Kapapahuliau Grant Program

The Kapapahuliau Grant Program, authorized by the Inflation Reduction Act (P.L. 117-169, Title VIII Sec. 80002), provides funding to Native Hawaiian Organizations to leverage traditional Native Hawaiian knowledge in enhancing response and resilience

The Native Hawaiian Community (lāhui) has long recognized that the health of its people is intrinsically linked to the health of the lands, waters, and all environmental aspects of Hawaiʻinuiākea (the Hawaiian archipelago). This understanding has fostered a vital relationship with environmental nuances, processes, and changes, enabling the Native Hawaiian people to adapt and thrive during past environmental upheavals. Ancestral ingenuity and resilience in the face of change are memorialized in moʻokūʻauhau (genealogies), moʻolelo, and kaʻao (traditions, histories, and stories), often referred to as Native Hawaiian traditional knowledge. This knowledge is reflected in traditional practices passed down through generations, including food cultivation, the arts, scientific observation, voyaging and celestial navigation, language, religion, family care, health and medicine, natural resource conservation, and site preservation. Such practices connect the Native Hawaiian people to their environment, emphasizing the need to recognize changes and the capacity to respond, adapt, and evolve to preserve the integrity of the community. Unfortunately, weather-related anomalies in Hawaiʻi have increasingly threatened the Native Hawaiian Community. These changes have resulted in heightened drought, coastal flooding and erosion, and the degradation of nearshore reef habitats, significantly impacting critical industries such as tourism, agriculture, and aquaculture, as well as subsistence fishing and farming efforts in rural areas. Additionally, the lāhui faces an influx of invasive species that jeopardize traditional farming practices, exacerbate wildfire risks, and contribute to soil erosion and flooding. The cumulative effects of these impacts pose serious challenges to the livelihoods of the Native Hawaiian people. The Kapapahuliau Grant Program aims to enhance the Native Hawaiian Community's ability to navigate these environmental challenges by strengthening their self-sufficiency and self-determination while maintaining and enhancing their capacity for coping, adaptation, and transformation. Kapapahuliau is centered around the following five Guiding Principles for which actions are carried out to support the overall Program Goal. Project proposals should look to meet all five of the following: 1) Native Hawaiian Organizations currently represent the Native Hawaiian Community. 2) Aloha ʻĀina (love for the land): The Hawaiian Islands and its environment are essential to Native Hawaiian Community identity. 3) Adverse weather and subsequent environmental impacts inevitably cause economic hardship to the Native Hawaiian Community and projects should incorporate economic sustainable practices. 4) Native Hawaiian Community resilience must incorporate Native Hawaiian traditional knowledge systems and ingenuity. 5) Kuleana (Right & Responsibility) to advance Native Hawaiian Community resilience through dialog and shared learning.

NATIVE HAWAIIAN ORGANIZATION. For this financial assistance opportunity, the term "Native Hawaiian Organization" or "NHO" means an organization - (A) that principally serves or benefits the Native Hawaiian Community, (B) that is composed primarily of Native Hawaiians, who control or serve in substantive leadership and decision-making roles; and (C) that has demonstrated expertise in Native Hawaiian heritage, economic development, health and well-being, self-governance, and natural and cultural resource management. Native Hawaiian Community means the distinct Native Hawaiian indigenous political community that Congress, exercising its plenary power over Native American affairs, has recognized and with which Congress has implemented a special political and trust relationship. Native Hawaiian means any individual who is a descendant of the aboriginal people who, prior to 1778, occupied and exercised sovereignty in the area that now constitutes the State of Hawai'i. Applicants seeking financial assistance through this funding opportunity must submit a written attestation or certification from their governing body (such as the Executive Director, CEO, or Board of Directors). This document should confirm that the applicant organization qualifies as a "Native Hawaiian Organization" as defined in the section above and that it is authorized to apply for financial assistance. Additionally, the attestation must include supporting information that demonstrates how the organization meets the specified criteria.

The beneficiary of this program is the Native Hawaiian Community (Native Hawaiian Community means the distinct Native Hawaiian indigenous political community that Congress, exercising its plenary power over Native American affairs, has recognized and with which Congress has implemented a special political and trust relationship. [43 CFR Part 50 (§50.4)])

The funds may be used by programs to address specific priorities within the Notice of Funding Opportunity, and to reduce the impacts of adverse and severe weather events using Native Hawaiian traditional knowledge. Funds may go towards staffing, equipment, supplies, travel, contracts, and other related expenses related to approved project activities. Indirect organizational costs may also be claimed in accordance with the specific guidance in the Notice of Funding and subsequent grant agreement.

The funds may be used by programs to address specific priorities within the Notice of Funding Opportunity, and to reduce the impacts of adverse and severe weather events using Native Hawaiian traditional knowledge. Funds may go towards staffing, equipment, supplies, travel, contracts, and other related expenses related to approved project activities. Indirect organizational costs may also be claimed in accordance with the specific guidance in the Notice of Funding and subsequent grant agreement.

Assistance is pending for FY2025. Grant timeline is pursuant to the terms and conditions of the award and the authority under which the funds were appropriated. All funds must be spent by FY2031. Specific requirements are included in the Notice of Funding Opportunity and the award's terms and conditions. Method of awarding/releasing assistance: Grant payments will be made through the Department of Treasury's Automated Standard Application for Payments (ASAP). Method of awarding/releasing assistance: Please see individual notices of federal funding opportunities for details on how each award will be released.

First Level Screening -Basic Eligibility -- During the Eligibility Review, the application is checked for timely submission, completed packages, and alignment with the eligibility requirements of this announcement. The Federal agency may remove an application if it does not pass the Eligibility Review. Second Level Evaluation -- Specific Merit Review Evaluation is stated in each Notice of Funding Opportunity posted on www.grants.gov. Applications will be evaluated according to the merit criteria in the NOFO, with the relative weights described. Applications may earn a maximum of 100 points. Each criterion also includes the factors the reviewers will consider, determining how well an application meets the criterion. Applicants are encouraged to make explicit connections to the evaluation criteria in their applications. Applications that best address these criteria will be most competitive and final selection recommendations will be made from the review panel ranking. Third Level Review Pre-Award Clearance and Approvals -- The Financial Assistance Officer will also complete a financial and operations evaluation and determination of responsibility. During these evaluations the Financial Assistance Officer will evaluate variables such as: System for Award Management (SAM.GOV) Responsibility and Qualification (Federal Awardee Performance and Integrity Information System), financial stability, quality of management systems, past performance meeting prior award terms and conditions, reports and findings of audits performed, and applicant's ability to effectively implement statutory, regulatory or other requirements.

All applications will be initially screened for eligibility and compliance with the requirements stated in the notice of funding opportunity, program regulations, and statutes. All timely submitted and qualified proposals are reviewed by program staff and a financial assistance official. Unsuccessful applicants will receive notice in writing. All approved grants will be awarded using GrantSolutions. Recipient requests for reimbursement will be made using the U.S. Department of Treasury's Automated Standard Application for Payment (ASAP).

Further information will be available in the Notice of Funding Opportunity posted on www.grants.gov and may be obtained by contacting the point of contact listed in the funding opportunity announcement. Most awards are anticipated within 90 days or less after the announcement closes.

Not Applicable. Final award decisions are not subject to appeal; however, the U.S. Department of the Interior's Office of Native Hawaiian Relations, through the Interior Business Center, will provide all applicants with information on why their application submission was not selected for award and welcomes any related feedback on its granting process.