Opportunities for Funding

Grant Program Summary
Our Town is the NEA’s creative placemaking grants program. Through project-based funding, the program supports activities that integrate arts, culture, and design into local efforts that strengthen communities over the long term. Our Town projects engage a wide range of local stakeholders in efforts to advance local economic, physical, and/or social outcomes in communities. Competitive projects are responsive to unique local conditions, develop meaningful and substantive engagement in communities, center equity, advance artful lives, and lay the groundwork for long-term systems change.

Applying for a federal grant can be time consuming, we estimate that after registering, the process to draft and submit an application takes approximately 26 hours.

A full grant program description can be found under Grant Program Details below. For detailed instructions on how to apply, see Application Instructions below.

The UEF Board of Trustees evaluates and judges proposals in view of the UEF mission, the perceived ability of the proposal and proposer(s) to further that mission, and the available funding. Proposals are accepted only from U.S. based organizations classified by the Internal Revenue Service as having 501(c)(3) status. While all proposals meeting the requirements for U.S. based organizations having 501(c)(3) status, established deadlines, and page limitations will be considered, certain UEF preferences should be understood by proposers:

Broad-based, interdisciplinary proposals that further the engineering profession as a whole are preferred. Multiple-year proposals are welcome, but funding is awarded for a single year only. Proposals for subsequent years follow procedures identical to that of single-year proposals. No commitment for funding of subsequent years of a multiple-year project should be inferred from funding of a prior year. Projects must be performed ONLY between January and December of the specific “Grant Year.” Projects that are outside “business as usual” of the proposing organization are preferred. Technical research proposals and proposals by individuals are seldom accepted.

Awards designed to incorporate proven and highly impactful climate resilience and carbon reduction measures to the construction scopes of work of inprogress recapitalization transactions. Maximum award is the lesser of $750k/property or $40k/unit

To create and scale new solutions, we need to incentivize partnerships across experts in climate, nature, and AI. Through the Grand Challenge, these collaborators have an opportunity to bring speed, scale, accuracy, and precision to their climate and nature efforts by proposing, designing, and deploying modern AI solutions. Targeted funding — combined with access to mentorship and other in-kind resources — can incentivize collaboration, stimulate innovation, and nurture solutions that might not otherwise exist.

The first round of the Grand Challenge invites grant proposals from eligible organizations: U.S.-based 501(c)(3) entities and global academic institutions. In keeping with the Bezos Earth Fund’s commitment to equity and access, eligible applicants may collaborate with organizations all over the world to develop their proposals. Proposals from non-affiliated individuals are not eligible.

Carbon Dioxide Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation (CIFIA) Program: Future Growth Grants The carbon dioxide transportation infrastructure finance and innovation (CIFIA) program was appropriated $2.1 billion to provide federal government financing to large-scale common-carrier carbon dioxide (“CO2”) transportation infrastructure projects. (42 U.S.C.A. § 16378). Requirements for Future Growth Grants (this FOA) are established in 42 U.S.C.A. § 16374 (a), which authorizes the secretary to provide grants to pay a portion of the cost differential, with respect to any projected future increase in demand for carbon dioxide transportation by an infrastructure project between--(1) the cost of constructing the infrastructure asset with the capacity to transport an increased flow rate of carbon dioxide, as made practicable under the project; and (2) the cost of constructing the infrastructure asset with the capacity to transport carbon dioxide at the flow rate initially required, based on commitments for the use of the asset.

This Innovation Challenge seeks to fund research projects and teams that will, in accordance with USDA’s S&RS, drive U.S. agricultural science successfully and cooperatively forward into the next generation of sustainable, resilient, and healthy food systems. With a focus on the next generation of research, this opportunity emphasizes providing resources to support highly creative and highly promising early-career researchers. Proposals will undergo an administrative review followed by a technical peer review.

Top proposals will then be shared with the Innovation Challenge Steering Committee. Based on the technical peer review and the Innovation Challenge Steering Committee review, proposals will be recommended for funding, based on the applicant’s ability to conduct the proposed research; integrate the themes of human health, climate-smart agriculture, and social equity, justice, and opportunity; and articulate innovative ideas for high-risk, high-reward research to improve nutrition security.

Funding will be provided for up to four (4) awards of between $350,000 and $500,000 each. The performance period for awards will be two years. In addition to funding, awardees will gain access to collaboration and networking opportunities with USDA and FFAR scientists and leaders.

The Rural Housing Service (RHS) announces a notice in funding availability under its Housing Preservation Grant (HPG) program. The HPG program is a grant program which provides qualified public agencies, private nonprofit organizations, which may include but not be limited to, Faith-Based and Community Organizations, and other eligible entities grant funds to assist very low- and low-income homeowners in repairing and rehabilitating their homes in rural areas. In addition, the HPG program assists rental property owners and cooperative housing complexes in repairing and rehabilitating their units if they agree to make such units available to low- and very low-income persons. This action is taken to comply with Agency regulations found in 7 CFR part 1944, subpart N, which require the Agency to announce the opening and closing dates for receipt of preapplications for HPG funds from eligible applicants. The intended effect of this Notice is to provide eligible organizations notice of these dates.

Approximately $2.2 million of FY2024 funding is available for disaster assistance ($50,000 maximum award). Preapplications for disaster assistance grants may be utilized for calendar year 2022 presidentially declared disaster area(s) only (2022 presidentially declared disaster areas can be viewed at https://www.fema.gov/disaster/declarations).

Through two phases, CONCEPT and DEVELOP, the Power at Sea Prize will provide winners with access to direct support, including trainings, testing assets, and new connections that aim to accelerate the advancement of concepts into real prototypes.

In the CONCEPT Phase, competitors will select a blue economy application that their proposed system, subsystem, or component will support, and an integration challenge their solution intends to resolve. (See official rules for complete lists of challenges and applications). At the end of this phase, up to 20 winners will be awarded from a cash prize pool of up to $200,000.

In the DEVELOP Phase, teams will continue their concept development and prepare it for future technology development after the prize. Up to 20 winners will be awarded from a cash prize pool of up to $1,500,000.

Non-native, invasive plants are a major threat across the state of Arizona. They recognize no borders and occur across all land ownerships. Non-native invasive plants change the natural fire regime, alter watersheds, degrade wildlife habitat, out-compete native vegetation and crops, and destroy the natural beauty of the Arizona landscape.

Arizona Department of Forestry and Fire Management, with funding provided by the State of Arizona and US Forest Service, is soliciting project proposals from $10,000-200,000 to treat invasive plant infestations that threaten Arizona's lands and waters.

Program Objectives
DFFM's Invasive Plant Grant program focuses on prevention, control, and eradication of invasive plants and aims to achieve the following objectives:

Target and treat invasive plants that are capable of transforming native plant communities in forests, woodlands, or rangelands
Assist in preventing fire and flooding, conserving water, and restoring habitat to wildlife
Increase local capacity to manage and prevent encroachment of invasive plants
Use an integrated weed management approach when treating areas infested with invasive plants through the utilization of available tools, including manual, cultural, mechanical, chemical, and biological control methods. Reseeding and planting native vegetation are also components of an invasive plant project

Solar Technologies’ Rapid Integration and Validation for Energy Systems (STRIVES) The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Solar Energy Technologies Office (SETO) and Wind Energy Technologies Office (WETO) announced the Solar Technologies’ Rapid Integration and Validation for Energy Systems (STRIVES) funding opportunity, which will provide up to $31 million for research, development, and demonstration projects to improve power systems simulation software tools and demonstrate new business models for distribution systems operations to integrate and optimize the value of inverter-based resources (IBRs) and distributed energy resources including solar generation, wind generation, energy storage, and other technologies such as buildings and electric vehicles. The large-scale deployment of clean energy technologies is driving a transition to a digitally controlled, decentralized, and distributed electric grid that will require coordination of large numbers of diverse and geographically dispersed assets. New operational tools and methods are needed to coordinate these assets while maintaining a reliable, resilient, and secure electric grid. The clean energy transition also introduces new stakeholders to electricity generation, transmission, and distribution, which creates opportunities for new organizational models to provide equitable access and participation in electricity markets. This funding opportunity announcement (FOA) is part of a collaborative effort by the DOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) to issue multiple FOAs totaling more than $100 million for field demonstration projects and other research to support better planning and operations of the electric grid. Topic Area 1: Robust Experimentation and Advanced Learning for Distribution System Operators Projects in this topic area will design and perform field demonstrations of distribution system operator models that consider technology development and the roles of non-traditional stakeholders in potential distribution electricity services and markets. Topic Area 2: Improved Simulation Tools for Large-Scale IBR Transient and Dynamic Studies Projects in this topic area will develop and demonstrate software tools and methodologies to improve the ability of power systems engineers to accurately and efficiently model the dynamics of power systems with large amounts of geographically dispersed IBRs.