The Trust announced the approval of 164 grants totaling $3,727,047 to enable a wide range of organizations to implement on-the-ground restoration and education projects and programs. Four times each year the Trust’s board of trustees announces its grant approvals which help local nonprofit organizations, local governments, and schools improve water quality and better local communities through a variety of outreach and restoration techniques. In fiscal year 2017, the Chesapeake Bay Trust awarded more than $11 million in grants.
“We are proud to offer grant opportunities to a wide range of organizations, from small homeowner associations and faith-based institutions to large cities, universities, and hospital campuses, to help them further our shared mission of improving our communities and protecting the natural resources of the Chesapeake region,” said Jana Davis, executive director of the Chesapeake Bay Trust.
The grants announced today range from small tree plantings and community outreach initiatives to large-scale restoration and stormwater management projects.
For example, Black Girls Dive Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to inspiring and empowering girls and young women to engage in aquatic-based recreational and STEM activities, was awarded their first grant from the Trust. The grant will be used to incorporate environmental ecology curriculum into their STREAMS program, which integrates science, technology, engineering, art, and math experiences with SCUBA lessons.
Baltimore Tree Trust, an established environmental nonprofit dedicated to restoring Baltimore’s urban forest, was awarded a grant for their planned collaboration with Volunteering Untapped and Baltimore Trash Talk. Funds will be used to expand their Trees for Public Health program by working with the residents of Baltimore’s Berea neighborhood to “green and clean” their neighborhood and to reforest a portion of the Harris Creek watershed by planting 170 street trees.
The Trust works with many funding partners to pool resources. Partners for these awards included U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, Maryland Department of Natural Resources, Prince George’s County, Montgomery County, City of Baltimore, Charles County, Howard County, Harford County, and numerous private foundations.
About the Awards:
Community-based engagement and on-the-ground restoration work: Sixty-five grants totaling more than $2.6 million were awarded to support a broad range of projects that engage residents and restore habitat and/or water quality in our region.
Awards were made to: American Farmland Trust, Anacostia Watershed Society, Anne Arundel County, Maryland (2), Associated Catholic Charities, Inc., Audubon Naturalist Society of the Central Atlantic States, Inc., Back Creek Conservancy, Inc., Baltimore County Soil Conservation District, Baltimore Tree Trust, Black Girls Dive Foundation, Inc., Blue Water Baltimore (2), Carroll Soil Conservation District, Charles Soil Conservation District, City of Annapolis, City of Bowie, Civic Works, Inc. (2), Clean Water Fund, Clyburn Arboretum Association, County Commissioners of Caroline County, Delaware Maryland Synod ELCA, Epping Forest Community Association, Frederick County Office of Sustainability and Environmental Resources (OSER), Frederick Soil Conservation District, Friends of the Patapsco Valley Heritage Greenway, Inc., Girl Scouts of Central Maryland, Gunpowder Valley Conservancy (2), Havre de Grace Maritime Museum, Howard County Conservancy, Inc., Howard EcoWorks (2), Interfaith Partners for the Chesapeake (IPC), Kent County Commissioners, Knollwood Improvement Association, McDaniel College, Most Precious Blood Church, Mount Sinai African Methodist Episcopal Church, Park School of Baltimore, Patterson Park Audubon Center, Pickering Creek Audubon Center, Port Tobacco River Conservancy, Potomac Conservancy, Ridge to Reefs, ShoreRivers (3), South River Federation (4), Southeast Community Development Corporation, The 6th Branch, The Church of the Redeemer, Town of Centreville, Town of New Market, and University of Maryland College Park.
Science: The Trust partners with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to support some of the science gaps in bay restoration. This quarter, two awards totaling $108,000 were made to Tetra Tech, Inc. and Penns Valley Conservation Association.
Capacity Building Initiative: The Trust supports innovative partnerships between traditional natural resources organizations and organizations not traditionally engaged in natural resources as way to reach beyond the choir and broaden the engagement of individuals in watershed restoration.
Twenty-six grants for this type of work were awarded totaling $743,539 to: Anacostia Coordinating Council, Assateague Coastal Trust, Association of Baltimore Area Grantmakers, Baltimoreans United In Leadership Development, Blue Water Baltimore, Capital Area Resource Conservation and Development Council, Inc. (2), Clean Water Fund (2), Comite de Apoyo a los Trabajadores Agricolas – CATA, DC Appleseed, Friends of Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens, Future Harvest – Chesapeake Alliance for Sustainable Agriculture (C.A.S.A.), Groundwork Anacostia River DC, Interfaith Partners for the Chesapeake (IPC), Neighborhood Design Center, Patterson Park Audubon Center, Piedmont Environmental Council, Progressive National Baptist Convention Community Development Corporation, Socially Responsible Agricultural Project, Southeast Community Development Corporation, Surfrider Foundation, TRF Development Partners, Inc., Ward 7 Business Partnership, and Waterkeepers Chesapeake.
Small Grants: For entities just starting out in the environmental realm and for teachers who need just a small amount of resources to get their students outside to experience nature, the Trust also offers small grants up to $5,000. This quarter, 53 organizations received small grants for a total of $202,007.
For more information on any of these specific grant awards, email Erin Valentine at evalentine@cbtrust.org.
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