Project Summary

The US Fish and Wildlife Service’s Tribal Wildlife Grant provides financial assistance to Tribes for conservation projects. Funds are awarded only to Tribal communities for projects that benefit fish and wildlife and their habitats. This includes subsistence species, as well as species of cultural importance to Tribal communities that are not harvested. Eligible projects include habitat mapping, conservation and management, field surveys and research, and relevant public education initiatives.

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In 2022, TBEC was brought on to assist the Qawalangin Tribe of Unalaska in preparing an application package for the Tribal Wildlife Grant. The QTU was seeking funds to develop a Natural Resources Conservation Plan and Pilot Study to restore blue mussel habitat within Unalaska Bay to increase Tribal subsistence food security, reduce PSP poisoning resulting from algal blooms, and implement nature-based solutions to improve water quality and ecosystem health.

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To start, TBEC conducted client meetings to learn what the community's goal was with the proposed project. Additional background research was conducted to provide information that supported the proposal, such as environmental changes impacting the community. TBEC also filled out the necessary forms to submit alongside the proposal, as well as a finalized budget narrative outlining what the funds would be used for. Overall, the work TBEC did on this grant application took 3 weeks, and the QTU was awarded $198,716. This was a competitive grant, where over $5.9 million was awarded to 33 Tribes across the country.

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Project Deliverables:

Round One

• TWG grant application that included:

  • Project description and objectives

  • Methodology

  • Expected results and benefits

  • Project timeline

• Completed forms

• Budget narrative

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External Links:

Award Notice

TWG webpage

QTU website