The Cornell Lab of Ornithology is currently accepting applications for mini-grants to support eBird workshops led by Regional Conservation Partnerships (RCPs) for their partners and practitioners. The goal of these workshops is to empower RCP leaders to train their partners to use eBird effectively for land conservation within their respective landscapes, creating an ambassador network to promote the effectiveness of this birding tool for conservation, monitoring, and community engagement.
It is expected that RCPs in the Northeast will utilize these mini-grants to host eBird training workshops for their partners, either virtual or in-person, and then use this as a jumping-off point to build a network of eBird users who can use the resource in support of their conservation goals. Applications are now open and must be submitted by March 15, 2022. See below for the Request for Proposal details, eligibility criteria, and expectations.
About the Grant
In 2021, The Cornell Lab of Ornithology received funding for the Northeast Bird Habitat Conservation Initiative (NBHCI) to train Regional Conservation Partnership (RCP) Network leaders to use the planning tool eBird, eBird science data, and bird-friendly forestry techniques, and to support partners with effective management implementation on ecologically important forests, grasslands, and farmlands for at‐risk bird species in the Northeast. The first year of this funding was used in part to host online eBird training workshops on landowner engagement and using eBird science data for conservation planning and acquisition prioritization for RCP leaders.
Grant Details and Eligibility Criteria
- Applications are due March 15, 2022, with funds dispersed around the beginning of April. (See link to online application below.)
- Applicant organizations must reside within the U.S.
- Applicants must apply on behalf of or in partnership with a Regional Conservation Partnership.
- Grants are for up to $500/project to subsidize the cost of either an eBird workshop or webinar, including salary time, material costs, venue rental (if in person), virtual platform fees (if a webinar), etc. Indirect costs should be no more than 10%.
- Projects must host the eBird workshop before December 31, 2022, either virtually or in-person.
- Applicants should demonstrate their commitment to using eBird and supporting the use of this tool in their partnership base.
- Applicants are welcome to engage partners to help present the workshop/webinar or to present on your RCP’s behalf.
- eBird resources and webinar videos are available to help support workshop/webinar development if needed.
Grant Awards and Expectations
- To initiate the project and payment, a MOU with a list of grant activities and expectations will be signed by the awardee organization and the Cornell Lab of Ornithology.
- Upon completion of the project, the awardee should submit a one-page report detailing the workshop event, including metrics such as length of workshop, number of attendees, lessons learned, thoughts about how their organization will use eBird going forward, etc. Please include photos if possible.
- The Cornell Lab and Highstead reserve the right to feature the funded projects and use photographs and other media on their websites, in Cornell Land Trust Bird Conservation Initiative materials, and on social media.
If you have questions, please contact:
Sara Barker, Cornell Land Trust Bird Conservation Initiative Program Leader
Katie Blake, Conservationist, Highstead
