Press release from the City of Philadelphia
PHILADELPHIA – Today, the City’s Office of Sustainability (OOS), in partnership with the Philadelphia City Fund, is launching the Philadelphia Thriving Communities Bridge Fund to support local, community-based organizations in accessing the federally-funded Thriving Communities Grantmaking Program awards. The Thriving Communities Grantmaking Program (TCGM), created by the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) and administered by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), aims to make it easier for small, community-based organizations (CBOs) to access federal environmental justice funds by reducing barriers and improving efficiency in the federal grants process.
“The Thriving Communities Grantmaking Program is an important step towards making federal funding and technical assistance more readily available for community-based organizations poised to expand their capacity,” said Elizabeth Lankenau, Director of the Office of Sustainability. “However, getting ready to scale and receiving these funds also requires resources. We launched the Philadelphia Thriving Communities Bridge Fund to address these possible gaps and help local TCGM recipients get the most out of their awards. We are excited to partner with the William Penn Foundation, Green and Healthy Homes Initiative, and the Philadelphia City Fund to make this flexible bridge funding available to organizations addressing pressing environmental justice issues in their neighborhoods."
The Philadelphia Thriving Communities Bridge Fund will provide general operating grants totaling $250,000 to Philadelphia awardees of the TCGM Program. This flexible funding will provide starter funding for Philadelphia TCGM awardees as they await reimbursement from regional Grantmaker Green & Healthy Homes Initiative (GHHI). The TCGM funding is fully obligated through a signed grant agreement with GHHI, but should any delays or challenges arise in accessing the federal award, the Philadelphia Thriving Communities Bridge funding will be redirected to support organizations’ general operations. Grants will total estimated needs for one month of work. No applications for this resource are required. OOS in coordination with GHHI will connect with TCGM awardees as selected and as funds remain in the Philadelphia Bridge Fund.
To streamline and simplify the awards application process, EPA selected and contracted $600 million to 11 regional Grantmakers nationwide to serve as pass-through entities delivering environmental justice grants to CBOs in each respective region. Grantmakers will also connect CBO awardees to technical assistance and program supports to aid in their project implementation.
The Baltimore-based Green & Healthy Homes Initiative serves as the Grantmaker for EPA Region 3 which comprises Delaware, District of Columbia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia and seven federally recognized tribes. Through the TCGM Program, GHHI is distributing $40 million in grants to approximately 171 eligible projects that address a range of environmental issues and benefit communities underserved by resources and overburdened by environmental, climate, and health harms and risks. Visit the GHHI TCGM Program website for information about the program, application criteria, and process.
“The IRA has been the federal government’s largest ever investment in climate action and environmental justice. Equitable deployment of this funding is critical to ensure benefits reach those most impacted by climate and environmental injustice. The Philadelphia City Fund is proud to support Philadelphia CBOs in overcoming the remaining barrier of federally funded grants being reimbursement-based,” said Emily Gowen, Deputy Director of the Philadelphia City Fund. “General operating grants from the Philadelphia Thriving Communities Bridge Fund may be used as starter funding to begin project implementation while CBOs await reimbursement.”
The Philadelphia Thriving Communities Bridge Fund is supported by the William Penn Foundation and fiscally administered by the Philadelphia City Fund.
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About the City’s Office of Sustainability
The Office of Sustainability (OOS) works with partners around the city to improve quality of life in all Philadelphia neighborhoods, through advancing environmental justice, progressing Philadelphia’s climate and energy goals, and preparing the city for a hotter and wetter future. For more information, visit phila.gov/sustainability.
About the Philadelphia City Fund
The Philadelphia City Fund is an independent charitable organization which serves as the dedicated fiscal sponsor for the City of Philadelphia and leverages public-private partnerships in collaboration with the City, the philanthropic community, and the residents of Philadelphia.
About William Penn Foundation
The William Penn Foundation, founded in 1945 by Otto and Phoebe Haas, is committed to expanding access to resources and opportunities that promote a more vital and just city and region for all. We do this through funding programs in the Philadelphia region in arts and culture, children and families, democracy and civic initiatives, environment and public space, and workforce training and services. Learn more at www.williampennfoundation.org.