Eastern Sierra Council of Governments: Agriculture Activation Plan for the Eastern Sierra Region

The Eastern Sierra Council of Governments ("ESCOG") is hereby soliciting proposals from qualified firms (Respondents) who can provide ESCOG and the Inyo and Mono Counties’ Agricultural Commissioner with the following service: Development of an Activation Plan for Advancing Agricultural and Economic Diversification in the Inyo-Mono Region. ESCOG intends to execute a contract with one prime consultant to provide services and deliverables needed to develop the Activation Plan for Advancing Agricultural and Economic Diversification and promoting the long-term economic prosperity of the region's food and agricultural systems. As several of the services and deliverables requested may require work by subconsultants, it is acceptable that the Scope of Work will be completed by a consultant team that is managed and represented by one prime consultant working under contract with ESCOG. It is also expected that the prime consultant will also serve as the project manager, directing and overseeing all aspects of Initiative preparation, reporting, and liaising with the region's Agricultural Commissioner and project committees. The Activation Plan will build upon the Inyo-Mono Agricultural Commissioner’s 2017 report “Agriculture in Inyo and Mono Counties: An Economic Profile” to develop an in-depth market assessment, update the past economic impacts assessment, and create an action plan to increase climate resilience, economic value, and ecosystem value for the agriculture sector in the eastern Sierra. The 2017 report examined agricultural data and economic data from Inyo and Mono Counties and recommended five strategies to increase diversity and climate resilience, economic impact, and ecosystem values. In 2025, ESCOG was awarded grant funding to convene the region's existing and aspiring agricultural community to develop an Activation Plan for each of the 5 strategies identified in the report. The development of an Activation Plan for the Eastern Sierra region will require the participation in existing workgroups related to the Sierra Jobs First initiative, including participation in the development of the "Sierra Sourced" strategy on behalf of the Agricultural producers of the region. Submissions to this RFP are due on September 24, 2025 at 5pm. Submission instructions, a detailed scope of work, terms and conditions, and the applicable contract can be found below. The total budget for this project is $90,000.