Deadline: 18-Mar-25
The Region of Waterloo is accepting submissions for the Community Environmental Fund Program to provide an integrated funding program to support community-based environmental initiatives that will benefit current and future generations.
The Fund assists community members and organizations to carry out projects that promote environmental sustainability, and protect and enhance the natural environment.
Goals
- The Community Environmental Fund is intended to support environmental projects and initiatives by community members that propose to achieve the following goals:
- Provide a positive and lasting environmental return,
- Engage citizens and encourage collaboration,
- Seek innovative solutions and/or increase knowledge, and
- Produce measurable and achievable outcomes.
Streams
- The Community Environmental Fund program contains two granting streams:
- Stewardship grants for:
- Enhancement and restoration of natural areas
- Objective: To restore the ecological quality of natural areas which have been degraded or damaged. Property must be within a Landscape Level Feature, Core Environmental Feature, or Supporting Feature as identified in an Area Municipal Official Plan.
- Naturalization of landscapes
- Objective: To establish, enhance or restore local indigenous vegetation along roadsides, trails, the grounds of educational facilities, or other publicly owned (or accessible) lands.
- Acquisition of ecologically significant natural areas
- Objective: To bring high quality natural areas into the ownership of a “conservation body” as defined by the Conservation Lands Act, or an established land trust.
- Public education/awareness initiatives related to environmental stewardship
- Objective: To increase public awareness and understanding of the value of environmental stewardship within Waterloo Region.
- Research related to environmental stewardship
- Objective: To increase knowledge of environmental stewardship issues relevant to Waterloo Region.
- Enhancement and restoration of natural areas
- Sustainability grants for:
- Demonstration Projects that:
- Reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) and/or air emissions
- Increase energy conservation or efficiency and/or
- Reduce or divert waste
- Public education/awareness initiatives which promote long term behavioural change related to environmental sustainability
- Objective: To promote long term behavioural change and awareness on aspects of environmental sustainability, with particular relevance to reducing GHG and other air pollutants.
- Research related to environmental sustainability
- Objective: To carry out a project to increase knowledge of and solutions for environmental sustainability issues within Waterloo Region
- Demonstration Projects that:
- Stewardship grants for:
Funding Information
- Requests for funding typically range from $1,000 to $10,000 per project.
Eligibility Criteria
- To be eligible for consideration, a project proposal to the Community Environmental Fund must:
- Be implemented within the Waterloo Region,
- Stewardship and Sustainability Grants are available for:
- Charitable or non-profit organizations (clubs, associations, land trusts)
- Neighbourhood associations and other unincorporated community-based groups
- Co-operative corporations
- Schools, school boards, universities, colleges, hospitals, library or other public institutions
- Individuals/students with a documented collaborative agreement with an eligible applicant. A sample letter of collaborative agreement is available from staff upon request.
- Stewardship Grants are also available for:
- Private landowners (including commercial or business owners who provide matching funds)
- Area Municipalities, the Grand River Conservation Authority or Regional departments
For more information, visit Region of Waterloo.
