Applications will remain open for submissions until March 15, 2025, with two rounds of review and selection I Awards are from $1,000 to $25,000 Dollars.
Asia Pacific Cultural Center (APCC) and four of our community-based organization partners- Front & Centered, N’aah Illahee Fund, Latino Community Fund, & WASCL (Washington State Coalition of African Leaders) is launching a combined $3M in community capacity building grants targeting overburdened and vulnerable communities in Washington State. APCC has $410,000 available to sub-grant.
APCC believes that we all have the right to a clean and healthy environment. Our community environmental justice program’s mission is to serve the Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) communities and raise awareness of a world that is environmentally conscious while integrating ancestral knowledge to firmly establish our interconnectedness. APCC’s definition of environmental justice includes the preservation and revival of ancestral and indigenous ecological knowledge and reclaiming the connection to the land and the environment through education, teaching, storytelling, and practicing of our arts, dances, and cultural traditions.
This APCC HEAL Capacity Building Grant seeks to support cultural groups, faith-based organizations, and self-organized groups working on social determinants of health of frontline Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) communities who also live in areas that are disproportionately affected or exposed to environmental hazards and unhealthy land uses. Funds will be used to resource organizations and group projects or activities that advance the goals of the HEAL Act and/or address or connect with environmental health disparities issues.
WE SEEK TO SUPPORT
As a cultural center, APCC recognizes that our indigenous cultural traditions and dances reflect the ecological knowledge and deep respect that our AANHPI communities have for our environment and serve as a powerful reminder of our humanity’s symbiotic relationship with the natural world.
In that regard, APCC seeks to fund projects and activities led by and for community-based organizations that are working at the intersection of addressing social determinants of health and preservation and revival of ancestral and indigenous ecological knowledge and reclaiming the connection to land and the environment through education, teaching, storytelling, and practicing our arts, dances, and cultural traditions.
Examples of funding requests and projects that builds capacity that qualify:
Acquiring traditional cultural attire, equipment, and tools that organizations need in order to continue teaching ecological knowledge that is embedded in our arts, dances, and cultural traditions.
Educating the community about the interconnectedness of environmental justice in the diaspora with environmental justice issues in their ancestral homelands.
Provide fresh food and increase community education on gardening practices and harvesting skills by establishing community gardens or family gardens.
Implementing an intergenerational knowledge-sharing project about traditional and land-based cultural foods and the impact of migration, displacement, and climate change on our access to and knowledge about these foods.
Creating a food pantry with fresh, healthy, and culturally relevant foods.
Implementing a recycling program that educates our communities around eco-friendly practices such as enhancing waste management practices (reuse, reduce, recycle); reducing single-use items and opting for biodegradable or plant-based supplies; switching to eco-friendly, nontoxic cleaning products; implementing energy-saving practices to reduce electricity consumption.
Creating seed harvesting, seed saving, seed sharing, and plant harvesting of culturally relevant foods.
Collecting data (quantitative and qualitative) in your local community about the environmental justice experiences of the people, which may be used for future action, projects, or initiatives.
WHO CAN APPLY?
Applicants must serve overburdened communities, vulnerable populations, and people disproportionately impacted by environmental health risks with a focus on AANHPI communities. This grant intentionally targets the following counties and cities: 1) Pierce County (Tacoma, Lakewood, Puyallup); 2) Snohomish County (Everett, Marysville, Lynnwood); and 3) Thurston County (Lacey, Olympia, Tumwater), which are among the highest risk of environmental health disparities and where there is concentrated population of AANHPI, according to the WA Environmental Health Disparities Map.
All applicants must come from groups or organizations (501c3, fiscally sponsored groups, or self-organized groups).
Grant funds must be used to build climate resilience and enhance community-led decision making to advance environmental justice that benefits vulnerable and most impacted communities in Washington State. No matching funds are required.
HOW TO APPLY?
Applications will open October 23, 2024, and will remain open for submissions until March 15, 2025. Applicants will submit their project ideas by answering three preliminary questions on the JustFund portal.
Applications will be evaluated in two rounds of review and selection process. Applications submitted by November 25, 2024, will be evaluated in the first round of reviews in late November to early December 2024. Applications submitted by March 15, 2025, will be evaluated in the second round of interviews in late March to early April 2025.
We understand that access to online platforms can be its own form of exclusivity. If you need to fill out an application in writing, by email, or by phone please contact APCC and they will assist.
HOW DO WE MAKE DECISIONS?
All applications will be reviewed and selected by the APCC HEAL Sub-granting Committee, comprised of community members with lived experience and representing areas that are disproportionately affected or exposed to environmental hazards and unhealthy land uses.
Incomplete applications will not be considered
We make grants in support of building capacity for innovative, solutions-oriented projects that are rooted in cultural traditions
We support community projects that connect people to environmental justice and cultural teachings
We will award grants that reach those most vulnerable in hard-to-reach places
We aim to support those populations with little or no access to resources
Please understand that APCC will likely be unable to support all requests. The amount provided will be based on the availability of funds and the number of requests under review.
WHAT IS OUR GRANT MAKING PROCESS?
Apply Organizations will fill out and complete the application via JustFund portal before the deadline.
Review Grant period ends, then the Sub-granting Committee will convene to review all applications. The committee will approve or deny recipients grant funds.
Notify Recipients will be notified via e-mail. If approved, an award e-mail and letter will be sent along with a check for the amount awarded by the Sub-granting Committee.
Reflect: We expect a follow-up from you about the impact your project has on your community.
WHAT ARE THE NEXT STEPS IF YOUR APPLICATION IS APPROVED OR DENIED?
The APCC HEAL Sub-granting Committee will conduct two rounds of review and selection process. Applications submitted by November 25, 2024, will be evaluated in the first round of reviews in late November to early December 2024. Award letters and denials will be sent mid to late December 2024. Applications submitted by March 15, 2025, will be evaluated in the second round of interviews in late March to early April 2025. Award letters and denials will be sent mid to late April 2025. APCC will send award letters with checks via U.S. mail.
APCC appreciates your efforts and the contributions your work makes to your community. We want to ensure that our reporting requirements are simple and relevant, and we will follow up to find out what impact your efforts have had.
BACKGROUND ABOUT THIS FUNDING
The Healthy Environment for All Act (HEAL Act was passed into law in 2021, led by the Front and Centered coalition of many different member organizations, and supported by a cross-section of other organizations as well. The HEAL Act has three main goals:
Incorporate EJ into agency decision-making processes
Improve government accountability to communities and create an Environmental Justice Council to help facilitate this
Create consistent and accessible pathways for the community to be meaningfully involved in government decision-making processes
The Legislature required the state Department of Health (DOH) to set this grant program based on the Environmental Justice Council (EJC) Climate Commitment Act (CCA) funding recommendations and budget priorities. Learn more about the purpose of DOH’s HEAL Capacity Grants here.
NEED ASSISTANCE?
Register for applicant webinar training for JustFund grant portal.
Join APCC’s application webinar on October 30, 2024 at 6 pm.
On the Road Application Support and Assistance is also being planned. More info to come!
If you have questions seek clarification or assistance with your application, please contact:
Glenda Duldulao, APCC Grants Manager, via email: glenda@asiapacificculturalcenter.org
Hannah Tol, Community Environmental Justice (CEJ) Program Manager via e-mail: hannah@asiapacificculturalcenter.org