The questions asked in this section of the Expression of Interest (EOI) allow us to understand the basics of your tree-growing project. We compare the metrics outlined in this section with your historical work to see if the proposed project is attainable, but we also look at the proposed project's impact.
Projects will only be selected if they fall within our three target states: Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, or Maharashtra.
In this article, we highlight each of the questions we ask in the Expression of Interest, explain why we ask it, address any common concerns around each question and provide you with resources/examples as needed.
If you have any further questions, you add them below as a comment or submit them here, and our support team will try to address them.
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- What are the objectives of your proposed project?
- What is your proposed project budget in INR?
- In what state(s) will your project operate?
- Which land use systems will you restore?
- Which restoration practices will you use to restore land?
- Which detailed interventions will you use to restore land?
- What is the source of water for irrigation?
- How many hectares of land do you intend to restore through this project?
- How many trees do you intend to restore through this project?
- What tree species do you intend to grow through this project?
- How would this funding improve biodiversity?
- Do you have a monitoring, reporting and verification framework in place?
Q: What are the objectives of your proposed project?*
Why we ask this question:
We want to know how your project will impact the local community and ecosystem.
How do I describe my project's objectives? You are expected to describe the objective of your proposed restoration project in as clear detail as possible. Please provide details about your project's goals, how you intend to work with communities, how you intend to maintain and monitor your trees, and what your expected impact will be. The more detailed you are, using precise figures, the more accurately our team can review your application. If possible, also add envisaged challenges for your project along with mitigation strategies for these challenges.
Q: What is your proposed project budget in INR?*
Why we ask this question:
We want to know how much funding you would need in order to complete the targets you outline in your proposal. We will use the trees restored and hectares under restoration numbers, as well as the interventions you plan to use, to decide if the project is reasonably priced.
How should I calculate my budget? We recommend that organizations do not request more than 100% of the previous year's budget. This is because we want to ensure the success of Harit Bharat Fund projects and help organizations to grow sustainably.
The vetting team may ask you to reduce your budget and project scope in between the EOI and full application stages.
Q: In what state(s) will your project operate?*
Why we ask this question:
For Harit Bharat Fund, we are only funding projects in the following states: Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, or Maharashtra.
What if my country is not part of Harit Bharat Fund target states? While this round of Harit Bharat Fund is focused on certain landscapes, we intend to open multiple funding opportunities and will inform the general public as they launch.
How do I know if I am working in an eligible location? Please review the following article to determine in you are eligible for this opportunity: Which States are Eligible for Investment?
Q: Which land use systems will you restore through this project?*
Why we ask this question:
In order to assess your financials, hectares and trees restored goals, we need to know the type of restoration you are planning to use to restore the land. We will use this information to understand the overall impact of your proposed project.
How do we define the eligible land use systems? To learn more about our definitions for land use systems, please review this article: A Guide to Target Land Use Systems & Restoration Practices
Detailed definitions of each land use can be found below:
- Agroforest: An agroforest is productive, managed land containing a mix of woody perennial species (trees, shrubs, bamboos) and agricultural crops in a way that improves the agricultural productivity and ecological function of a site. This category includes agroforestry for shade grown crops (cacao, coffee), as well as planting trees at a low density to allow for continued full-sun agriculture, also known as intercropping or row cropping. Please note that silvopasture is its own separate land use system.
- Open Natural Ecosystem: Open Natural Ecosystems mainly comprise naturally open and often treeless habitats, ranging from savannas and scrublands to grasslands, ravines and dunes. Grasslands are generally open and continuous, fairly flat areas of grass. They are often located between temperate forests at high latitudes and deserts at subtropical latitudes.
- Natural Forest: A natural forest ecosystem is a rural landscape where the majority of trees are native species and features biologically integrated communities of plants, animals and microbes, together with the local soils (substrates) and atmospheres (climates) with which they interact.
- Mangrove: A mangrove is a group of salt-tolerant trees and shrubs that live in a coastal intertidal zone.
- Peatland: Peatlands are terrestrial wetland ecosystems in which waterlogged conditions prevent plant material from fully decomposing.
- Riparian Area / Wetland: Wetlands are areas where the soil is covered with water or can be present near the ground throughout the year, including marshes, swamps, bogs, and fens. They support both terrestrial and aquatic species. Riparian ecosystems encompass a suite of ecosystem types, including river banks, floodplains, and wetlands, that are characterized primarily by being transitional zones between terrestrial and aquatic realms.
- Silvopasture: A silvopasture system is productive, managed land containing a mix of woody perennial species (trees, shrubs, bamboos) and animal forage or pasture land to improve the agricultural productivity and ecological function of a site for continued use as pasture.
- Urban Forest: An urban forest encompasses the trees and shrubs in an urban area, including trees in yards, along streets and utility corridors, in protected areas, and in watersheds. This includes individual trees, street trees, green spaces with trees, and even the associated vegetation and the soil beneath the trees.
- Woodlot / Plantation: A plantation is a forest predominantly composed of intensively managed trees that are established through planting and/or deliberate seeding, with the explicit goal of harvesting and processing those trees for wood once they reach maturity. A woodlot is a type of plantation, predominantly managed by a single landholder or a community, to supply wood for construction and fuel to the landholder or community.
- Other: Any land use system that is not included in the above typology.
Q: Which restoration practices will you use to restore land through this project?*
Why we ask this question:
In order to assess your financials, hectares and trees restored goals, we need to know the type of restoration you are planning to use to restore the land. We will use this information to understand the overall impact of your proposed project. Please indicate which core technique(s) you will use in this project.
How do we define the eligible restoration practices? Landscape restoration projects use a variety of techniques to restore land. Please indicate which core technique(s) you have used. To learn more about our definitions for restoration practices, please review this article: A Guide to Target Land Use Systems & Restoration Practices
Detailed definitions can be found below:
- Tree Planting: Tree planting is defined as the planting of seedlings or saplings over an area to meet specific goals. This includes all planting, including areas with no forest canopy and in areas with partial canopy coverage.
- Assisted Natural Regeneration: Assisted natural regeneration is the exclusion of threats (i.e. grazing, fire, invasive plants) that prevent natural regrowth from seeds and roots already present in the soil or from natural seed dispersal from nearby trees. This does not include any tree planting.
- Direct Seeding: Direct seeding is the active dispersal of seeds (preferably ecologically diverse, native seed mixes) that accelerate natural regrowth, provided the area is protected from disturbances. It includes only active collection and dispersal of seeds and excludes any natural dispersal that would occur without human intervention. This does not include any tree planting.
Q: Please select which of the more detailed interventions your organization will use to restore land in this project*
Why we ask this question:
In order to assess your financials, hectares and trees restored goals, we need to know the type of restoration you are planning to use to restore the land. We will use this information to understand the overall impact of your proposed project.
How do I select the most relevant intervention types? Organizations that restore land understand their work in a variety of ways. Select all of the following categories that describe your past work. Please select the most relevant types from the list below:
- Farm Forestry
- Intercropping
- Agri-Horti-Forestry (Wadi)
- Mixed Species Plantation
- Farmer Managed Natural Regeneration
- Pastureland Development
- Grassland Restoration
- Trees on Bunds and Boundaries
- Bamboo Plantation
- Protection and Sustainable Harvesting of Forest Produce
- Value Chain Development for Non-Timber Forest Produce and Indigenous Crops
- Sustainable Agriculture/Food Forest Model
- Watershed Management
- Soil and Moisture Conservation
- Soil Carbon and Microbiome Management
- Removal/management of invasive species
Q: What is the source of water that will be used for irrigation?*
Why we ask this question:
We want to understand how your project will source water for the maintenance of this restoration work and address water insecurity concerns throughout the course of the project. During the project review process, we assess the longevity of a project and its impact.
What do we expect? Please describe the source of water (surface water, ground water) and structures that you will use for irrigation over the lifetime of the project. Provide a clear explanation of your plan to provide water and irrigation over the entire course of this project. Ensure that your plan is well-detailed and sustainable.
Q: How many hectares of land do you intend to restore in total?*
Why we ask this question:
We want to know the impact of your project in terms of the total number of hectares that you will restore. This will number will vary depending on the location and interventions planned, but it gives us an idea of the scope of the project.
How do we define “hectares restored”? Does that mean hectares that have trees planted/grown on them? Hectares under restoration is the total land area measured in hectares with active restoration intervention, which includes agroforestry, silvopasture, riparian restoration, direct seeding, mangrove restoration, assisted natural regeneration, and reforestation. The land area under restoration does not exclusively mean areas with active tree planting. Some interventions may not have any active planting of trees and focus completely on enabling natural regeneration through improving the growing conditions for trees to thrive on the site or removing chemicals from sustainable production. These land areas would also count as "hectares under restoration."
Note also that "hectares under restoration" has a different meaning from "hectares restored." Projects will be required to report progress on hectares under restoration. Though not part of any reporting requirement, we understand the final "hectares restored" through a combination indicators, data points from project plans, remote sensing data and field checks to understand on how many hectares the project's restoration goals and targets are met.
Q: How many trees do you intend to restore or naturally regenerate through in total?*
Why we ask this question:
We want to know the number of trees that you will "restore," either through planting or natural regeneration. We also need to understand how many trees are growing per hectare of the project.
How does TerraFund define a "tree restored"? A tree is defined as a woody perennial plant, typically having a single stem or trunk growing to 5 meters or higher, bearing lateral branches at some distance from the ground. TerraMatch counts "trees restored," not "planted." Only trees that survive to maturity after they are planted or naturally regenerated should be counted toward this total. Naturally regenerating trees must attain a verifiable age of over 1 year to be counted as "restored."
Q: Which tree species do you intend to grow through this project?*
Why we ask this question:
We want to know the species of trees you will plant as part of this project, as the type of tree restored has a critical impact on the sustainability and impact of the project. Native species are strongly encouraged.We prefer that you list each species' scientific name, but we also accept common and local names.
Will you only fund native/indigenous tree species? Projects that grow non-native trees are eligible but will be evaluated on a case-by-case basis. In many landscapes, planting certain non-native trees can improve the livelihoods and sustainability of farming communities through practices like growing non-natives in mixed agroforestry and silvopasture systems. Fruit and fodder trees, many of which are not native to Indian landscapes, provide real benefits to local communities without harming the climate or biodiversity. In cases where non-native species are proposed, the extent of their use, the livelihood benefits, and the relationship of the project to the broader landscape will be carefully reviewed. Projects that grow invasive species will not be considered.
Q: How would this funding improve local biodiversity?
Why we ask this question:
Understanding this allows us to understand the specific environmental impact that the proposed project will bring about.
What do we mean by improving biodiversity? By restoring degraded land, Harit Bharat Fund aims to help projects improve the functionality of ecosystems to improve soil health, increase water retention and infiltration, and reduce erosion. This will in turn contribute to improved water quality and increased biodiversity, providing habitats for a range of flora and fauna.
Restoring the land can also contribute to climate change mitigation and adaptation efforts, as healthy ecosystems are better able to sequester carbon and provide resilience against extreme weather events. Overall, the ecological benefits of funded projects should contribute to the long-term health and sustainability of the local environment.
Q: Do you have a monitoring, reporting and verification framework in place for your land restoration interventions?*
Why we ask this question:
We ask this question to understand your organization's approach to monitoring and evaluating the progress of your restoration projects.
Please indicate if you organization already has an approach to monitoring, reporting and verification in order to track the progress of you restoration work.
Do I need to have experience with monitoring, reporting and verification? If you do not have an approach, this will not affect your ability to receive funding. Harit Bharat Fund provides technical assistance to all funded projects to create geospatial polygons of their restoration sites.
Q: If Yes, please upload a past monitoring, reporting, and verification report, if available*
Why we ask this question:
We ask for monitoring reports from past projects as it helps us to better understand your organization's approach to monitoring and evaluation. It provides insight into the level of detail, data collection methods, and analysis that your organization uses to track and measure the progress of your restoration projects. Uploading past monitoring reports also demonstrates transparency, accountability, and a willingness to share knowledge and information with potential partners or funders. It helps us to assess the effectiveness of your restoration interventions and make informed decisions about supporting your organization's future work.
What do we expect? You can upload up to 5 examples of previous monitoring reports that you have produced for past restoration projects. Reports that you submitted to funders, government agencies, or technical partners are especially welcome.
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