This funding opportunity is made possible through Food for Tomorrow, an impact-driven collaboration between the National Geographic Society and PepsiCo

This funding opportunity will support innovative projects that apply science and innovation in a real-world context, focused on feasible, nature-positive solutions. The projects should have measurable outcomes on the resilience of farms, farming communities, and natural ecosystems in the farming landscapes to the realities of changing climates and extreme weather events. The projects will demonstrate, measure, and support practices and approaches that are regenerative. The project’s main goals must aim to make farms, farming communities, and natural ecosystems more resilient and demonstrate two or more of the following outcomes:

We will only consider projects with a predominant field or land component where solutions are applied and tested on a farm, in a farming community, or in a landscape adjacent to cultivated land. The projects should include one or more of the following terrestrial food crops: corn, wheat, oats, potatoes, sugar beets, oilseeds (i.e. canola, sunflower, rice bran), rice, cocoa, oil palm, raisins and soy.

We are particularly interested in supporting applied science-based projects that address highly localized barriers in adopting more regenerative, climate smart land management approaches. This means that in addition to understanding the environmental outcomes, projects must also evaluate the cultural, social and economic feasibility of adoption and scalability. In addition, projects should be co-produced and/or led by local collaborators who have relevant farming or farming community knowledge and experience in the local context. All projects should align with FAIR and CARE principles to ensure ethical integrity.

Eligibility

• Requested project budget may not exceed $150,000
• Applicant must not be a current National Geographic Society staff member
• Applicant must be over the age of 18
• Project must be completed within 2 years of receipt of funding
• Applications must be submitted in English, although English does not have to be the PI’s primary language
• The project includes one or more of the following terrestrial food crops: corn, wheat, oats, potatoes, sugar beets, oilseeds (i.e. canola, sunflower, rice bran), rice, cocoa, oil palm, raisins and soy.
• The project has a predominant field or land component where solutions are applied and tested on a farm, in a farming community, or in a landscape adjacent to cultivated land.
• The application includes project collaborator(s) who have appropriate farming or farming community expertise and local connections.

We will not consider projects that:

• are focused solely on crops used for non-food items like fiber production.
• are focused solely on livestock or other animal farming practices, including grazing, breeding, welfare, and feed production.
• are not co-created with farmers.
• are exclusively focused on the basic research of technological innovations.
• exceed the maximum budget of $150,000 without other sources of funding secured at the time the proposal is submitted
• require land conversion: the projects must take place on existing cultivated land. The beneficial outcomes (e.g. soil health; climate mitigation and adaptation; watershed health; biodiversity; and livelihoods) can extend to land or landscapes adjacent to cultivated land.

Benefits

Grant recipients become National Geographic Explorers, will join the Explorer Community, and will be eligible for future learning, capacity building, and networking opportunities.

In addition, grant recipients:

• may need to be available to travel to Europe for an event soon after receiving notification of awards in January, 2026;
• will travel to the National Geographic Society’s Base Camp headquarters in Washington DC for a multi-day gathering to meet Society staff and key partners in 2026.
• may receive additional mentorship, training, and other elevation opportunities as individuals and as a cohort; and,
• might be featured in communications materials by the Society and/or the funding partner that may include (but are not limited to) video and photography related to themselves, the project, and their results, shared through various media platforms.

Webinars

National Geographic Society will host three one-hour informational webinars dedicated to this Request for Proposals (RfP). There is no need to attend more than one webinar as the information presented will be the same.

Tuesday August 5, 9:00 pm EDT (01:00 UTC)

Thursday August 7, 11:00 am EDT (15:00 UTC)

Monday September 8, 9:00 am EDT (13:00 UTC)

During these webinars we will share information about the RfP and answer questions. If you are interested in participating in a webinar, please register.

View the webinar recorded on August 5th

View the webinar recorded on August 7th

Register here for Monday, September 8, 9:00 am EDT

If you have questions not answered here or in the Frequently Asked Questions page, please email us at funding@ngs.org with “Building Resilience in Agriculture RfP” in the subject line.

Applications

For more detailed information about this RfP and recommendations for crafting strong applications, consult our Frequently Asked Questions document.  

We will only accept applications that are submitted through the application portal. Applications submitted through email, mail or post will not be accepted.

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