Grant Writing & Funding · Ep. 287: Alejandra’s Journey to Becoming a Niche Expert in Environmental Grant Writing

Mentorship Highlights: Alejandra’s Journey to Becoming a Niche Expert in Environmental Grant Writing with Alejandra Salazar

Welcome to another episode of “Grant Writing & Funding”! In this week’s episode, we have a very special guest joining us: Alejandra Salazar, a seasoned grant writer and business owner. Alejandra has been in the grant writing space for over 20 years, working closely with founders on various projects. Today, she shares with us her valuable insights and experiences in managing multiple projects and teams within a non-profit organization.

Alejandra emphasizes the importance of being strategic and authentic in grant applications, cautioning against making promises that cannot be kept to funding sources. She advises against chasing every opportunity, highlighting the need to focus and build expertise in order to increase success and position oneself as an expert in the field.

Furthermore, Alejandra shares her passion for conservation and her journey in the environmental sector, discussing the difference between being a grant writer within an organization and being a freelance grant writer consultant. She opens up about the challenges she faced in finding a job in the environmental sector and her decision to pursue a master’s degree in natural resources management. Alejandra also shares her experiences working with NGOs in Latin America and Central America, highlighting the limited funds and challenges faced by smaller organizations.

We delve into the impact of grant writing on the conservation field, and Alejandra’s company, the Social Environmental Design Project, which aims to help NGOs increase funding and impact. She also discusses her personal growth as a business owner and the importance of setting higher prices to achieve financial stability and invest in oneself.

She also shares how she has been able to get clear about her business within the Grant Professional Mentorship, and that she now has joy and freedom in her business and life!

You won’t want to miss this insightful conversation with Alejandra as she shares her expertise as a grant writer and the lessons she has learned along the way. So, sit back, relax, and let’s dive into this episode of “Grant Writing & Funding”!

What you’ll learn in this episode:

How the Grant Professional Mentorship has been beneficial for Alejandra’s freelance grant writing business
Through the mentorship program, Alejandra is continuously learning new skills and abilities as an independent nonprofit worker and business owner.
How Alejandra identified her target population nonprofit client and developed strategies to position her business for success.
Designing effective projects for social and environmental problems
Alejandra’s journey in the environmental sector
The difference between being a consultant and an in-house grant writer
Alejandra’s expertise in biodiversity, conservation, and grant writing as a consultant
Developing accessible products for small and medium organizations

About Alejandra Salazar:

Alejandra is a certified grant writer and funding expert, with a passion for helping civil society organizations increase their funding and impact. She has 19 years of experience working in the nonprofit sector on biodiversity conservation, climate change, and sustainable development in Latin America and the Caribbean. She holds a degree in international relations (2000) and a master’s degree in environmental legislation (2004). She has been a freelance certified grant writer for nonprofits since 2019. In 2022 she launched her signature company “Diseño de proyectos socioambientales”, serving clients in Mexico, Central America, Germany, and the United States of America.

During her career, she has co-developed and implemented on ecosystem-based adaptation, environmental education, environmental policy, community forest management, forest conservation, green finances, mainstreaming biodiversity in agriculture, migratory bird conservation, protected areas effective management, REDD+, resilient cities, sustainable fisheries, voluntary forest carbon markets, wetland conservation, among others. She has worked with private, public, and social sectors, helping secure millions of dollars from international and national funding sources.

She lives in Mexico City with her husband, two kids, a dog, and a cat.

Quotables:

The Importance of Increasing Prices: “If you want to do it all alone, it won’t work. So you have to keep in mind that you have to increase your prices so you also have the bandwidth to outsource other services. And then you can really improve the service that you’re giving and get it’s not about growing and getting more clients and getting more money. No. That’s not the mindset. The mindset is to make a living where you are financially stable, and you can do what you love. I think that is the main goal.”
Grant Writing: “One of the most valuable things that grant writers bring to the table is this expertise or know-how in really looking at the design of the project. Find out where the gaps are and ask yourself, ‘What are we not saying that this is important?’
About the Grant Professional Mentorship Program: “The mentorship has helped me identify my target population and broaden my perspective beyond just working in Mexico. Another great thing about the Grant Professional Mentorship is that you learn all of these different strategies and you feel the support. You’re not alone. You have a space where you can just say, ‘Look, I’m thinking about doing this,’ and someone else has done it and they help you out. They have templates. And, well, that’s been, yeah, an incredible support.”

Contact Alejandra:

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Resources mentioned in this episode:

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