Voyageurs Conservancy will connect 17,000 Minnesotans to the state's only national park through standards-aligned K-12 education, career-building fellowships, and enhanced programs that engage diverse audiences in the park's conservation.
Wilderness Inquiry will expand its work to provide a continuum of outdoor experiences for youth, adults, and families in communities across Minnesota by:
The Conservation Partners Legacy Grant Program will be managed by the Department of Natural Resources to provide competitive matching grants of up to $400,000 to local, regional, state, and national non-profit organizations and government entities. In it's first 7 years of funding, the CPL program has provided 410 grants totaling $37 million to 133 different grantee organizations, positively affecting over 220,000 acres of habitat. Demand for CPL grants has continued to grow each year as new grantees hear about the program and successful grantees return.
Grassland ecosystems evolved to depend on periodic disturbances, such as fire and grazing, to maintain their health and stability. Periodic disturbances help control invasive species, add nutrients back into the soil, germinate plant seeds, enhance wildlife habitat, and more. In Minnesota habitat managers have used fire as a disturbance tool for decades but the use of grazing has been much rarer, mostly because of a lack of necessary infrastructure such as fencing.
The Conservation Partners Legacy Grant Program, managed by the Department of Natural Resources, provided 56 competitive matching grants to non-profit organizations and governments, appropriating all the available ML12 funds.
With the ML 2015 appropriation The Conservation Partners Legacy (CPL) Grant Program awarded 70 grants, 22 of these grants were the metropolitan area. Over 24,000 acres were enhanced, 2,500 acres were restored, and 386 acres protected through these 70 projects. Thirty-eight counties had CPL projects completed in them through 47 unique organizations. The average project for the ML 2015 grants was $96,000, with few exceptions most projects were completed on time and many were under budget.
As of 11/1/2023, the CPL program has provided over 970 grants totaling $115 million to over 250 different grantee organizations, improving or protecting over 577,000 acres of habitat. Demand for CPL grants has continued to grow each year as new applicants hear about the program and successful grantees return. In ML 2019 there were 99 grants awarded- 15 metro grants, 29 traditional grants, and 55 Expedited Conservation Partners grants. Through these 99 grants, over 34,000 acres were restored, enhanced, or protected. Over $10.6M was awarded to organizations for projects.
Our Legacy project will consist of three local bands performing during our fair, all with ties to central Minnesota . Patrick Murphy along with Blonde and the Bohunk will perform a Friday evening concert and Runestone Rebellion will be the band providing musical entertainment on Saturday evening.
Mahnomen County is only 583 square miles in size, but according to the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, the county contains three of the four biomes: Coniferous Forest, Deciduous Forest, and Prairie Grasslands. Some of the land in Mahnomen County is used for farming, but trees are also an important natural resource. The Mahnomen County Agricultural Society would like to provide access to Minnesota's Agricultural, Historical and Cultural Heritage through a Lumberjack show and camp.
Our Legacy project will consist of a variety of items: we hold a craft day for kids where they can come to the fair and make various craft projects throughout the day. Kids usually go home with 2-3 projects each. We will also host a non-denominational church service; Legacy funds will go towards the musical group and their sound man that provides the music for the service. We are also looking to upgrade our sound system by our stage area, as well as renting a portable stage. We will also be purchasing portable pop canopies/tenets to provide shelter for outside craft vendors.
The Mahnomen County Agricultural Society's Legacy project is to purchase a sound system and bleachers for our free stage used for local artists, cultural demonstrations, and other events open to the public.
