What does this funding get me?
The Environmental Justice Collaborative Problem-Solving Cooperative Agreement Program is part of the EPA’s Environmental and Climate Justice Program. The program helps recipients build collaborative partnerships with local business and industry, local government, medical service providers, academia, etc., to develop solutions to environmental or public health issues at the community level. It funds community-led projects aimed at pollution monitoring, prevention, and remediation; investments in low- and zero-emission and resilient technologies and related infrastructure; and workforce development.
Am I eligible?
Community-based nonprofits and partnerships of community-based nonprofits. The application period has passed for 2023, but read more below about the successful applicants in the Carolinas and how you can benefit from their projects.
How can I access the money?
There will not be an application window in 2024 but the EPA is planning for additional cycles in subsequent years. To be notified of upcoming opportunities, send a blank email to join-epa-ej@lists.epa.gov.
Ninety-eight awards were made in October 2023, including 2 in the Carolinas that may provide benefits to local communities. See all the 2023 award winners here.
The two winners in the Carolinas welcome involvement in their projects. They are:
Lowcountry Alliance for Model Communities (LAMC) in North Charleston, SC received a grant to fund the Resilience In The SouthEast (RISE) Program. LAMC will work with community, academic, non-governmental and governmental organizations to increase civic engagement and address environmental and public health concerns in environmental justice communities throughout the Southeast. LAMC will conduct a series of trainings using well established training models (Environmental Justice Academy – Charleston (EJAC) and EJSTRONG) for predominantly Black and low-wealth EJ communities to develop leaders who can locally prepare for, respond to, and recover from disasters while strengthening community capacity to lower vulnerabilities to environmental hazards.
Community-based EJ organizations in the Southeast (Georgia, Kentucky, Tennessee, North Carolina, South Carolina, Alabama, Mississippi, and Florida) can apply to receive this training. For more information, contact LAMC Executive Director Omar Muhammad at omarm@lamcnc.org.
CleanAIRE North Carolina received a grant to implement a North Mecklenburg Air Monitoring Network. In partnership with North Mecklenburg community-based nonprofit Letha’s 1Stop Shop and North Mecklenburg Economic Mobility Collaborative, CleanAIRE NC will establish an Air Monitoring Cluster Network to address health impacts associated with air pollution in the communities of Huntington Green (Huntersville, NC), Pottstown (Huntersville, NC), Smithville (Cornelius, NC), and West Davidson (Davidson, NC). Residents will collect air quality data and partake in CleanAIRE NC’s AirKeeper Academy, engaging in the Healthy Air Education Series, Clean Air Advocacy Training, and Maps and Apps session. CleanAIRE NC will also work with local CBOs, Atrium Health, and the Mecklenburg County Health Department to train Community Health Workers as lead AirKeepers and conduct a Health Impact Assessment with Lake Norman Community Health Clinic, Mecklenburg County Health Department, Atrium Health and North Carolina State University. A major goal of the Health Impact Assessment will be the Mecklenburg County Health Department’s inclusion of environmental justice parameters in its 2027 Community Health Assessment Survey.
For questions about CleanAIRE NC’s project, contact Kerstan Ryan, kerstan@cleanairenc.org. If you are in one of the impacted neighborhoods and are interested in working on this project, contact Amanda Strawderman, amanda@cleanairenc.org.
What is the timeline?
Ninety-eight awards were made in October 2023 (see details above). There will be no grant cycle in 2024, but the EPA is planning for additional cycles in subsequent years.
What other incentives could I use to help me accomplish my goals?
You may be able to access more funding from the Environmental Justice Grants, Funding and Technical Assistance Page
Where can I get more information?
- Environmental Justice Collaborative Problem-Solving Cooperative Agreement Program homepage
- See contact info for successful grant awardees above.
- In addition to the resources listed above, a variety of organizations offer technical assistance that may help you access these funds. They are listed on our Get Help page.
- For specific questions on this program or for more assistance, contact Sally Robertson at info@energyfundsforall.org.