This living shoreline demonstration area is an example of a project made possible by a NY Great Lakes Basin Small Grant to Buffalo Niagara Riverkeeper (BNW). BNW received a 2021 grant to support a Buffalo Young Environmental Leaders Program. Credit: BNW

Contact:

Megan Kocher, NYSG Great Lakes Outreach Coordinator, E: mk2236@cornell.edu, P: (716) 645-3011


Funding to Support Projects that Implement Great Lakes Action Agenda Priorities, Local Priorities to Restore and Protect Great Lakes Lands and Waters 2023; Applications for Funding Due March 1, 2023

Oswego, NY, January 6, 2023 - New York Sea Grant, in partnership with the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC), today announced funding is now available for projects that apply an ecosystem-based management approach to address local watershed challenges. Projects will implement the goals of New York's Great Lakes Action Agenda and address actions specifically identified in locally supported plans pertaining to water quality, natural resources, or sustainable land uses. A total of $460,000, with up to $50,000 per project, in New York Great Lakes Basin Small Grants will be awarded.

"Enhancing the lakes' ecosystem through ecosystem restoration bolsters the resiliency of this important natural resource and at the same time provide enhanced recreational and economic opportunities," said DEC Commissioner Basil Seggos. "Partnering with New York Sea Grant through this essential grant program helps both sustain and build upon the substantial environmental progress we've made across New York's Great Lakes region and protects these vital waters for future generations."

"New York Sea Grant is excited to partner with the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) to provide communities with resources needed to implement locally identified and prioritized projects that increase resilience, improve the environment, and provide economic benefits," said New York Sea Grant Associate Director and Cornell University Cooperative Extension Assistant Director Katherine Bunting-Howarth, PhD, JD, Ithaca, N.Y.

County and local government or public agencies, municipalities, and regional planning and environmental commissions, not-for-profit organizations, and educational institutions including, but not limited to, public and private K-12 schools, colleges, and universities, are eligible to apply.

Applications are due by 4:30 p.m. EST on March 1, 2023; instructions are online at the New York Sea Grant website. For more information, contact New York Sea Grant at 716-645-3611.



New York Sea Grant administers the New York Great Lakes Basin Small Grants Program in partnership with DEC's Great Lakes Program. This small grants program is funded by the New York State Environmental Protection Fund. Among the many environmental victories in the 2022-23 State Budget, Governor Hochul succeeded in enacting an increase in the EPF from $300 million to $400 million, the highest-ever level of funding in the program's history. The EPF supports climate change mitigation and adaptation efforts, improves agricultural resources to promote sustainable agriculture, protects our water sources, advances conservation efforts, and provides recreational opportunities for New Yorkers.

For more information on New York's Great Lakes Action Agenda, go to DEC's website. More information on New York Great Lakes Basin Small Grants projects and other New York Great Lakes-related information is available at New York Sea Grant's website.


More Info: New York Sea Grant

New York Sea Grant (NYSG), a cooperative program of Cornell University and the State University of New York (SUNY), is one of 34 university-based programs under the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Sea Grant College Program.

Since 1971, NYSG has represented a statewide network of integrated research, education and extension services promoting coastal community economic vitality, environmental sustainability and citizen awareness and understanding about the State’s marine and Great Lakes resources.

Through NYSG’s efforts, the combined talents of university scientists and extension specialists help develop and transfer science-based information to many coastal user groups—businesses and industries, federal, state and local government decision-makers and agency managers, educators, the media and the interested public.

The program maintains Great Lakes offices at Cornell University, SUNY Buffalo, SUNY Oswego and the Wayne County Cooperative Extension office in Newark. In the State's marine waters, NYSG has offices at Stony Brook University in Long Island, Brooklyn College and Cornell Cooperative Extension in NYC and Kingston in the Hudson Valley.

For updates on Sea Grant activities: www.nyseagrant.org has RSS, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube links. NYSG offers a free e-list sign up via www.nyseagrant.org/nycoastlines for its flagship publication, NY Coastlines/Currents, which is published quarterly.