Deadline: 31-Jul-23
The Rails-to-Trails Conservancy is inviting applications for the Trail Grants Program to help organizations and government agencies accelerate their trail network plans.
At Rails-to-Trails Conservancy (RTC), they believe that everyone deserves access to accessible and safe places where they can walk, bike and be active. Trail networks provide those essential elements and have a proven transformative impact on America’s communities.
Funding Information
- RTC will award approximately $200,000 to organizations and local agencies that are working to develop and connect equitable trail networks. To support a wide variety of projects and programs that reflect elements of the TrailNation Playbook, grant amounts will range between $5,000 and $25,000.
Eligibility Criteria
- The Trail Grants program is open to non-profit organizations as well as state, regional, local or tribal agencies working to support, develop and activate local and regional trail networks. This year’s Trail Grant awards will prioritize projects and programs that help to achieve RTC’s vision for equitable trail networks as essential community infrastructure. With this in mind, they are planning to support a broad spectrum of funding need categories that may otherwise be challenging to fund. They strongly encourage organizations that represent or serve low-income, or communities of color to apply.
- Project should support one or more of the following strategies in the TrailNation Playbook.
- Project Vision (e.g. developing a local or regional vision)
- Coalition building (e.g. cultivating stakeholder and political support)
- Gap-filling strategy (e.g. acquisition strategies)
- Mapping and analytics (e.g. mapping the network, equitable connectivity analysis)
- Investment Strategy (e.g. securing matching funds, identifying and pursuing funding opportunities)
- Engagement (e.g. inclusive community engagement, user activation, and events)
- The project must serve or plan to serve multiple user types (e.g., bicycling, walking/hiking or horseback riding) and be considered a rail-trail, greenway, multi-use trail or shared-use path.
- Eligible grantees include: non-profit organizations; state, regional, local or tribal government agencies; and other organizations. Private individuals may not apply.
- Projects must be initiated by September 2024
- To apply for a grant—all applicants must register to join RTC’s TrailNation Collaborative. Registration is free and only requires an email address. Collaborative members have access to free webinars and monthly newsletters.
- Only one application per group/agency will be accepted.
- Preference will be given to projects that commit to increasing equitable access to trail networks.
For more information, visit Trail Grants.