Sustainable Recreation, Tourism, and Equitable Outdoor Access Directed Grant Program (2025-2027)

Purpose

This Grant Program aims to support innovative efforts to enhance, promote, and develop sustainable recreation and tourism opportunities and increase access for all to public lands in the Sierra-Cascade region. Program goals include improving access to nature and outdoor recreation opportunities, reducing impacts of overuse on natural and cultural resources, and supporting the development of sustainable recreation economies.

Description

Proposition 68 recognizes the critical importance of recreation and tourism to California’s economy and ecology and specifically directs funds to be used to support and expand recreation economies, opportunities, and access to outdoor recreation. Projects must fall within one of the following three focus areas to be considered for funding: 1. Build Climate Resilience: Support the planning, development, and maintenance of recreation and outdoor infrastructure that anticipates or adapts to increased use and pressure from climate change and visitors escaping extreme weather. Projects must clearly have multiple benefits, such as tourism as well as education, recreation infrastructure with water-quality benefits, or recreation with habitat protection. 2. Improve/Increase Access for All: Improve and/or increase access to nature, including for communities that have not traditionally had equitable access through grants which result in either the implementation or identification, prioritization, and preparation for capital improvement projects. Projects must clearly have multiple benefits, such as tourism as well as education, recreation infrastructure with water-quality benefits, or recreation with habitat protection. 3. Landscape-scale Assessments: Support landscape-scale partnerships to develop an assessment of landscape conditions and risks to recreational infrastructure and other assets. Projects must clearly have multiple benefits, such as tourism as well as education, recreation infrastructure with water-quality benefits, or recreation with habitat protection. Eligibility: Projects must meet all the following criteria: Be located within the Sierra-Cascade Region; be consistent with the Program Objectives described in the Grant Program Guidelines and the SNC mission and program areas as defined in the SNC Strategic Plan and the Sierra Nevada Watershed Improvement Program; meet all requirements of Proposition 68 and result in a clear, demonstrable, and enduring public benefit. The SNC may give favorable consideration to projects that: Employ a collaborative approach in project development or implementation; result in a beneficial impact across a defined geographic region; directly benefit severely disadvantaged or disadvantaged communities; consider climate impacts and risks and identify specific adaptation strategies or actions to remedy climate-related vulnerability and leverage private, federal, or local resources. To initiate consideration of a project, a project organizer should review the Grant Guidelines and Guidelines Companion Document and contact the appropriate SNC Area Representative. If it is determined that SNC will consider partnering on the project, the Area Representative will share the SNC Proposal Form with the organizer and assist in developing the project and completing the Proposal Form. Proposals will be accepted and reviewed on a rolling basis as long as funding is available. Recommendations may be made to the SNC Governing Board on a quarterly basis beginning in June 2026. First review of project proposals will begin December 2025. Please review the full Grant Program Guidelines and Guidelines Companion Document.