Biden-Harris Administration Selects the Minneapolis Foundation to Receive $50 Million to Fund Environmental Justice Projects in the Midwest as Part of Investing in America Agenda
The Minneapolis Foundation has been selected to reduce barriers to federal funds and issue hundreds of environmental justice grants over the next three years
Today, as part of President Biden’s Investing in America agenda, the Biden-Harris Administration announced the Minneapolis Foundation has been selected to serve as Regional Grantmaker that will receive $50 million under EPA’s Environmental Justice Thriving Communities Grantmaking program that was created by President Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act, the largest investment in climate action in history. This new grant program, which will make it easier for small community-based organizations to access federal environmental justice funding, responds to community feedback about the need to reduce barriers to federal funds and improve the efficiency of the awards process to ensure communities that have long faced underinvestment can access the benefits of the largest climate investment in history. Communities will be able to apply to the Minneapolis Foundation for a subgrant to fund a range of different environmental project activities, including (but not limited to) small local cleanups, local emergency preparedness and disaster resiliency programs, environmental workforce development programs for local jobs reducing greenhouse gas emissions, fenceline air quality and asthma related projects, healthy homes programs, and projects addressing illegal dumping.
President Biden is delivering the most ambitious environmental justice agenda in our nation’s history. Vice President Kamala Harris and EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan were joined by Dr. Robert Bullard, a Distinguished Professor of Urban Planning and Environmental Policy at Texas Southern University to announce the historic Grantmaker awards.
“For years, community advocates have been calling for federal support and resources to help address our country’s most pressing environmental justice concerns,” said EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan. “Thanks to President Biden and Vice President Harris’ leadership, we’re responding to these calls by removing barriers that have traditionally held communities and applicants back from accessing these historic investments in America. Together, in partnership with these Grantmakers, we are taking a giant step toward a future where every person in America has equal opportunity to breathe clean air, drink clean water, and live a healthy, productive life.”
“Environmental justice organizations work on the ground in communities to protect human health and the environment. However, they often lack the resources that governments and companies might have,” said EPA Regional Administrator Debra Shore. “This new grant program will level the playing field to help organizations build capacity and expand their work in the communities they serve.”
“Thanks to the Inflation Reduction Act, we’re finally able to help close the gap so communities who have been disproportionately impacted by pollution will have the support they need to fight for a cleaner, healthier future. Local organizations like the Minneapolis Foundation have lacked the funding needed to accomplish this work and this changes that,” said Sen. Tina Smith. “This $50 million investment is a game-changer for environmental justice in Minnesota and will have a ripple effect across the state and the region, allowing the Minneapolis Foundation and its partners to distribute funds that fuel projects that will help build a cleaner future for us all.”
“Environmental justice communities have fought for generations to provide safe, healthy, and clean neighborhoods for their families. With this new support from the EPA, those on the frontline of environmental justice issues will have better access to funding that will make this vision a reality,” said Rep. Ilhan Omar. “I have long said that those who are closest to the problem should be closest to the solution -- and this community-grantmaking program is putting that idea into action. I look forward to working with the Minneapolis Foundation, the Midwest Environmental Justice Network, the RE-AMP Network, and NDN Collective to get much-needed resources into communities that have been left behind for far too long. Thank you to the Biden Administration and the EPA for funding a better future for my constituents!”
To implement this grant, the Minneapolis Foundation will partner with the Midwest Environmental Justice Network, the RE-AMP Network, and NDN Collective. These organizations have working relationships with Tribes, indigenous-led and grassroot organizations across EPA Region 5, which covers Minnesota, Michigan, Indiana, Illinois, Ohio, Wisconsin and 35 tribal nations. They also share knowledge of what works best for environmental justice organizations in terms of capacity and a commitment to managing and implementing the grant program in a way that builds the capacity and strength of grassroots environmental justice organizations. The Minneapolis Foundation will begin accepting applications on a rolling basis in the summer 2024.
“This funding will strengthen the ability of communities throughout the Great Lakes region to think locally but act globally, delivering large-scale federal resources to scores of organizations and individuals who together are building the movement for climate justice,” said R.T. Rybak, President and CEO of the Minneapolis Foundation.
“Our communities must be at the center of climate and environmental solutions,” said Eartha Borer-Bell, director of the Midwest Environmental Justice Network (MWEJN). “We are committed to creating a grantmaking process that is accountable to environmental justice communities and that will build the long-term capacity of grassroots organizations to address priority public health and environmental challenges.”
“We are honored to work with our partners on all aspects of this program, and to ensure that Tribes and Indigenous communities across rural, remote, and urban areas can use this funding to pursue and lead the environmental justice projects that matter to them,” said Nick Tilsen, president & CEO of NDN Collective.
“This project provides an unparalleled opportunity to bring resources and attention to environmental injustices in rural communities, which are too often overlooked,” said Melissa Gavin, CEO of RE-AMP. “RE-AMP is honored to join this partnership and lead the outreach to rural and remote environmental justice communities in our region.”
EPA Grantmakers will work in collaboration with EPA’s Office of Environmental Justice and External Civil Rights to issue subgrants to community-based nonprofit organizations and other eligible organizations representing disadvantaged communities. As a Grantmaker, the Minneapolis Foundation will design comprehensive application and submission processes, award environmental justice subgrants, implement tracking and reporting systems, and provide resources and support to communities. The subgrants are expected to become available by summer 2024.
In addition, EPA has selected the Research Triangle Institute to receive $50 million as a National Environmental Justice Thriving Communities Grantmaker to provide additional support, coordination, and oversight to the subgrantees, applicants, and the Regional Grantmakers across the central part of the country. Research Triangle Institute will partner with International City/County Management Association (ICMA), National Center for Healthy Housing (NCHH) and Southern Environmental Law Center (SELC). As a National Grantmaker, Research Triangle Institute and their partners will emphasize local community outreach to accelerate grant awards to communities most in need. As part of the program portfolio, they will ensure funding enables projects that support the goals and strategies of the EPA’s Strategic Plan and the broader Justice40 Initiative, such as clean and healthy air for all communities, clean and safe water for all communities, and safety of chemicals for people and the environment. Research Triangle Institute and their partners will also establish a culture of equity by using a community-engaged transformative governance model for grant review.
Grantmakers are expected to begin opening competitions and awarding subgrants by summer 2024. Community-based nonprofit organizations and other eligible organizations seeking subgrant funding will be able to apply for subgrants through three concurrent tiers offered by the Grantmakers. Tier One will consist of grants for $150,000 for assessment, Tier Two will consist of grants for $250,000 for planning, and Tier Three will consist of grants for $350,000 for project development. In addition, $75,000 will be available for capacity-constrained community-based organizations through a noncompetitive process under Tier One. Each Grantmaker will design and implement a distribution program best suited for their region and communities.
The Grantmakers program is part of the Federal Interagency Thriving Communities Network and delivers on the Biden-Harris Administration’s Justice40 Initiative which set the goal that 40% of the overall benefits of certain federal investments flow to disadvantaged communities that are marginalized by underinvestment and overburdened by pollution. Grantmakers will work in collaboration with the Environmental Justice Thriving Communities Technical Assistance Centers (EJ TCTACs) to create a robust support network to assist eligible entities when applying.
Learn more about the Environmental Justice Thriving Communities Grantmakers.
Background
From day one of their administration, President Biden and Vice President Harris have made achieving environmental justice a top priority. In August 2022, President Biden signed the Inflation Reduction Act into law, creating the largest investment in environmental and climate justice in U.S. history. EPA received $3 billion in total to award grants and fund related technical assistance to benefit disadvantaged communities.
EPA has since launched and expanded innovative programs to provide more support than ever before to communities that unjustly bear the burdens of environmental harm and pollution. This includes the $177 million for the creation of 16 EJ TCTACs in partnership with the U.S. Department of Energy to remove barriers to federal resources and help communities pursue funding opportunities like those made available through President Biden’s Investing in America Agenda.
EPA announced nearly $128 million to fund 186 projects across the country that advance environmental justice as part of President Biden’s Investing in America agenda. The organizations, which EPA has selected through its Environmental Justice Collaborative Problem Solving Cooperative Agreement and Environmental Justice Government-to-Government programs, will use the funds to ensure disadvantaged communities that have historically suffered from underinvestment have access to clean air and water and climate resilience solutions in alignment with the Biden-Harris Administration’s Justice40 Initiative.
EPA also announced approximately $2 billion in funding available to support community-driven projects that deploy clean energy, strengthen climate resilience, and build capacity for communities to tackle environmental and climate justice challenges last month. The Community Change Grants are the single largest investment in environmental justice going directly to communities in history, and will advance collaborative efforts to achieve a healthier, safer, and more prosperous future for all.
Learn more about environmental justice at EPA.
For up-to-date information on when subgrants will be available, subscribe to the Office of Environmental Justice and External Civil Rights’ listserv by sending a blank email to: [email protected]. Follow OEJECR on X (formerly Twitter): @EPAEnvJustice.