The recipient entity's physical address:
           650 E Magnolia Ave, Eunice, LA 70535

The recipient entity's mailing address (if different):
           114 Harper's Ferry Road
Boyce LA 71409

Type of Entity (for instance, a nonprofit corporation):  Other

If the entity is a corporation, list the names of the incorporators:
          We are a non-profit organization registered with the state and the IRS, not a corporation per se.

The last four digits of the entity's taxpayer ID number:  9563

What is the dollar amount of the request?  $200,000

What type of request is this?  Both

Is this entity in good standing with the Secretary of State?  Yes

Provide the name of each member of the recipient entity's governing board and officers:
           Eric Vanbergen, President
Colby LeJeune, Vice-President
Christina Calcaterra, Secretary
Jacalyn Duncan, Treasurer, 114 Harper's Ferry Road, Boyce LA 71409
Steve Nevitt, Prairie Manager

Key Personnel will include officers Steve Nevitt and Colby LeJeune, and CPHPS members Alex Guillory, Larry Allain and Phyllis Griffard. Treasurer Jacalyn Duncan will manage funds.

Provide a summary of the project or program:
           The Cajun Prairie Habitat Preservation Society (CPHPS) seeks state funding for two initiatives needed to dramatically increase prairie acreage, native seed, and expertise for restoration of ecologically functional prairie.

Prairies are grasslands that sequester carbon, recharge aquifers, build soil, and support pollinators (over 100 native bee species in Louisiana) and wildlife like birds and mammals. They are especially important in the Mississippi flyway for migratory birds, including those of wetlands. The 2,500,000 acres that were once coastal prairie in the southwest third of Louisiana have been reduced to remnants in the last century. CPHPS has been active since the 1980s to conserve the remaining remnants, save rare species, and promote restoration where possible.

There has never been enough plant material produced in Louisiana to meet the demand of restoration projects such as mitigation banks and other land improvements. Sadly, Louisiana has no state-sponsored prairie plant materials programs that other states do. Seed and seedlings almost always have to be purchased out of state, and the genetics of the seed is not from here. This usually means some compromise with respect to persistence of the plants and concerns about dilution of genes adapted to our climate. Nor is there an active network of practitioners available to advise landowners.

We have an opportunity to turn this around and amplify the impact of our efforts. With this funding, we aim to create a service that is poised to respond to restoration opportunities by connecting landowners and managers to technical expertise and plant material. This exists in other states with significant acreage in prairie. Those states provide seed, plants, and expertise to growers via robust partnerships between universities, state agencies and nonprofits. We wish to pilot a model program in Louisiana that can serve as the foundation for a durable partnership that can amplify the rate of restoration that is desperately needed. This is becoming increasingly important as agricultural land is taken out of crop production or transitioned to cattle or hay. Also, with the adoption of solar farms, prairie can be used in their borders and aisles. Some agricultural land is being restored as prairie mitigation banks. Such prairies must be actively managed to restore ecological function and ensure success. Restoration includes practices that remove invasives, restore hydrology and improve plant diversity.

We are requesting $200,000 to build a strong foundation for two related initiatives.

The first is to formally launch the Louisiana Prairie Initiative with a goal of developing 30,000 acres of prairie by 2050. Two full-time staff members, a Director and a Program Manager, are needed to develop programs, expand funding, and grow partnerships with public agencies, nonprofits and private corporations.

The second is for space and materials needed to pilot a seed increase program. We are working now with prairie conservation professionals across the state to develop a plan to ramp up seed production, initially at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette Ecology Center (UL EC). Seeds and plants are already being produced there by UL EC staff and volunteers from the CPHPS and Acadiana Native Plant Project. These plants and seeds will be used to expand high quality prairie area at the Duralde Prairie (managed by CPHPS volunteers in conjunction with Lacassine National Wildlife Refuge).

With the Louisiana Prairie Initiative launched as an incubator for commercial production of native prairie seed, Louisiana growers, landowners and the environment for all Louisiana citizens will benefit.

What is the budget relative to the project for which funding is requested?:
          Salaries. . . . . . . . . . . . . $120,000
          Professional Services. . . $24,000
          Contracts . . . . . . . . . . . $0
          Acquisitions . . . . . . . . . $0
          Major Repairs . . . . . . . $0
          Operating Services. . . . $0
          Other Charges. . . . . . . $56,000

Does your organization have any outstanding audit issues or findings?  No

If 'Yes' is your organization working with the appropriate governmental agencies to resolve those issues or findings?
          

What is the entity's public purpose, sought to be achieved through the use of state monies?
          The Cajun Prairie Habitat Preservation Society (CPHPS)’s public purpose is the study, preservation, restoration, and education about the coastal prairie in Louisiana that once stretched from the Atchafalaya Basin to the Sabine River. Only small remnants of the original 2,500,000-acre prairie remain in railroad rights-of-way and pastures that have never been tilled. The CPHPS feels responsible as advocates for these last vestiges but cannot do it alone. Our advocacy for prairie restoration is paying off, as more and more regular citizens are interested in planting prairies on their land. But we have nowhere to suggest they turn to for plant material and expertise.

Since the 1980s the CPHPS has been involved in restoring several prairies, including a 10-acre prairie in Eunice that has served as a Noah’s ark of plants that were collected from remnants, grown out in large numbers by its volunteers, and planted by school children from the area. Now 30 years later, the Eunice Prairie Restoration is a mature, resilient reservoir of over 100 species of plants rarely found in the wild. It has become the source of seed and plant material for other initiatives, including the PureNative program at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette Ecology Center (UL EC). Restoration projects come to the UL EC for seed, but there is not enough produced at that site for even a few acres of prairie restoration.

The passion that CPHPS members have for prairie is not just a hobby. They share a deep concern that the loss of these ecosystems is a large part of the reason that we are losing soil, groundwater, clear springs, birds and pollinators at alarming rates. These losses are muddying our waterways and making us vulnerable to drought, floods and crop failure due to pollinator loss and soil depletion. These concerns have been shared by our members who work in Louisiana for state and federal agencies and nonprofits. Policies that have been adopted at the federal level are an acknowledgement of the urgency of addressing the loss of prairie. Even the USDA NRCS and US Fish and Wildlife programs that provide cost-sharing for prairie habitat restoration in Louisiana can only recommend pure live seed produced elsewhere because there is no commercial source in-state. This gap is sad and frustrating for the CPHPS members.

The CPHPS has always recognized the limits of its impact as a regional, volunteer-run organization of knowledgeable and passionate citizens. That is why the Louisiana Prairie Initiative, a group within the CPHPS, began talks this year about how to seriously address the dire need for restoration of prairie ecosystems. We are working with partners and agencies to design a durable seed increase program that serves the state, but quickly realized that it will be impossible without broader expertise and formal support. That is why we envision cultivating an alliance of stakeholders in both public and private sectors working to establish a seed increase program and technical services for restorations across Louisiana.

What are the goals and objectives for achieving such purpose?
          The overarching goal of the Louisiana Prairie Initiative of the CPHPS is to dramatically increase the acreage of ecologically functional prairie in the state. Our first goal is to increase it to 30,000 acres by the year 2050. We believe there are fewer than 1000 acres of high-quality virgin prairie left and perhaps only 10,000 acres in various stages of restoration in the state. Restoring 20,000 more acres will require a multi-level seed production plan and a network of technical experts to advise and monitor them. Even a restoration of this much is still less than 1% of what was originally prairie in southwest Louisiana.

Our first objective is to hire professional staff to coordinate activities to move us toward that goal. A Louisiana Prairie Initiative Director and a Program Manager will develop programs, expand funding, and grow partnerships with public agencies, nonprofits and private corporations. The objective will be met if an alliance of professional stakeholders forms and begins work that gets us closer to the goal of 30,000 by the year 2050.

Our second objective is to secure the space, materials, and labor needed to pilot a seed increase program. This space may be in a public or university-affiliated site. The goal of this program is to produce seed that will eventually be provided to cooperating growers to produce more seed on a contract basis as well as seed to replenish and maintain foundational plots that conserve local genetics. One goal is to develop this framework that the state can adopt to develop a permanent seed production facility or service.
With the Louisiana Prairie Initiative launched as an incubator for commercial production of native prairie seed, Louisiana growers, landowners and the environment for all Louisiana citizens will benefit.

What is the proposed length of time estimated by the entity to accomplish the purpose?
           10 years minimum

If any elected or appointed state official or an immediate family member of such an official is an officer, director, trustee, or employee of the recipient entity who receives compensation or holds any ownership interest therein:
     (a) If an elected or appointed state official, the name and address of the official and the office held by such person:
                
    
     (b) If an immediate family member of an elected or appointed state official, the name and address of such person; the name, address, and office of the official to whom the person is related; and the nature of the relationship:
                

     (c) The percentage of the official's or immediate family member's ownership interest in the recipient entity, if any:
                

     (d) The position, if any, held by the official or immediate family member in the recipient entity:
                 

If the recipient entity has a contract with any elected or appointed state official or an immediate family member of such an official or with the state or any political subdivision of the state:
(a) If the contract is with an elected or appointed state official, provide the name and address of the official and the office held by such person: 
               

(b) If the contract is with an immediate family member of an elected or appointed state official:
          Provide the name and address of such person:
              

          Provide the name, address, and office of the official to whom the person is related:
               

          What is the nature of the relationship? 

(c) If the contract is with the state or a political subdivision of the state, provide the name and address of the state entity or political subdivision of the state:
                

(d) The nature of the contract, including a description of the goods or services provided or to be provided pursuant to the contract:
               


Contact Information
name:  Phyllis Baudoin Griffard 
                                       address:  228 Borel Road
Sunset LA 70584
                                       phone:  8324998249
                                       fax:  na
                                       e-mail:  phyllisgriffard@gmail.com
                                       relationship to entity:  member of the society, coordinator of LPI