Watchable Wildlife Grant Program

This grant will reopen April 1, 2025.

The Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) created the Watchable Wildlife Grant Program in 2021 to support wildlife viewing opportunities and foster stewardship of wildlife in Washington. Funds to support the Washington Watchable Wildlife Grant come from the Wild on Washington: Bald Eagle license plate – one of WDFW’s specialized license plates.

Wildlife viewing is a recreational activity of observing fish or wildlife or signs of them in their habitats (e.g. tracks, nests, scat). This includes exploring habitat in person or online to better understand fish and wildlife. 

Flyer for the Watchable Wildlife Grant program
Download the Watchable Wildlife Grant flyer

WDFW’s Watchable Wildlife Program as defined by RCW 77.32.560 includes but is not limited to: Initiating partnerships with communities to jointly develop watchable wildlife projects, building infrastructure to serve wildlife viewers, assisting and training communities in conducting wildlife watching events, developing destination wildlife viewing corridors and trails, tours, maps, brochures, and travel aides, and offering grants to assist rural communities in identifying key wildlife attractions and ways to protect and promote them.

WDFW will accept grant applications for projects that create, improve, increase, and/or promote opportunities for communities to view or experience wildlife and/or learn about responsible wildlife viewing practices. Projects must be on property that is publicly accessible.

WDFW prioritizes initiatives that are brought forward by or are co-developed with underserved and marginalized communities to address stated community needs that are imbued with equity and justice values. Ideal proposals will benefit or address barriers for underrepresented communities and/or apply diversity, equity, and inclusivity in their projects.

2025 Grant application schedule

  • April 1, 2025: Application open
  • May 30, 2025: Application due 11:59pm Pacific Time
  • June 2 - July 31, 2025: Application review
  • Aug. 4 - Aug. 15, 2025: Award notification
  • Aug. 18 - Sept. 26, 2025: Grant contracts issued
  • Sept. 26, 2025: Project initiation
  • June 25, 2027: All costs must be incurred and project deliverables due.

Funding

  • Total available to disperse amongst selected applicant(s): $30,000
  • Grant award minimum: $5,000

Funding from WDFW will be provided in the form of reimbursement for allowed expenditures.

Qualifications

Grant is intended to:

  • Create, improve, increase, and/or promote opportunities to experience wildlife and/or learn about responsible wildlife viewing practices.
  • Benefit Washington wildlife and residents.
  • Raise awareness about wildlife conservation and increasing biodiversity.
  • Increase community involvement in wildlife conservation.

Grant is NOT intended to:

  • Fund projects that are primarily focused on habitat restoration or restoration equipment.
  • Fund citizen/community science with data collection as the primary goal.
  • Fund projects outside of Washington.
  • Cover overhead costs related to administration, such as staff salaries or benefits, facility rent, etc.

Project examples

  • Incorporating ADA-accessible features and materials into a wildlife viewing space.
  • Creating signage for wildlife identification in a park or along a trail.
  • Developing a regional wildlife viewing trail.
  • Hosting community events to go birding together.
  • Developing a pollinator garden in a schoolyard or community space and labeling it with species information and/or accompanying it with fish or wildlife lesson planning.
  • Taking students from a Title I school on a trip to a local WDFW wildlife area to experience wildlife.
  • Installing a live-feed wildlife viewing camera and featuring it on social media.

Who can apply

  • Individuals
  • 501(c)3 non-profits
  • Schools/universities
  • Local and county governments
  • Federally-recognized tribes

WDFW employees are NOT eligible to apply for the Watchable Wildlife Grant.

Application Requirements

Introduction (150 words or less)

Please tell us about yourself or the organization you’re representing and the project or effort you are proposing.

Project Description (300 words or less for this section total)

  1. Explain how project relates to watchable wildlife/wildlife viewing.
  2. Explain how project creates, increases, and/or promotes opportunities to view wildlife.
  3. Clearly define project details, goals, and partners.

Outreach and education (150 words or less for this section total)

  1. Describe your target audience you are trying to engage.
  2. Describe how project will engage with target audience.

Diversity, equity, & inclusion (250 words or less for this section total)

  1. Explain if your project plans to address ways to be more diverse, equitable, or inclusive to underserved audiences or is imbued with equity and justice values.
  2. Explain if your project plans to connect with an underrepresented audience and if so, who that audience is.
  3. Describe if your project plans to meet a stated community need or address a barrier to participation.
  4. Is your project being brought forward by/co-developed with the audience/underserved communities it intends to serve? Please explain why or why not.

Methods (150 words or less for this section total)

  1. Clearly describe how you plan to measure success of effort.
  2. Describe how participatory data will be collected from participants, public, and/or project.

Operations (150 words or less for this section total)

Note: overhead costs are not eligible for funding.

  1. Clearly define requested grant dollar amount and detailed budget justification (word limit does not apply to budget outlines).
    1. Clearly describe use and costs of budget in line-item form (word limit does not apply. Please include spreadsheet attachments in the single PDF application file if applicable).
  2. Clearly describe the deliverable(s) for your project.

Contact (required)

  • Name
  • Job title (if applicable)
  • Email
  • Phone number

Attachments (optional)

We will ONLY be accepting one single PDF file. This PDF must include your application and any supplemental materials (e.g., budget spreadsheets, photos, maps, etc.) combined into one document. 

Public Information Session: April 3

A public information session will be held on the evening of April 3. This will be an opportunity to learn more about the grant and ask questions not covered in the FAQ section below. More information to come. 

Submitting applications and questions

Please review all FAQs below. For remaining questions or to submit your completed application (in a single PDF file) email: 

Kelsey Hansen (she/her)
Watchable Wildlife Coordinator
kelsey.hansen@dfw.wa.gov (email preferred)
360-890-0544 

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Is $30,000 available for every applicant, or is it intended to be split?
  • There is only $30,000 available (total) for this grant, and that can be given to one applicant or split amongst multiple. In the past two application cycles, four applicants have been selected per cycle, although that can vary. Applicants are allowed to apply for the full $30,000, but it is encouraged to have multiple facets of the project that could be selected independently for funding. 
How does the word limit on the application questions apply to subsections? 
  • Word limits apply to sections in their entirety. For example, please keep questions 1-3 (the Project Description section) to 300 words or less total. You may split your word limit amongst those questions however you’d like. In this example, do not answer questions 1-3 with a 300-word answer for each question. 
Staff time is not included in the grant, but what about outside contractor time?
  • If projects require an outside contractor to execute certain components (such as hiring a contractor for equipment or facility installation or hiring a designer to create art for an interpretive sign), that is considered contracted outside labor and qualifies for funding. There must be a take-away item or product as an outcome from this contracted work.
Can grant money be used to fund transportation of staff to events or projects?
  • Yes, transportation costs for staff and program attendees qualifies for funding to create equitable access for all to project sites. It is not recommended that this be the sole purpose of a funding request, but it may be a component. 
Do you accept applications that are not submitted in the application window?
  • No. Late applications will not be considered for funding. 
Our/my project is primarily restoration focused, so we/I do not qualify for this grant. What other funding is available for this project?
  • We recommend reviewing requirements for the Aquatic Lands Enhancement Account Volunteer Cooperative Grant Program when pursuing restoration-based projects. However, the Watchable Wildlife Grant may be considered for supplementary pieces to a restoration project, such as including accessible viewing blinds, platforms, or signage, or leading community walks with binoculars to enjoy the new space and wildlife. 
Our/my project is ongoing and may not be completed by June 25, 2027. Can we/I still apply?
  • Yes, if Watchable Wildlife Grant goals specifically are completed by June 25, 2027, applicants may apply. Invoices for project deliverables must be received by June 25, 2027. Grant goals may be smaller parts of a larger ongoing project.
    • For example, if a large nature center project is going to take several years to complete, a funding request may still be submitted for a smaller aspect of the project, like obtaining educational materials that support watching wildlife. Or, if community bird walks have been ongoing for many years, funding from this grant may support those opportunities for the duration of time until June 25, 2027.
  • This is a reimbursement-based grant, meaning that outlined project services must be completed and/or items received in-hand by the grantee before sending in invoices to WDFW for reimbursement by June 25. Invoices for project deliverables must be received by June 25, 2027, so grant goals must be completed at that time.
  • Invoices may be sent over a period of time throughout the grant cycle or all at once for reimbursement. 
Do items purchased have to be returned to WDFW upon project completion?
  • No, materials and equipment purchased forever belong to the grantee. 
What are some past projects that have been funded from this grant?
  • You can read about the selected projects from the 2023 grant cycle in our blog. 
Do you have preferences or priorities for projects or groups that WDFW has done work with on in the past?
  • No. All proposals will be scored fairly based on the strength of the application and its clarity. Past partnership with WDFW will not play into the scoring and selection process. 
Are past Watchable Wildlife Grant recipients eligible to apply again for this grant cycle?
  • Yes, all applications are welcomed, even from past recipients. There will not be preferential scoring to those who have received funding from WDFW before or who are executing current projects from Watchable Wildlife funds. 
Can a budget under $5,000 be submitted?
  • No. It is also encouraged that when submitting budget proposals, ensure the math is adding up correctly to meet the $5,000 minimum.
Do you have preferences for any specific project types?
  • No. Proposals must be clear and goal-oriented, but otherwise they may be creative and in alignment with what a person or organization is seeking.