Show Me the Money

Home 🞂 Newsroom 🞂 Show Me the Money
This May, community members from across the region gathered in Coorow to work on the skill of writing grant applications.

Love them or hate them, grants are a key ways to access funding for many groups and organisations. And with the announcement of the 2019 State NRM Community Stewardship Grants to support community-based projects that serve to protect and restore the local environment, NACC NRM has had a lot of enquiries about what the best tips are for writing grants.

This want for grant writing support was clear to see when more than thirty participants packed into the Coorow Town Hall for NACC NRM’s Grant Writing Workshop.

Leading the workshop was Tuna Blue Facilitation’s Becci Clarke – who provided the practical knowledge and tools to improve grant writing and top tips on how to best prepare your own grant applications.

Participants were eager to increase their understanding of the grant process and learn the steps to ensuring their organisation is ‘grant ready’. This led to a discussion on the range of grants available and where to find out about these – ‘Our Community Newsletter’ was noted as a great starting point.

As the workshop continued the four key elements of most grant applications were covered, expanding on how to clearly and concisely address the following points:

  • This is who we are.
  • This is why we need support.
  • This is our proposed project.
  • Demonstration of value for money – get this crucial step right and you are well on the way to a successful application.

As the coffee flowed so did the conversation, with participants encouraged to ask questions and share their own experience.

Shire of Dandaragan employee Julie Rouse attended the workshop and summed up the day when she said “I walked out of the workshop motivated and enthused about where grant writing could take me in my role”.

NACC’s Regional Agriculture Landcare Facilitator Annabelle Garratt helped host the workshop and said that providing capacity building activities is an essential part of assisting regional communities to develop projects and seek funding opportunities.

“I would like to thank Becci and Tuna Blue Facilitation for their experience and insights into the grant writing process. A big thanks also to the Coorow CRC who provided the location for the event.”

“If you missed the workshop, never fear, NACC has put together our top ten tips from the day and you can find them on our website.”

If you or your organisation are developing projects to improve the sustainability, productivity and profitability of agriculture and NRM in the NAR and would like support to do this, please contact our Regional Agriculture Landcare Facilitators: Lizzie King (E) Lizzie.King@nacc.com.au or (P) 0447 361 335 and Annabelle Garratt (E) annabelle.garratt@nacc.com.au or (P) 0448 986 879.

 

Top Ten Tips for Tip Top Applications!

Where to Access Grants:

  1. Go to ourcommunity.com.au and subscribe to their free newsletter
  2. Consider signing up to the Easygrants newsletter  (fundingcentre.com.au/easygrants )

Preparation:

  1. Compile your key organisational data for easy access (e.g. ABN, TFN, Website, Business name, trading name, banking details etc…)

Read the guidelines!  Make sure your project fits with the grant criteria.

  1. Inform yourself about the funder you are applying to: Look at their website, their values and the types of projects they have funded previously.

Writing the Application:

  1. Incorporate the language on the funder’s website and the grant guidelines into your application (i.e use their terms)
  2. Write clearly and concisely; assume the assessor knows nothing about who you are and what you/your organisation does.
  3. Ask somebody who has not been involved in your project to read through the application before you submit it
  4. Save a copy of your application before you submit it!
  5. Keep a record of your answers. As you apply for more grants, you will end up building a database of information to refer to which you can sort by question type. This can be a great time saver for future applications.

This workshop was supported by NACC NRM, through funding from the Australian Government’s National Landcare Program.

Share

We'd Love to Hear From You!

Your feedback is important to us. If you have suggestions, questions, or would like to get involved in Natural Resource Management, please use the form below or contact our Geraldton office. We’re here to listen and help

Contact Us

Geraldton Office

4 Walton Close, Geraldton
Post: PO Box 7168, Geraldton, 6531
Phone: (08) 9938 0100
Office hours: 8:30am to 4:30pm

Forms

Expression of Interest Form 🞂

Suggest a Project Form 🞂

Membership Form 🞂

Donations Form 🞂

Contacts

NACC Board Members 🞂

NACC Staff 🞂

NRM Bodies & Groups 🞂

CEO’s Report

In 2020-21 I talked about ‘raising the bar’. In 2021-22 we worked on setting the bar on fire. Over the last 12 months, the team at NACC NRM has not stopped.

The Sustainable Agriculture team has extended the program’s reach through collaborations with grower groups in the regions. Specifically, the Beyond Reasonable Drought project and Grower Group Alliance – South West WA Drought Innovation Hub – Geraldton Node project. The Beyond Reasonable Drought partnership with grower groups supported farmers across the region to improve the environmental sustainability of their agricultural production and drought resilience. The outcomes of this project have been consolidated through our successful Expression of Interest to the South West WA Drought Innovation Hub, with support from grower groups across the region, to host the Geraldton Node of the Hub. The program continues to focus on working with agricultural networks to share technical expertise and provide opportunities that will improve land management practices in agriculture across the region.

The conservation outcomes of ranger teams have expanded through work on several land tenures. Maintaining Heritage sites such as Willi Gulli, Racecourse Paddock and Buller River has long been a priority. During 2021-22, the teams have increasingly focused on threatened species and ecosystems.

To this end, Western Mulga rangers have improved management across 19,000 ha for the conservation of Malleefowl through firebreak and access management. They completed the maintenance of water holes and supported the monitoring of over 90 Malleefowl mounds.

Similarly, the Kwelena Mambakort Aboriginal Corporate ranger team have contributed positively to Carnaby’s Black Cockatoo populations by installing artificial hollows and habitat restoration.

All ranger teams have collected native seed, propagated native plants for restoration, and planted native vegetation in key locations across the NAR. Seed collection provides valuable industry experience and has facilitated the planting of over 100,000 seedlings during the year.   

In September 2021, the NACC NRM team delivered the WA Threatened Species Forum, held in tandem with the National Malleefowl Forum. Given the impact of COVID and the timing of this event, having more than 100 delegates from all over Australia was a significant achievement. The two Forums brought together 12 events over five days and featured 14 local artists, 25 businesses and 36 youth participants.

Following the successful relaunch of our updated NARvis, NACC NRM was invited to help lead a significant piece of strategic planning work for the region with Mid West Development Commission and the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development. With funding from the Australian Government’s Future Drought Fund, the consortia delivered a Regional Drought Resilience Plan covering the shires of Northampton and Chapman Valley and the City of Greater Geraldton, along with significant technical analysis of drought vulnerability for the South West land division. The development of this plan also included extensive community consultation to ensure that local knowledge and technical advice guided the development of priorities for action.

This planning work links to existing NACC NRM on-ground projects, including Beyond Reasonable Drought and the Chapman Catchment Collaborative regeneration project.

It was a busy year for events with face-to-face events becoming commonplace again. During 2021-22 we hosted events in Gingin, Moora, Dalwallinu, Cervantes, Jurien Bay, Walkaway, Nabawa, Perenjori, Kalannie and Morawa. We supported events in Karakin, Thundellara, Perenjori, Paynes Find, Wubin, Cataby, Warradarge, Northampton, Yuna, Dalwallinu and Dandaragan.

We also supported on-ground works throughout the region, including at the following locations Yuna, Dalwallinu, Dandaragan, Merkanooka, Goodlands, Kalannie, Bunjil, Yardarino, Canna, Kondut, Latham, Kadathinni, Nabawa, Red Gully, Sandy Gully, Waddy Forrest, Devils Creek, Perenjori, Bowgada, Ellendale, Wandana, Namban, Hill River, Warradarge, Gillingarra, Regans Ford and Moonyanooka.

Our region is vast – slightly larger than Tasmania, which for comparison, is serviced by three separate NRM organisations. Covering the NAR region and its many environmental threats is challenging. We continue to focus on partnerships and collaboration to address this challenge. We know that by working with our community through passionate delivery of collaborative on-ground projects and education, the community will value and actively protect our region’s natural capital.

This year we have launched a new Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP). The RAP Working Group consulted widely and developed an Innovate RAP which Reconciliation Australia approved in March 2022. The activities to fulfil these commitments are now in full swing.

Sadly, at the end of 2021, we farewelled former NACC NRM CEO Shelley Spriggs, who lost a long battle with cancer. Shelley was an inaugural inductee to the NRM Leadership Honour Roll. I will always be grateful for her guidance and no-nonsense approach, not to mention her passion for life.

While we have said farewell to some, we have welcomed many new faces across all programs, including our Administration team. We have also hosted a school-based trainee from Nagle Catholic College who has been working towards a Certificate II in Conservation and Ecosystem Management. This trial position has been very successful, and we look forward to making this opportunity available again in 2023.

During 2022 we have taken on new projects that align with our organisational and program objectives, and we have successfully completed some great initiatives that support continued conservation and sustainability outcomes. I want to thank the whole team who continue to go above and beyond for the organisation and each other proving their ongoing commitment to our purpose and our values.