Deadline: November 30, 2022

Overview of Grant

People and nature rely on healthy forests. Eight out of 10 land-dwelling species and nearly 750 million people live in and depend on forests for goods and services such as food, wood, medicine, fresh water, and air. Despite their importance, threats to the world’s forests are growing at an alarming rate. In particular, tropical forests which support the earth’s most biologically productive and diverse systems, and contain the greatest amount of above ground biomass, face the highest risk of deforestation.

To facilitate local communities and organizations’ efforts towards the restoration of degraded landscapes, WWF’s Russell E. Train Education for Nature Program (EFN) provides grants to contribute to the initiatives of local organizations dedicated to restoring forest ecosystems. These grants also enhance the local capacity for managing natural resources whilst promoting more diversified livelihoods with gender equity.

Opportunity structure

WWF, through the Russell E. Train Education for Nature Program (EFN), seeks to support local communities and organizations to restore native forest ecosystems and reverse degradation, whilst strengthening local capacity for enhancing management practices, and promoting alternative livelihoods with gender equity, in ways that attend to the local needs and aspirations.

Applications should clearly demonstrate how the proposed work aims to address the challenge of halting deforestation and forest degradation to advance human well-being and ecosystem integrity.

The grant is open to organizations in the following eligible countries within the WWF-US priority areas: Belize, Brazil, Bhutan, Bolivia, Cambodia, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chile, Colombia, Dem. Republic of Congo, Ecuador, French Guiana, Gabon, Ghana, Guatemala, Guyana, Honduras, Indonesia, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Laos, Madagascar, Malaysia, Mozambique, Myanmar, Namibia, Nepal, Nigeria, Paraguay, Peru, Republic of Congo, Suriname, Tanzania, Uganda, and Vietnam. Applicants may apply for one year of funding up to $15,000. The amount will vary.

Eligibility Criteria

• Your organization must conduct forest landscape restoration and reforestation activities in a WWF-US priority area.
• Your organization must plant 10,000 or more native tree species.
• The proposed project must include an active learning, practical skill component, or field-based learning activity that strengthen skills and knowledge of local stakeholders as part of the project activities.

WWF will provide special consideration to proposals that:

• support forest landscape restoration activities
• insert into wider efforts of addressing drivers of deforestation
• focus on conservation of biodiversity and habitats including perspectives for scaling impact
• consider opportunities of restoration for livelihood diversification
• include consideration of gender equity in implementation and impact
• build on partnership and active engagement with local communities
• emphasize on enhancing local expertise, skills, and knowledge

Competitive scope

The deadline to submit an application is November 30, 2022 at 11:59 PM Eastern Time. Applicants can access the online application at www.worldwildlife.org/efn. Accepted applications will be notified by early February 2023. Any questions about the application process or program should be directed to efn@wwfus.org.