Project funding and eligibility

Project funding and eligibility

The impacts of established weeds and pest animals on our landscapes and communities include substantial farm production losses, degradation of our ecosystems, damage to culturally sensitive sites of Victoria’s First Nations people and risking access to international agriculture markets. A recent study by the Australian Bureau for Agriculture and Resource Economics and Sciences estimates that the cost of management and lost production to Victoria’s agricultural landowners, due to established weeds and pest animals, is $869 million per annum.

The Partnerships Against Pests Program will run for four years (2023-2027) and is a change initiative designed to build government, industry, and community capabilities, strengthen relationships, and facilitate greater cooperation on established weeds and pest animals.

Generally, established weeds are those that are listed as regionally controlled or regionally prohibited under the Catchment and Land Protection Act 1994. Established pest animals generally include foxes, rabbits, feral pigs and wild dogs.

Project objectives and outcomes

The objectives of the program are:

1. Capacity Building - Educational events boost community awareness and technical knowledge of best practice management options.
2. Capability Building – Training and educational opportunities for community leaders and advocates boosts knowledge and skills in areas such as leadership, governance, strategic thinking, risk management, project management, communications and engagement, and monitoring and evaluation.
3. Raising Awareness - Communication tools and products boost community awareness and technical knowledge of best practice management options.
4. Partnerships & Collaboration - Communities work collaboratively to sustain long term established invasive species management benefits.
5. Partnerships & Collaboration – Regional and localised place-based initiatives connect agencies and community members to act on established invasive species issues.
6. Partnerships & Collaboration – Community-based organisations build partnerships and work collaboratively with Traditional Owner Corporations (TOCs) and Aboriginal Victorians to deliver established species management capacity and capability building projects that align with Whole-of-Country plans, respect Traditional Owner expertise, and recognise and implement decisions that Traditional Owners make over traditional lands and resources.

The outcomes of the program are:

• Improved community capacity, awareness, and technical understanding of established invasive species management through the implementation of workshops, seminars, demonstrations, field days and training and education.
• Improved community awareness and technical understanding of established invasive species management through innovative communication and educational products.
• Expansion or strengthening of existing networks and collaborations and/or development of new networks and collaborations.
• Improved skills, knowledge, and capacity within community-based organisations in the areas of leadership, governance, strategic thinking, risk management, project management, communications and engagement, and monitoring and evaluation.
• Increases in the number of place-based established invasive species projects and solutions through increased community engagement and collaboration.
• Increases in the number of community groups working in partnership with Traditional Owners and incorporating strategies from Whole-of-Country plans into project planning and delivery to ensure projects are implemented in a culturally appropriate way.

What may be funded

Funding can be used for items directly related to the delivery of the project, including but not limited to:

• consultants, facilitators and/or presenters
• training and/or educational course fees
• publicity, communications, and marketing costs
• advertising, printing, design, and postage
• web and/or app development
• photography and videography and/or video production
• hire of equipment and venues for events
• resource materials and consumable items
• transport
• food and non-alcoholic beverages within reason
• total cost of capital items and equipment that do not exceed $3,000. You will need to demonstrate a clear need and community benefit for any capital items included in your budget. Capital items will need to become a registered asset of the applicant group or auspice organisation
• project management and administration costs that do not exceed 15% of the total funding requested.

Organisations may apply for grants from $10,000 up to $50,000.

Other funding streams are only available to Victoria’s four Community Pest Management Groups (CPMGs ).

Previous work

Needing inspiration? Here is a link to a previous Agriculture Victoria project delivered in collaboration with the four community pest management groups. The groups delivered several innovative projects that could inspire you to design a community engagement project that focuses on weed and pest management website.