$259,000 Grant Funding Available for Northern Forest Community, Cultural and Economic Projects

 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: June 21, 2006

CONTACT:        
Shelly Angers, Northern Forest Center, 603-229-0679 ext 109; email: sangers@northernforest.org
or
Charles Levesque, North East State Foresters Association, 603-226-0012, levesque@inrsllc.com

CONCORD, NH— The Northern Forest Partnership Program (NFPP) has expanded for its third year, making $259,000 in grant funding available to community-based projects that promote diverse and sustainable economies built upon a well-managed forest landscape.

Eligible applicants include non-profits, businesses and local government entities, including schools, in 29 Northern Forest counties in Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont and New York.

The competitive grant program is jointly administered by the North East State Foresters Association and the Northern Forest Center. Funding for the NFPP has been made possible by a grant from the USDA Forest Service Economic Action Program and support from U.S. Senator Judd Gregg of New Hampshire.

“Northern Forest Partnership Program grants have supported dozens of worthwhile projects since the program began,” said Gregg. “Their focus on sustaining both jobs and the region’s culture is very important to maintaining the Northern Forest’s unique identity.”

The Northern Forest Partnership Program will fund projects that:

• Strengthen the capacity of rural communities to support sustainable
  forest-based local economies;
• Promote environmentally sensitive uses of the forest and other natural resources;
• Promote local history, culture and working connections to the landscape;
• Are part of sustaining or helping to create new jobs in these areas.

“This grant program is wide-ranging,” said Charles Levesque, executive director of the North East State Foresters Association. “Businesses are eligible, and the grants are large enough to be used for serious capital investment that can create living-wage jobs in businesses connected to the forest.”

“In its first two years, the Partnership Program has funded a variety of exciting projects,” said Stephen Blackmer, president of the Northern Forest Center. “The grants have helped create brochures and maps promoting the region’s culture and heritage, economic development plans and feasibility studies for businesses, educational programs about sustainable forestry for teachers and landowners, and much more.”

Northern Forest Partnership Program grants help community groups build on the region’s amazing potential while still respecting what makes it so special.”

Grants will be awarded on a competitive basis, with projects that meet multiple criteria scoring higher. Proposals will score points for involving partnerships and crossing municipal or state boundaries; for contributing to economic sustainability in the Northern Forest; for serving as models that can be replicated; and for the strength of their connections to the forest. Complete criteria are available, along with guidelines, eligibility information and an online application, at www.northernforest.org.

Grants will be offered in three categories: small grants up to $7,500 each, general grants up to $20,000 each and special grants up to $30,000. Projects must match NFPP awards with equal or greater amounts of cash or in-kind services from other, non-federal sources.

Applications must be submitted via the online application form by 5 p.m. Eastern Time on September 15, 2006. Without exception, the website will stop accepting applications at that time. Applicants with questions about the program or their proposal can contact Kelly Short, communications director at the Northern Forest Center, by e-mail (kshort@northernforest.org) or by phone: 603-229-0679.

The North East State Foresters Association is the State Foresters of Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, and New York cooperating with the US Forest Service State & Private Forestry.  NEFA works to encourage sound decisions about the management and use of forest resources across Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont and New York by identifying significant regional trends, broadening awareness of forest health and sustainability issues, providing a regional context for state and local decisions about forest resources, and analyzing the environmental, social, and economic impacts of forest land use.

The Northern Forest Center is a private, non-profit organization that mobilizes people to build healthy communities, economies, and ecosystems by working together across the Northern Forest region.

— END—

NOTES TO EDITORS

Map Available:
A JPG map of the eligible area is available (3x5, 150 dpi, B&W, JPG). Contact Shelly Angers at 603-229-0679, ext. 109, sangers@northernforest.org. Map credit: Northern Forest Center.

Eligible Counties:
Maine: Aroostook, Franklin, Hancock, Oxford, Penobscot, Piscataquis, Somerset, Washington            

New Hampshire: Carroll, Coos, Grafton            

New York: Clinton, Essex, Franklin, Fulton, Hamilton, Herkimer, Jefferson, Lewis, Oneida, Oswego, St. Lawrence, Warren            

Vermont: Caledonia, Essex, Franklin, Lamoille, Orleans, Washington