Grants

With support from Toyota Motor North America, the National Environmental Education Foundation (NEEF) is pleased to announce $150,000 in grant funding to make public lands more accessible and enjoyable for Americans of all abilities.

When the system of public lands in the United States was first created, its mission was to “preserve unimpaired the natural and cultural resources and beauty...for the enjoyment, education, and inspiration of this and future generations.” Today, land management agencies are tasked with the ongoing challenge of preserving ecologically and historically important sites—while making sure that they remain accessible to all segments of the population, including people with disabilities (From NEEF’s Public Land Engagement Guide: https://www.neefusa.org/conservation/public-lands-engagement/activity-guides/focus-on-accessibility-guide).

According to the Centers for Disease Control (https://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/disabilityandhealth/infographic-disability-impacts-all.html), 61 million Americans are living with a disability and 26% of adults in the US have some type of disability. The National Park Service conservatively estimates that a minimum of 28 million visitors with disabilities from all over the world visit national parks annually. Making sure that everyone truly has access to our shared public lands and waters is an ongoing challenge, supported by activists, outdoors organizations, and land management agencies themselves. NEEF, among other organizations, is committed to making the environment more accessible, relatable, relevant, and connected to people’s daily lives.

River Network and the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) are excited to announce a funding opportunity for nonprofit organizations working on stewardship activities on USFS administered Wild and Scenic Rivers (WSR). Partnership funding will range from $5,000-$10,000 per award for work occurring between August 1 and December 31, 2019. Stewardship projects - e.g. water quality monitoring, river cleanups, habitat restoration, stormwater management, trail delineations, and many more - must protect or enhance Wild and Scenic Rivers.

EPA is seeking applications from organizations with a demonstrable history of providing effective, results-oriented technical assistance to public water systems. The Agency’s priorities include maximizing funds to provide significant benefit to drinking water systems in communities of need; tackling the climate crisis; and advancing environmental justice and equity. EPA believes this funding plays a significant role to ensure continued access to resources to support infrastructure improvements that protect public health, safeguard the environment, and mitigate environmental justice concerns at the public water system.

If you have difficulty accessing the full announcement electronically, please contact:
Brianna Knoppow, Phone: (202) 564-4433 E-mail: smallsystemsRFA@epa.gov

Established in 2005, the annual Environmental Grant Program offers funding for innovative, community-based environmental projects that improve, restore, and/or protect the watersheds, surface water, and groundwater supplies in our local communities. Project activities should address a watershed or source water protection need in the local community within American Water service areas.

This annual grant program has donated more than $650,000 to fund more than 135 projects to protect and improve the environment across the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. In 2022, 13 Environmental Grant recipients, listed below, received a share of grant funds totaling nearly $75,000 for their community-based projects that improve, restore or protect watersheds.