This new Community Change Grants program of approximately $2 billion from the Environmental Protection Agency will provide unprecedented funding to community-driven projects that address climate challenges. Through funding and technical assistance, the program intends to advance the agency's environmental justice priorities.

The Community Change Grants will support community-driven projects that center collaborative efforts and are intended to:

1. Provide resources for community-driven projects to address environmental and climate challenges in communities facing disproportionate and adverse health, pollution, and environmental impacts, and suffering from generations of disinvestment.

2. Invest in strong cross-sectoral collaborations with partners who bring a robust commitment to working with and for communities with environmental and climate justice concerns.

3. Unlock access to additional and more significant resources to advance environmental and climate justice goals from across the federal government and other sources.

4. Empower communities and strengthen their capacity to drive meaningful positive change on the ground for years to come.

5. Strengthen community participation in government decision-making processes that impact them.

Kentucky organizations may be eligible for special consideration and TA opportunities under the Target Investment Area D which covers disadvantaged unincorporated communities.

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For more information and details about this grant program see the informational webinar recording, program overview and FAQs.

Additional Eligibility Requirements

Applicants must demonstrate that the projects in their application would benefit a disadvantaged community. EPA is defining disadvantaged community as one that meets at least one of the following criteria:  

1. A geographically defined community designated as disadvantaged on the EPA IRA Disadvantaged Communities Map. The map combines multiple datasets (including CEJST and EJScreen) that determine whether a community is disadvantaged for the purposes of implementing programs under the IRA. All datasets are assigned values at the Census block group level.18 Instructions for how to use the map to identify disadvantaged community eligibility are below under the section titled “EPA’s IRA Disadvantaged Community Layer Availability.”

2. A community that falls into one of the following two categories:

• A farmworker community comprised of individuals with no fixed work address, who travel from their permanent residence to work in agriculture on a temporary or seasonal basis, and may relocate several times throughout the year. Applicants can demonstrate that a farmworker community is comprised of such individuals by submitting verification documentation from an authorizing governmental entity or through comparable means.  
• A Disadvantaged Unincorporated Community (DUC). For purposes of this NOFO, DUCs are generally defined as Census Designated Places20 that lack fixed legally determined geographic boundaries and have certain common characteristics and conditions (e.g., the absence of adequate permanent water, sewer services, or acceptable housing). This includes all areas defined as Colonias by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).21 Colonias that are not defined by HUD but are identifiable on the “Colonias” layer in EJScreen are also considered DUCs. DUC status can also be demonstrated through submitting localized data that represent similar characteristics. Applicants who seek funding for projects in a DUC Targeted Investment Area should demonstrate eligibility using the DUC criteria listed above. Applicants should direct questions to CCGP@epa.gov regarding verification.