GLNF-CESU: Engaging Tribal Students in Protected Land Conservation- MWRO | NPS NOIP17AC01153

Opportunity Information: Apply for NPS NOIP17AC01153

The grant opportunity titled "GLNF-CESU: Engaging Tribal Students in Protected Land Conservation - MWRO" (Funding Opportunity Number: NPS NOIP17AC01153) is a National Park Service (NPS) cooperative agreement designed to build and pilot a stronger pathway for tribal youth and tribal college or university students to gain paid seasonal work, hands-on training, and career exposure in natural resource and protected land management. It sits within the Great Lakes-Northern Forest Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit (GLNF-CESU) framework and is aimed at strengthening relationships among the NPS, the University of Minnesota, the U.S. Forest Service, and tribal partners across Minnesota and Wisconsin, with a particular emphasis on connecting higher education tribal students to practical stewardship work on federal lands.

At its core, the project is framed as a pilot program led by the Regents of the University of Minnesota in collaboration with NPS staff and multiple university units, including the Department of Forest Resources, the Department of Fisheries, Wildlife and Conservation, and the American Indian Studies program. The intent is not just to offer short-term internships, but to deliberately expand tribal engagement in park management by pairing classroom learning with field-based experiences that reflect real agency needs and tribal priorities. In addition to supporting student development, the project is meant to broaden institutional capacity and interest in tribal relations, and to improve how protected resources are managed for both ecological and cultural benefits.

A central element of the approach is the use of a dedicated project coordinator who has tribal heritage. This coordinator is expected to maintain regular coordination with the NPS Great Lakes-Northern Forest CESU Coordinator and to travel to tribal reservations, community colleges, park units, and other work sites. The coordinator and partners would work directly with Tribes to identify appropriate seasonal natural resource jobs and projects for tribal youth, shape projects that align with tribal interests on federal lands, and explore practical methods for compiling and applying Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) alongside western science. The opportunity explicitly highlights integrating TEK as a way to support more holistic management of natural resources and to help restore ecosystems toward more functional habitat conditions. The work also connects with ongoing efforts at Apostle Islands National Lakeshore, where a TEK-focused project was planned for late 2017 to early 2018 with support from the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, suggesting that lessons and momentum from that work would inform the pilot program.

The tasks and outcomes described for the project emphasize three major deliverables. First, the partners are to develop a strategic approach, essentially a draft plan, that lays out how tribal youth engagement and education in stewardship and management will be enhanced over time. Second, the project is expected to create and deliver real-world experiences outside the classroom, which may include natural resource, cultural resource, and historic preservation projects, reflecting the broad range of work carried out on protected lands. Third, the project aims to expose tribal youth to NPS careers and opportunities, helping students understand the range of professional roles in the agency and how to pursue them.

The agreement spells out roles on both sides. The University of Minnesota, as the recipient, commits to working with parks and other federal lands in Minnesota and Wisconsin to develop or expand opportunities that let tribal youth apply academic knowledge in practical settings, including internships, field research, and service-learning projects. The recipient also agrees to facilitate faculty and student engagement with park operations and, where possible, other federal land operations across the two states. Another explicit responsibility is convening discussions among park staff and American Indian faculty to identify needs, challenges, and strategies that have worked, building an iterative learning loop rather than treating the pilot as a one-off placement program.

On the NPS side, the agency commits to sustained collaboration and operational support. NPS personnel are expected to meet regularly with university faculty to further develop and implement the tribal youth program. The NPS also agrees to provide training to tribal students, offer access to facilities and relevant staff support, and, where available and necessary, provide boat access to enable fieldwork in park settings that require it. The NPS will also assist with permitting requirements as they arise, which is often a practical barrier for field projects on protected lands. Finally, NPS commits to structured reflection and planning by discussing lessons learned and future natural and cultural resource management needs on both federal and tribal lands, with an explicit focus on how TEK can inform those priorities.

From an administrative standpoint, this opportunity was offered as a discretionary cooperative agreement under CFDA 15.945, with eligibility limited to public and state-controlled institutions of higher education. The award ceiling listed is $300,000, with one expected award. The posting indicates it was created on August 1, 2017, with an original closing date of August 18, 2017. The activity categories attached to the listing reflect the multidisciplinary nature of the work, spanning community development, education, employment and training, environment, natural resources, and science and technology research, which matches the program design: workforce development for tribal students, partnership-building with Tribes, and applied conservation and cultural resource management on protected lands.

• The Department of the Interior, National Park Service in the community development, education, employment, labor and training, environment, natural resources, science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "GLNF-CESU: Engaging Tribal Students in Protected Land Conservation- MWRO" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 15.945.
• This funding opportunity was created on Aug 01, 2017.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Aug 18, 2017. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $300,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 1 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Public and State controlled institutions of higher education.

Apply for NPS NOIP17AC01153

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