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Northeast Resilient Landscapes Fund (Completed)

OSI partners with conservation organizations in the Northeast to assemble networks of protected lands most likely to preserve plant and animal diversity in a changing climate. The Fund supports projects in four focus areas in New England, the mid-Atlantic, and the Central Appalachians offering the greatest opportunity to conserve missing links for resiliency in the overall landscape.

Grant Opportunities

The Fund provides capital grants and loans to qualified non-profits for the acquisition of land or conservation easements on climate-resilient lands, capitalized with a grant from the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation. Through an in-depth review process, we selected four focus areas in order to target funds most effectively. A fact brochure with maps for each focus area can be downloaded:

Grant Awards

OSI awards grants to qualified non-profit organizations through a competitive process with the assistance of an advisory board comprised of experts with knowledge of natural resources, conservation policy and land conservation funding.

OSI staff and the Fund’s Advisory Committee review applications against the Fund’s criteria and goals.

Once OSI has approved a grant, we will provide the grantee with a checklist of items required for OSI to prepare a grant agreement. When all required information and documents are received, OSI will forward a grant agreement to the grantee. If applicable, the grantee must provide documents pertaining to each project phase and match parcel. OSI will release funds at the time the transaction closes or after project closing. Projects must close within 18 months of OSI’s grant approval

Conservation Easement and Stewardship Standards

Conservation easements and stewardship of Resilient Landscape Fund grant projects must be consistent with the goals of the Fund: maintaining the land’s resilience to climate change and conserving native biodiversity and ecosystem processes. Prior to submitting a grant proposal, applicants should review OSI’s Conservation Easement and Stewardship Standards.

Match Property Eligibility

To be eligible as match, a property must: 1) be adjacent or proximate to the subject property; 2) meet the Fund’s criteria; 3) be part of a larger plan that includes conservation of the match and subject properties; and 4) close prior to the closing of the subject property but not more than one year before date of application. In addition, to determine eligibility of match parcels OSI will consider whether the match and the subject properties lie in the same watershed, geophysical setting, TNC Resilient Focal Area, Forest Matrix Block, natural community and/or State Wildlife Action Plan priority area.

The following do not qualify as matching funds:

  • Ecological or land restoration dollars
  • Stewardship endowments and land management expenses
  • Staff time, travel or expenses

Eligible Uses of Funds

Grants may be used to acquire permanent conservation easements and fee interest in land. In exceptional cases, grants may be applied to cover transactional costs, including cost of appraisals, surveys, title, and environmental assessments. The Fund may also provide short-term low-interest loans for projects that require bridge financing and that meet the grant criteria. Grant funds cannot be used for endowments, stewardship costs, baseline documentation reports, staff time, buildings or other non-capital project expenses.

Next Steps to Apply

Applications are accepted on a rolling basis until all funding has been committed.

Sign up to receive updates about the fund.

OSI staff and advisory committee will review applications within approximately four months of the proposal’s submission date.

Applications must be submitted online. Before submitting an application, please review Frequently Asked Questions, Grant Criteria and the Definitions and Map Guide (updated October 2017).

We encourage applicants to contact OSI staff before preparing a proposal.

West Virginia and Virginia Project Inquiries

Joel Houser

Director of Capital Grants

(423) 364-5980

New Jersey and Pennsylvania Project Inquiries

Bill Rawlyk

Senior Project Manager, Mid-Atlantic

908-642-4747

Massachusetts, Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont Project Inquiries

Joel Houser

Director of Capital Grants

423-364-5980

General Inquiries

Yasemin Unal-Rodriguez

Conservation Capital Program Associate

(212) 290-8200 x1311

GIS and Mapping Inquiries

Neil Jordan

Director of Geospatial Strategy

(212) 290-8200

What You Can Do

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