Explore awards

Use the filter menu and interactive map to explore the past competitions offered and grants awarded through the Environmental Literacy Program.

To learn more about project findings and outcomes, view the summaries of our grantees’ summative evaluation reports.

Nothing Without Us: Building Environmental Literacy, Resilience, and Sustainability in DC through a Multi-Partner, Community-Led Approach

Funding: $499,999
Year: 2022
The FH Faunteroy Community Enrichment Center will lead intergenerational efforts to build climate resilience and address complex environmental problems with Ward 7 residents through a model built on self-determination and collaboration with public and private partners. The project’s geographic focus is on Ward 7, home to not only the majority of single-family homes in Washington, DC’s 100-year floodplain, but also a predominantly Black population that faces increased climate vulnerability due to socio-economic stressors and legacies of systemic racism.

The FH Faunteroy Community Enrichment Center will lead intergenerational efforts to build climate resilience and address complex environmental problems with Ward 7 residents through a model built on self-determination and collaboration with public and private partners. The project’s geographic focus is on Ward 7, home to not only the majority of single-family homes in Washington, DC’s 100-year floodplain, but also a predominantly Black population that faces increased climate vulnerability due to socio-economic stressors and legacies of systemic racism. The Ward 7 Resilience Hub Community Committee is the lead project partner, with collaborators including the DC Department of Energy and Environment, Harrison Institute for Public Law at Georgetown University Law Center, NOAA Chesapeake Bay Office, and additional support from NOAA Regional Integrated Sciences and Assessments Program. Project goals, centered around Ward 7 residents, are to: (1) reshape workforce development programs and initiatives; (2) increase environmental literacy and civic participation; and (3) create community-driven decision-making processes and structures that guide the development of resilience hubs in the District. The full project title is “Nothing Without Us: Building Environmental Literacy, Resilience, and Sustainability in DC through a Multi-Partner, Community-Led Approach.” Activities will include workforce development programming, environmental education, and convenings for and with the partner organizations to develop promising practices for community resilience hubs. This collaboration will build a climate-ready workforce among Ward 7 residents, support community action and advocacy, and position residents to be leaders in the implementation of the District’s sustainability and climate plans, including Climate Ready DC, Resilient DC, and Sustainable DC 2.0.

Award Number: NA22SEC0080006
Grant Dates: 10/01/2022 to 09/30/2025
PI: Estelle-Marie Montgomery
State: District of Columbia   County:   District of Columbia District: DC00
Partners: NOAA Climate Program Office (CPO) · NOAA Chesapeake Bay Office · FH Faunteroy Community Enrichment Center (FCEC) · District of Columbia (DC) Department of Energy & Environment (DOEE) · Harrison Institute for Public Law at Georgetown University Law Center · Ward 7 Resilience Hub Community Committee (RHCC) · NOAA Regional Integrated Sciences and Assessments (RISA) / Mid-Atlantic RISA ·

Increasing Sea-Level Rise Resilience in the Northern Gulf of Mexico

Funding: $449,076
Year: 2020
Sea-level rise (SLR) will disproportionately affect the northern Gulf of Mexico (nGOM; coastal Mississippi, Alabama, and northwest Florida) due to a confluence of socioeconomic challenges (e.g., vulnerable industry, low per capita income, low level of educational attainment, etc.), higher than average rates of SLR, and low-lying topography. Resilience of nGOM social, economic, and cultural resources in the face of SLR requires an informed and engaged constituency and leadership that understands their risks, SLR adaptation options, and the civic processes required for action.

Sea-level rise (SLR) will disproportionately affect the northern Gulf of Mexico (nGOM; coastal Mississippi, Alabama, and northwest Florida) due to a confluence of socioeconomic challenges (e.g., vulnerable industry, low per capita income, low level of educational attainment, etc.), higher than average rates of SLR, and low-lying topography. Resilience of nGOM social, economic, and cultural resources in the face of SLR requires an informed and engaged constituency and leadership that understands their risks, SLR adaptation options, and the civic processes required for action. Multiple formal and informal needs assessments have identified specific educational and informational gaps that act as barriers to SLR action in nGOM coastal communities. To address the SLR resilience barriers identified by nGOM stakeholders and decision-makers, the project team will implement a comprehensive and diverse education program that engages multiple sectors within coastal communities including youth, educators, municipal officials, concerned citizens, and non-participants (i.e., those who have not yet been engaged in dialogue around SLR resilience). The goal of the project is science and civics literate constituencies in the northern Gulf of Mexico that can actively support cultures, economies, and ecosystems that are resilient to SLR. This goal will be achieved by developing an inclusive SLR education program that spans ages, locations, and demographics. There are three categories of project activities targeting different community sectors: 1) educator workshops encouraging application of an existing SLR curriculum for high school students; 2) Community Connection Dialogues that connect community leaders working on SLR with engaged constituents to inform and empower future action; and 3) pop-in immersive SLR experiences at “every day” locations (e.g., baseball games, art walks) to reach those without the means/motivation to engage in SLR resilience. The SLR curriculum, Community Connection Dialogues, and Pop-Ins are three parts of a whole that work to bring community members at all levels of understanding and engagement into the conversation and direct them towards the next step in their pathway to SLR community resilience. This work is being led by Mississippi State University in partnership with the Mississippi-Alabama Sea Grant Consortium, Dauphin Island Sea Lab, Alabama School of Mathematics and Science, Gulf of Mexico Alliance, and the University of South Alabama. Collaborators from across the region will include the Mississippi State University Gulf Coast Community Design Studio, the five Gulf National Estuarine Research Reserves, Audubon Nature Institute, 350 Pensacola, League of Women Voters of Mobile, EEECHO, Ocean Springs Environmental Committee, UF/IFAS, Perdido & Pensacola Bays Estuary Program, Better Growth Mobile, Cities of Ocean Springs, MS and Pensacola, FL, Counties of Jackson, MS and Santa Rosa, FL, and the GoM Climate and Resilience Community of Practice.

Award Number: NA20SEC0080010
Grant Dates: 07/01/2021 to 09/30/2024
PI: Eric Sparks
State: Mississippi   County:   Harrison District: MS04
Partners: Dauphin Island Sea Lab (DISL) · National Estuarine Research Reserve (NERR) Rookery Bay · National Sea Grant College Program / Mississippi-Alabama Sea Grant Consortium · National Estuarine Research Reserve (NERR) Apalachicola · National Estuarine Research Reserve (NERR) Grand Bay · National Estuarine Research Reserve (NERR) Mission-Aransas · National Estuarine Research Reserve (NERR) Weeks Bay · 350 Pensacola · Better Growth Mobile, Inc. · Education, Economics, Environmental, Climate and Health Organization (EEECHO) · League of Women Voters (LWV) of Mobile · Gulf Coast Community Design Studio · Escambia County / Pensacola & Perdido Bays Estuary Program · University of Florida / IFAS / Extension Escambia County · Jackson County / Utility Authority · City of Ocean Springs · City of Pensacola · Santa Rosa County / Board of County Commissioners · Audubon Nature Institute · Friends of Rookery Bay · University of South Alabama · Alabama School of Math And Science · University of Florida / IFAS / Extension Santa Rosa County · University of Florida / IFAS / Extension Dixie County · University of Florida / IFAS / Extension Levy County · City of Mobile / Chief Resilience Officer · South Florida Water Management District ·