FY25 IIJA/IRA Bureau of Land Management Idaho (ID) Youth Conservation Corps | L25AS00149

Opportunity Information: Apply for L25AS00149

The FY25 IIJA/IRA Bureau of Land Management Idaho (ID) Youth Conservation Corps opportunity (Funding Opportunity Number L25AS00149) is a discretionary federal grant offered by the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) using a cooperative agreement structure. It is designed to fund partnerships between BLM Idaho offices and qualified youth and conservation corps organizations authorized under the Public Lands Corps Act (PLC). The core purpose is to put young people and eligible veterans to work on real conservation and stewardship needs on BLM-managed public lands in Idaho, while also building career pathways and practical skills in natural and cultural resources management. A major emphasis is paid employment, hands-on training, and mentorship from BLM professionals so participants leave with both workforce experience and a stronger connection to public lands stewardship.

The program specifically targets participants ages 16 to 30 (inclusive), and veterans up to age 35 (inclusive), and it explicitly includes tribal members. Recruitment is expected to focus on local communities and to prioritize engaging young, diverse participants. BLM frames this as both a conservation workforce initiative and a workforce diversification strategy, exposing participants to complex on-the-ground natural and cultural resource issues while helping develop the next generation of land management professionals. Projects are not intended to be generic; they are developed collaboratively with the BLM State Youth Program Lead and District and Field Office project coordinators, which is typical of cooperative agreements where the agency stays actively involved in planning and implementation.

This notice also ties proposed work to national priorities under the American Climate Corps (ACC), meaning projects are expected to help advance climate resilience, stewardship, and community-focused conservation outcomes. In addition, applicants are encouraged to incorporate goals aligned with the Indian Youth Service Corps (IYSC) initiative by doing outreach to Indian tribes and tribal-serving youth corps organizations. The opportunity highlights improving equitable access to conservation jobs and addressing racial inequity by expanding opportunities for qualified youth, including youth connected to federally recognized tribes and other tribal communities.

The types of projects supported are broad but clearly centered on tangible public land improvements and resource stewardship. Recreation-focused work can include trail construction, trail maintenance and restoration, and upgrades to visitor facilities such as kiosks, campgrounds, and signage. Natural resource monitoring and field science activities are also included, such as tracking riparian vegetation and hydrologic function, gathering soil and stream data, and performing timber stand improvement projects aimed at wildlife habitat and overall forest health. Restoration and protection work can cover invasive species reduction, tree planting, fencing removal or installation, and riparian restoration. The program also supports planning and public education deliverables, such as developing stewardship plans and visitor-facing educational materials.

Cultural and historic resource work is another major category under this funding opportunity. Supported activities can include resource inventories, archival and historical research, archaeological excavation or stabilization, oral history work, historic preservation, habitat surveys tied to cultural landscapes, and the preservation of cultural resources such as historic structures. Additional eligible project areas include seed collection to support restoration after natural disasters, efforts to reduce wildfire risk to communities and watersheds, and the creation of interpretive materials and programs about natural, cultural, and paleontological resources. The notice also allows certain in-house projects like science, policy, or program internships, but they must clearly benefit natural or cultural resources and include at least 120 hours of field work, ensuring participants gain direct, on-the-ground experience rather than only office-based exposure.

Eligibility is limited to organizations and public entities capable of operating youth and conservation corps programs under the PLC framework. Eligible applicants include state, county, and local governments; special district governments; public and state-controlled institutions of higher education; private institutions of higher education; federally recognized tribal governments; other tribal organizations; and nonprofits (both with and without 501(c)(3) status). Individuals and for-profit organizations are explicitly ineligible. The notice also stresses a key compliance point: the PLC Act is the legislative authority BLM relies on to recruit interns through this mechanism, and youth corps applicants are expected to apply only for projects developed under CFDA 15.243 (BLM Youth Conservation Opportunities on Public Lands), which is identified as the appropriate authority and program channel for these awards.

From a funding perspective, the award ceiling is $250,000. The opportunity listing shows an original closing date of 2025-02-03 and a posting (creation) date of 2024-11-21. While the listing does not clearly state the number of expected awards, the intent is to support multiple projects or partnerships that can place youth crews or interns into meaningful conservation roles across Idaho BLM units. Overall, this opportunity is structured to deliver immediate, measurable stewardship outcomes on public lands while simultaneously building a paid, trained pipeline of young conservation workers aligned with climate resilience, community benefit, and inclusive recruitment goals.

• The Bureau of Land Management in the natural resources sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "FY25 IIJA/IRA Bureau of Land Management Idaho (ID) Youth Conservation Corps" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 15.243.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2024-11-21.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2025-02-03. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $250,000.00 in funding.
• Eligible applicants include: State governments, County governments, City or township governments, Special district governments, Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized), Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments), Nonprofits having a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Nonprofits that do not have a 501 (c) (3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Private institutions of higher education.

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