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Australian Forest and Wood Innovations (AFWI) – National Open Call for Research

Australian Forest and Wood Innovations (AFWI) – National Open Call for Research

  • Grant range: $50,000 to $2.5 million (higher amounts considered exceptionally)
  • Funding structure: Co-investment with industry and research partners
  • Matched funding or in-kind contributions:
      • Total partner contributions must equal or exceed the AFWI funding request at Full Proposal stage
      • Cash contributions must represent at least 25 percent of total project value, with a meaningful proportion from industry partners
      • Non-cash contributions (cash staff and tangible in-kind) must not exceed 75 percent of total co-contributions

The Australian Forest and Wood Innovations (AFWI) National Open Call for Research supports investigator-led or industry-led research and innovation partnerships addressing nationally significant challenges and opportunities across the forest and wood products value chain. AFWI seeks projects that demonstrate strong industry collaboration, cross-disciplinary research capability and a clear pathway to industry adoption. Funding focuses on research that delivers measurable economic, environmental and social benefits, builds national innovation capacity and supports Australia’s transition to a more productive, resilient and climate-adapted forest and wood products sector.

Key Requirements

AFWI strategic pillars
Projects must align with one or more of AFWI’s four strategic pillars:
  • Healthier forests – Strengthening forest resilience, productivity and climate adaptation
  • Maximising fibre use and value – Improving fibre recovery, processing efficiency and value creation
  • Climate solutions – Delivering credible forest-carbon and natural capital outcomes
  • Housing innovation – Accelerating adoption of engineered timber and modern methods of construction

What is eligible for funding?

  • Industry-aligned research demonstrating strong collaboration and stakeholder engagement
  • Cross-disciplinary research integrating multiple parts of the wood fibre value chain
  • Research delivering benefits to multiple industry partners with a clear pathway to adoption
  • Activities building research and innovation capability across research and industry sectors
  • Projects addressing industry challenges and or entrepreneurial opportunities
  • Research demonstrating value for money and favourable return on investment

What companies are eligible for funding?

  • Research organisations, including universities and CSIRO
  • Forestry and forest products industry organisations
  • Indigenous organisations
  • Not-for-profit organisations
  • Local and state government bodies
  • Industry associations

Is this grant competitive or entitlement based?

Competitive. Your application will be assessed among other applications by a judging panel.

How can I increase my chances of winning this grant?

By engaging an accredited government grants consultant, such as Avant Group.

Competitive grants often require significant business case development and project analysis to support the application, this may include detailed presentations supporting the project’s merit, projected sales, cost-benefit analysis and more.

As part of your engagement with Avant Group, your account manager will assess the required documents and will provide the following as needed to support your grant submission.

Grant application writeup including a detailed presentation illustrating how the grant funding will contribute to your project, how the funding will contribute to the project’s budget, a project milestone plan, delivery timeline, impact on employment if applicable and a breakdown of the management and leadership team for the project

  • Industry analysis presentation
  • Competitor Analysis Presentation
  • Marketing and Sales Analysis Presentation
  • 3-5 year Cashflow Forecast
  • 3-5 year Balance Sheet Forecast
  • Cost-Benefit Analysis of Grant Funding
  • End-to-end grant application including information collating, analysis and application writing
  • CAPEX (Capital Expenditure) cost-benefit analysis
  • Stakeholder relations and Risk Mitigation Plans
  • Any other relevant forecasting that will support your application

How can I get help with my application? Or know if I’m likely to win funding?

Avant Group offers a no-obligation assessment of your eligibility for funding and will assess your likelihood of a successful grant application.