- Details
- By Tribal Business News Staff
- Economic Development
Last week’s DOE summit for tribes yielded lots of news and funding announcements, including two NOFOs listed below. Plus, we’ve got some timely news on events and federal contracting awards for tribes and Native businesses.
MONEY
NOFO: Tribes are eligible to participate in a $25 million grant funding round through the Clean Energy Technology Deployment on Tribal Lands program, which will support renewable energy projects such as energy generation, storage, and electrifying tribal buildings. There’s a webinar scheduled for March 14 if you want to learn more. Applications are due May 30, 2024, at 5 p.m. ET.
NOFO: Tribes are also eligible for the $18 million Communities Sparking Investments in Transformative Energy, or C-SITE, funding opportunity, though this opportunity is also open to municipalities. The C-SITE program seeks to support renewable energy infrastructure as well, such as storage, microgrids, and retrofitting city infrastructure with energy efficient upgrades. According to an announcement, the DOE is hosting a pair of webinars on March 7 and March 21 for more information. Deadline for applications is May 30, 2024 at 5 p.m. ET.
GRANT: The Tribal Solar Accelerator Fund through Grid Alternatives has opened applications for its tribal facility and residential grant awards of up to $200K for tribes and tribally-led organizations. The accelerator fund also opened applications for its summer associates program, which has $5K stipends available for tribal individuals wishing to become more immersed in the renewable energy industry. Apply today www.tribalsolar.org
SCHOLARSHIP: Borrowing an idea from its friends at Akiptan, Inc, the Wind River Development Fund is launching a Native Excellence Scholarship Program with initial funding from the Native American Agriculture Fund. Wind River says its goal is to increase financial support for Native American high school seniors who are pursuing degrees in the agricultural sciences. More info here.
EVENTS
Fourth annual cybersecurity summit presented by TribalHub. Learn about the critical role and responsibilities of tribal executives, tribal regulators and tribal technology resources in protecting and preparing your tribe or tribal enterprise. Build and gain insight into the necessary and critical investments required for cybersecurity. Learn about what costly information security mistakes to avoid in order to minimize the risk of your tribe or enterprise being a victim or target. Registration here.
Indian Country’s biggest conference for non-gaming economic development is expected to draw more than 4,000 tribal leaders, Native business owners and Indigenous entrepreneurs during the four-day conference in Las Vegas. This year’s theme is “Strength in Unity” and the event will feature tribal leaders, executives from tribal enterprises, members of Congress, federal officials, financiers and even a few journalists. Register here.
Learn more about STEM careers in casino gaming and Indigenizing game design during this one-hour webinar featuring the innovative team behind the first Indigenous Commercial Game Manufacturer, creators of groundbreaking slot machines that celebrate cultural heritage. The webinar, presented by AISES, features guest speakers Russell Witt, senior vice president of PariMAX and D.G. Smalling, Choctaw master artist and game designer. Register here.
FEDERAL CONTRACTING
Here are some of the notable news and federal contract awards won by tribal entities from last week.
Alutiiq Commercial Enterprises LLC was awarded a $19.1 million bridge contract on Feb. 28 to provide base operations support for the U.S. Air Force’s facilities at Fort Eustis, Virginia. The bridge contract was not competitively awarded; the justification for other than full and open competition was posted to Sam.gov. Alutiiq is a subsidiary of Afognak, an Alaska Native Corporation.
Northcon Inc. was awarded a $13 million contract by the Department of Interior to replace a dilapidated visitor center facility at Little Bighorn Battlefield National Monument. Based in Hayden, Idaho, Northcon is a Native-owned construction business that has performed on federal ID/IQ contracts for military and civilian projects.
Potawatomi Defense Operations LLC was awarded a $2.5 million contract by the Fish and Wildlife Service on March 1 to provide soil remediation services at the Yukon Delta National Wildlife Refuge in Bethel, Alaska. Potawatomi Defense Operations, LLC is an SBA 8(a) subsidiary of Milwaukee-based Potawatomi Business Development Corporation.
SPAARK was awarded a $2.1 million contract by the Department of Defense on Feb. 28 to provide records management support to the Washington Headquarters Service. SPAARK is an SBA Certified 8(a) Native Hawaiian Owned (NHO) Small Business that delivers tailored system engineering and technical assistance, DevSecOps, and continuity of operations (COOP) services.
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