The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) recently announced the sixth round of grant awards from its Fisheries Innovation Fund, a program launched in 2010 to foster innovations that support sustainable fisheries in the United States.
The grants will aid in the development of diverse, collaborative strategies to strengthen fishing communities, bolster economic development, and support the next generation of American fishermen, according to NFWF.
The goal of the Fisheries Innovation Fund is to sustain fishermen and fishing communities while simultaneously rebuilding fish stocks.
The 11 grants for 2016 total $1.19 million, and will be matched by over $1.3 million in additional support from the grantees, for a total conservation impact of more than $2.5 million.
NFWF’s Fisheries Innovation Fund is supported by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the Walton Family Foundation, the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, and this year welcomes a new funder, the David and Lucile Packard Foundation.
Altogether, the grants will support conservation work in 15 states: Alabama, Alaska, California, Connecticut, Hawaii, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Mississippi, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Virginia, and Washington.
A complete list of the 2016 Fisheries Innovation Fund grants, by region, can be found at:
http://www.nfwf.org/fisheriesfund/Documents/fif_2016grants_16-0712.pdf
This is the first of two announcements for the Fisheries Innovation Fund; separate awards under the Electronic Monitoring and Reporting Grant Program will be announced in late August.
Chartered by Congress in 1984, the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) protects and restores the nation’s fish, wildlife, plants and habitats.
source: NOAA Fisheries