Cooperative Agreement for CESU-affiliated Partner with Colorado Plateau Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit | G24AS00424

Opportunity Information: Apply for G24AS00424

This funding opportunity (G24AS00424) is a discretionary cooperative agreement offered by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) under the Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit (CESU) Program, specifically through the Colorado Plateau CESU. The project focus is on grassland bird communities in the western Great Plains and how those communities are likely to shift as climate conditions change. Grassland birds have experienced the steepest population declines of any major bird group in North America over roughly the past 50 years, and the opportunity is framed around helping land managers and conservation organizations respond to that ongoing loss with better planning tools and decision support.

The rationale behind the work is that grassland bird declines are tightly connected to widespread habitat conversion and degradation. Large areas of native prairie have been converted to agricultural row crops, while remaining grasslands have been altered by disrupted fire regimes, increasing woody plant encroachment, invasive plant spread, and expanding human development. Because agencies and partners have limited time and funding for restoration and protection, the USGS is emphasizing the need for bird habitat models that can help prioritize where conservation actions are most likely to produce meaningful benefits.

A central theme of the opportunity is that climate change is expected to reshape the Great Plains through changes in temperature and precipitation patterns driven by greenhouse gas emissions, and these shifts will influence vegetation structure and productivity, which in turn affects grassland birds. The description notes that many existing projections of bird responses to climate change lean heavily on temperature and precipitation alone, but vegetation productivity and habitat suitability are also influenced by factors such as vegetation type and soil characteristics. The proposed study is intended to better capture those vegetation-related drivers by examining how vegetation conditions influence grassland birds across the western Great Plains and then using that understanding to produce more realistic projections.

The main deliverables described are spatial products and applied tools: maps of projected bird distributions under multiple future climate scenarios that also incorporate vegetation and land-use change. These predictive distribution maps are meant to help decision-makers place site-level actions, like a restoration project or a habitat protection effort, into a broader regional and climatic context. In other words, the maps are intended to clarify how local projects fit into wider patterns of expected change, which can improve prioritization and coordination across jurisdictions and organizations.

Beyond the mapping, the opportunity also calls for practical implementation support through a web-based application and training modules tied to the projected distribution products. The aim is capacity-building for a wide range of partners, including Federal, State, Tribal, and private entities, so they can integrate climate-informed bird distribution information into conservation planning and management decisions. The use of a cooperative agreement also signals that USGS anticipates substantial involvement in the project rather than a hands-off grant relationship, which is typical for CESU-supported work that blends research with on-the-ground decision support.

Eligibility is limited: applicants must be an active participating partner in the Colorado Plateau CESU network (listed as “Others” in the eligibility field, but constrained by CESU partnership status). The opportunity is associated with CFDA number 15.808 and is categorized under Science and Technology and other Research and Development. The posted award ceiling is $100,000. The opportunity was created on 2024-07-23, with an original closing date of 2024-08-23, and it is presented as supporting a single targeted effort rather than a broad, multi-award competition.

• The Geological Survey in the science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Cooperative Agreement for CESU-affiliated Partner with Colorado Plateau Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Unit" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 15.808.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2024-07-23.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2024-08-23. (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 $100,000.00 in funding.
• Eligible applicants include: Others.

Apply for G24AS00424

[Watch] Creating a grant proposal using the step-by-step wizard inside the applicant portal: