“REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL” SFSI - Impact Report Company: Rosebud Economic Development Corporation (REDCO)
Project name: SFSI - Impact Report: Rosebud Economic Development Corporation (REDCO)
Project due date: November 29th, 2024
Contact: Matthew Wilson Matte@sicangu.co Director, Sicangu Food Sovereignty Initiative
27565 Research Park Drive PO Box 236 Mission, SD 57555
Introduction: The Sicangu Food Sovereignty Initiative (SFSI) is one initiative of the Sicangu Community Development Corporation (SCDC), a tribally chartered 501(c)3 nonprofit which, in addition to food, focuses on education, health, and housing in order to improve quality of life for the Sicangu Lakota Oyate (Rosebud Sioux Tribe). SFSI was originally situated as a subsidiary under the Rosebud Economic Development Corporation (REDCO), a tribally chartered entity and economic engine of the Rosebud Sioux Tribe. Sicangu CDC and REDCO are part of a larger, unified ecosystem of organizations called Sicangu Co that is working to improve the financial and social well-being of our tribal relatives. Founded in 2014, the Food Sovereignty Initiative has been working on the Rosebud Reservation, a USDA-designated food desert, to transform our community’s relationship with food by developing small-scale, regenerative agriculture models, and building local markets to support tribal food producers and families. To do so, the FSI is working to grow a new generation of Lakota food producers and entrepreneurs in order to increase food and agriculture related enterprises locally, increase the use of local foods at home, and deepen Lakota identity through food experiences. The FSI works to achieve these goals via educational and cultural programming, community engagement, economic development work, and bringing affordable, high quality produce to market. Modern conveniences coupled with the lingering historical trauma of colonization and the separation of families perpetuated by the boarding school system have led to a sharp decline in traditional knowledge around food and culture for the younger generations. In addition, food security, let alone food sovereignty, is still a struggle for many families on the reservation. Poverty prohibits many families from purchasing more expensive healthy foods, and the price barrier is compounded by a lack of housing and transportation. Spanning 1,970.362 square miles (approximately the 1 and a half the size of Rhode Island) and home to 85% of the 34,947 enrolled tribal members. There are 14 venues to purchase either produce or prepared foods, three of which are grocery stores. These establishments are concentrated in the more populated communities of Mission/Antelope, Rosebud, and St. Francis. Of the twenty communities that comprise the tribe, two communities face sixty mile or more roundtrip journeys to reach a grocery store. Another four communities face round trip journeys of at least 40 miles, and yet another eight communities travel over twenty miles roundtrip to reach a grocery store. Lack of accessible public and private transportation and limited infrastructure for pedestrians exacerbates the issue of healthy food access, which contributes to high rates of diet related illnesses. When tribal members are able to access grocery stores, they remain unable to source healthy, local, and traditional foods, as the reservation suffers from a lack of tribal agricultural producers who can respond to the needs and traditions of the Lakota community. While there are farmers who regularly grow local and fresh food on the reservation, they lack the understanding of local foods supply-demand and face legal constraints and barriers. Additionally, local vendors and institutions lack familiarity with directly sourcing from farmers and ranchers, and don’t have local models to learn from, creating additional barriers for tribal producers trying to access existing tribal markets.
Project Overview: “We Grow Together: Connecting Native Communities with Tribal Producers” is a project that was awarded to REDCO, with management of the project by the Food Sovereignty Initiative. The Project is funded by the USDA Agricultural Marketing Service - Farmers Market Promotion Program in 2020. We are in our fourth and final year of the project. The overall project seeks to increase the reach and impact of the tribally run Sicangu Harvest Market (Farmers’ Market), which was established in 2014. The market was originally held at Turtle Creek Crossing grocery store, while today the main Mission Market is held in the community of Mission. In 2023, a second weekly market location was opened in the community of Rosebud. The Markets are held once per week starting in May, typically running through the end of September. Vendor turnout and consistency has been increasing year after year; in 2017, there was an average of six vendors per market and in 2019, that average had grown to eleven vendors. The market outgrew its space and was moved to the parking lot of the Mission Boys & Girls Club in 2022.
A component of this project is to develop an Impact Report that SFSI can use to be able to tell the story of impact to date to various stakeholders such as community members, current funders 2 and partners, as well as potential funders. SFSI will be identifying and reaching out to various firms to complete the Impact Report. Project Goals and Scope of Services: . The SFSI Impact Report will explore SFSI’s related impact to date. Our goal is to utilize this report so that we may better at telling our story and to share this information with relevant stakeholders.
The report should include the following:
Highlight the projects and their impacts that the initiative has completed since inception.
Share and explain the Initiative's future direction and activities as relating to the farmers' market and other market opportunities.
Identify recommendations regarding strategic funding sources the SFSI should be considering in order to continue making progress in expanding market access.
Amount of dollars that have been kept in the local economy as a result of the Initiative’s efforts.
Survey tribal producers, vendors, past program participants, and other community stakeholders. Surveys are to be distributed in-person in collaboration with FSI staff as well as online, in order to compile baseline statistics to understand the impact of efforts leading to healthier eating trends.
Upon completion, present findings to stakeholders to map out next steps.
SFSI staff will work closely with the selected service provider in order to provide assistance in the areas of community outreach, access to current and historical proprietary data (when and where it is available), and make available past reports, data, and expect a literature review as part of the process. Upon selection of a service provider, SFSI staff and the selected firm will determine a mutually agreed upon standing meeting schedule in order to share regular updates on the status of the project, solicit staff input, and share any needs that may have arisen.
Deliverables include a detailed impact report explaining the growth of markets, increases in the number of and the capacity of vendors and entrepreneurs, increases of local food dollars captured, and baseline statistics regarding healthy eating trends, as well as what is outlined in the goals and scope of services section listed above. A slide deck version of the report should be developed in order to be shared with relevant stakeholders Anticipated Selection Schedule
The Request for Proposal timeline is as follows:
3 Request for RFP: February 26th, 2024
Deadline for Questions: March 15th, 2024
FSI Responds to Questions: March 29th, 2024
Proposals from Service Providers Due: April 12th, 2024
Selection of Service Provider: April 26th, 2024
Project due: November 29th, 2024
Time and Place of Submission of Proposals Respondents to this RFP must submit one original and five copies of their proposal, received no later than April 12th, 2024.
Responses should be clearly marked “SFSI - Impact Report ” and mailed or delivered to the contact person listed above. Responses may also be submitted via email: please email matte@sicangu.co with the subject line “Request for Proposal: SFSI - Impact Report ” with the proposal attached as a pdf. Timeline The project is to be completed by November 29th, 2024.
Elements of Proposal A submission must include, at a minimum, the following elements:
Description of the firm or organization including a general overview and names and credentials of the team who will be completing the project.
A one-page narrative outlining the organizations strengths and distinguishing skills or capabilities as they relate to the project.
A proposed budget for the project, including a breakdown of the time and cost requirements for each deliverable outlined in the ‘Project Goals and Scope of Services’ and ‘Deliverables’ sections.
Testimonies from past clients.
May include previous examples of completed Impact Reports.
The successful respondent will have been operating continuously and offering consulting services for a minimum of 24 months. The education, experience, knowledge, skills, and qualifications of the firm and the individuals who will contribute to the project. The competitive cost of services. The expertise of the firm in completing similar studies or projects. Tribal affiliation will also be considered. REDCO is a tribally chartered corporation under the Rosebud Sioux Tribe (RST), and as such follows the tribe’s procurement policies. Indian preference therefore applies. However, all service providers are invited to apply, and evaluation of other criteria in addition to tribal affiliation will play a significant role in the selection process. The selected service provider will be required to have or obtain a Rosebud Sioux Tribe business license prior to commencement of the project.
Possible Roadblocks Potential roadblocks include the public availability of data. The Rosebud Reservation includes the entirety of Todd County, as well as parts of Mellette, Trip, Gregory, and Lyman counties in South Dakota. Oftentimes, publically available data is segregated by counties, which may prove to be a barrier. The RST may possess relevant tribal data, but this is not a guarantee and will likely only be available upon request. In addition to public availability of data, it may be difficult to realize the scope of current indigenous producers and entrepreneurs. Many tribal producers may be operating small family businesses without permanent physical storefronts, and they may or may not have a Facebook page, website, or readily available contact information for their enterprise. The FSI may be able to provide some assistance on this front, particularly by connecting the service provider to our current Keya Wakpala Farmers’ Market vendors. Budget A competitive proposal will be between $25,000 and $35,000. The budget submitted must include all costs incurred by the service provider in completion of the project, including any travel expenses that may be necessary for visits to the Rosebud, as well as other incidentals.
Respondents to this RFP must submit one original and five copies of their proposal, received no later than April 12th, 2024. Responses should be clearly marked “SFSI - Impact Report ” and mailed or delivered to the contact person listed above. Responses may also be submitted via email: please email matte@sicangu.co with the subject line “Request for Proposal: SFSI - Impact Report ” with the proposal attached as a pdf.