Our nation’s public lands are places where we picnic, play ball, fish, fly kites, pull weeds and plant seeds. Our public lands should be safe places of natural beauty where everyone can go to lend a hand, observe nature and enjoy life. With generous support from Toyota Motor Sales USA, Inc., NEEF is offering Every Day Event Grants to public land organizations, or Friends Groups, to engage their community on a public land site.
In May 2013 NEEF will award 25 Friends Groups up to $2,000 each to hold a minimum of three events. The events can be educational, recreational and/or volunteering-based. By increasing the number of visitors who have good experiences on public lands, Friends Groups are the spark that continues to engage our communities on 
our treasured lands.
NEEF would like to help spread the word for these events on public lands. Therefore, applicants who receive an Every Day Event Grant will be required to register their events on our Public Lands Every Day online calendar.
Apply Now! This grant is now closed. Applications are currently being reviewed.
Read the Grant Details below or visit the Frequently Asked Questions webpage.
More Details:
Before you apply please take a moment to review the grant details.
Eligibility -- Criteria for Selection -- Timeline -- Funding Restrictions -- Submission
Eligibility
One of the most common reasons NEEF declines proposals is that the applicant does not clearly tell their financial story, either through their budgets or their financial documents. To try to address this need, NEEF has partnered with PwC to offer free, online training modules tailored to Friends Groups. The modules can be taken in any order, at any pace. We highly encourage your board, staff or anyone who communicates about your finances to utilize these modules. It is not a requirement of this grant to take these courses. However, they can be helpful to your organization and also in completing grant applications.
Applicant must:
- be a 501(c)(3) nonprofit or working through a fiscal agent.
- have been in existence for at least two (2) years.
- be a Friends Group, defined as a community-based nonprofit organization whose mission is focused on serving a public land site in the United States and the improvement and responsible use of that site. This includes groups that serve more than one site, such as a regional group of parks. Though we call them Friends Groups, Cooperating Associations and other partners meeting the above definition are eligible. However, public schools and their grounds are not eligible.
- have an established collaborative relationship with a local public land site (including federal, state, regional, county, city or other local public land areas) for at least one year.
Events must:
- be either educational, recreational, and/or volunteer-based.
- take place on a public land site that is owned by the public, and not just open for public use.
- be for new events OR expanding and/or improving past events.
- be completed within the one year grant period.
- occur outside of any National Public Lands Day participation.
Please note that NEEF Grantees from 2010-2012 are not eligible for this grant.
Criteria for Selection
The below criteria are the basis for reviewing grants. Successful applications will:
- Demonstrate a positive, cooperative partnership with a local public land site that will host at least one of the organization’s events.
- Describe a minimum of three events that will focus on building a deeper connection between the public land site and the surrounding community.
- Describe the target audience for the proposed events and demonstrate some basic knowledge about how best to engage with them.
- Describe clear and measurable outcomes of the events’ impact.
- Explain how grant funds will be spent to cover the costs of the three events.
Timeline
- Applications Open: January 31, 2013
- Applications Due: March 8 (11:59pm CT)
- Grants Awarded: May 1, 2013
- Grant Period: One Year from date Awarded
Funding Restrictions
Funds cannot be used for:
- Conducting lobbying, carrying on propaganda or otherwise attempting to influence legislation;
- Influencing the outcome of any specific election through any means;
- Purposes other than charitable, scientific or educational;
- Solely fundraising purposes;
- Budget shortfalls, general operating costs or endowment funds;
- Scholarships, fellowships or grants to individuals;
- Land acquisition or real estate purchases;
Submission
NEEF grants are only accepted through our online grant application system. Follow these steps to register and apply:
- Click Apply Now at the bottom of this page.
- You will be taken to a Log On page. If you have not created an account from a previous NEEF grant or award, select Create New Account. If you have previously created an account with NEEF, skip to step 4.
- Follow the instructions to create your account. It will ask you for your contact information as the account holder and the contact information for your organization’s representative. For example, you may be the development director, but want the executive director’s name on the application as the representative.
- Upon creating an account, it will take you to your home screen. To apply, click the Apply Now button at the bottom of this page. You will be taken to a list of NEEF grants and awards. Select Every Day Event Grants 2013 to begin your application. Complete the application. Remember: You can save your application and return later. We recommend you use the Word version of the application to create your narrative and then copy and paste your answers into the online application. Pay close attention to character limits. These limits include spaces!
- Once you have completed the application and uploaded all attachments, click Submit Form to officially apply. If you do not click Submit Form, you will not have applied. You will also receive a confirmation screen upon submitting. You will not receive a confirmation email.
If you have any questions or problems, please consult our FAQ or don’t hesitate to contact us at grantsadmin@neefusa.org.
