students through land and shipboard-based activities about Long Island Sound’s marine ecosystem.

On  April 14, the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation announced requests for grant proposals for the 2014 Long Island Sound Futures Fund. The Sound Futures Fund supports projects in local communities that aim to restore and protect Long Island Sound. The Sound Futures Fund partners anticipate awarding approximately $1 million in grants through this solicitation, although the final total amount available for award is dependent upon the availability of federal and non-federal funds.  Funding priorities include:

  • Urban Waters: assist communities, especially underserved communities, to access, improve, and benefit from their urban waters and the surrounding land
  • Clean Waters and Healthy Watersheds: plan and implement Low Impact Development (LID) and green infrastructure or green street projects
  • Restore and Protect Habitat, and Conserve Wildlife
  • Engage People and Communities Around the Sound: foster sustainable behaviors through social marketing
  • Improve Conservation on Private Lands: work with landowners to increase the number of best conservation practices.

The program, which was created by the Long Island Sound Study through its federal and state partners, is managed by NFWF. Further information, including the request for proposals, is available on NFWF’s  Sound Futures Fund grant page. The deadline to apply is May 22.

Since 2005, NFWF’s Long Island Sound Futures Fund has invested $10.5 million in 262 projects in communities surrounding the Sound. The projects will open up 128 river miles for fish passage, and restore or acquire more than 959 acres of critical fish and wildlife habitat. This habitat includes lakes, underwater grasses, woodlands, meadows, wetlands, beaches, dunes and river and park frontage. With grantee matches of almost $24 million, the Long Island Sound Futures Fund has generated a total of almost $35 million for locally-based conservation. More information about the projects is available in the [intlink id=”lis-futures-fund” type=”page”]grants section[/intlink] of LISS’s website.

Please complete your newsletter signup.

Subscribe to receive our e-newsletter, Sound Bytes by providing your email address. Interested in a free copy of our print newsletter, Sound Update? Then also provide your home/company/school address.