Climate Program Office Tribal Drought Resilience with Inflation Reduction Act Support

Diane Brown
diane.brown@noaa.gov

Britt Parker
britt.parker@noaa.gov

The U.S. Department of Commerce is offering funding to enable tribal nations to address current and future drought and climate risk on tribal lands across the western U.S. by improving decision support and building drought resilience in a changing climate.

Projects could include, but are not limited to, the following types of activities that are designed to reduce impacts to human health, critical infrastructure, security, and the economy:

• Identifying primary drought impacts
• Identifying optimal drought indicators and/or triggers
• Developing a drought communication/information dissemination plan
• Improving/enhancing drought monitoring
• Developing an online dashboard with relevant drought tools and information
• Conducting a drought vulnerability assessment
• Developing a drought plan
• Convening workshops with key partners, within the tribe and/or external to the tribe, to increase communication and sharing of drought information
• Demonstrating the application of drought data and information to enhance decision-making

Eligible applicants include:

• Federally recognized tribal governments
• Institutions of higher education
• Nonprofit organizations
• Commercial organizations
• International organizations
• State and local governments

If the primary applicant is not a tribal government, full partnership with a tribal nation can be demonstrated by:

1. Including at least one full investigator on the project representing a federally recognized tribe
2. Indicating through the budget and budget justification that funds are being disseminated to the tribe

Award ceiling: $700,000 for the entire project period
Project period: Up to 3 years
Estimated number of awards: 3-5
Estimated total program funding: $2,000,000

Links to the full announcement, application instructions, and the online application process are available through grants.gov and the program website.

While not required, potential applicants are encouraged to submit a letter of intent through the online form by November 2, 2023. The full application should be submitted through grants.gov by February 15, 2024.