The purpose of the heritage partnership program funding is to engage national heritage area recipients, partners, communities, and or visitors in shared environmental stewardship

The National Park Service (NPS) awarded Poudre Heritage Alliance a $1.0 million Cooperative Agreement under the Heritage Partnership Program (CFDA 15.939) effective May 14, 2025, with a completion date of December 31, 2026. This funding supports the implementation of the Cache La Poudre River National Heritage Area Management Plan through a comprehensive range of conservation, preservation, education, and community engagement initiatives. The award funds strategic activities including heritage area interpretation and visitor programming, historic preservation efforts, conservation work, economic development related to heritage tourism, staff training and certification programs, archival digitization projects, public outreach and marketing, and administrative functions necessary to support the heritage area's operations.

As a nonprofit organization and the designated management coordinating entity for the Cache La Poudre River National Heritage Area, Poudre Heritage Alliance will deliver these products and services to engage the general public, local communities, partners, and stakeholders in environmental stewardship and resource preservation. The funding enables the organization to advance shared stewardship of the region's natural, historic, scenic, and cultural resources while building capacity within the heritage area partnership network. Beneficiaries include the general public, state and local government subdivisions, nonprofit organizations, and private entities operating within the designated heritage area corridor in Colorado.

This is done by promoting greater public and private participation in preservation, conservation, education, and outdoor recreation programs and activities, and building resource stewardship ethics in its participants. Heritage partnership programs promote the conservation of local natural, historic, scenic, and cultural resources through national heritage areas, national heritage corridors, national historic districts, and other designations (nhas). These authorized programs are the management responsibility of federal commissions, nonprofit groups, universities, state agencies or municipal authorities. They are not units of the national park system, and their lands are not federally owned or managed. Beneficiaries include general public, states and or their political subdivisions, non-profits, private entities, the heritage area management coordinating entity.