Environmental and Climate Justice (ECJ) Block Grants Explained

Evergreen Action in collaboration with the Greenlining Institute released a new blog, What Are Environmental and Climate Justice (ECJ) Block Grants? The blog explains how this first-of-its-kind $3 billion federal IRA program aims to empower disadvantaged communities to determine and design their own visions of pollution reduction and clean energy investment.

While many IRA programs allow nonprofit organizations to apply or partner to receive funds, ECJ focuses on community-level project design and implementation. This means that rather than a utility, business, state, or local government making the decisions on which projects matter most, disadvantaged community members get to be the decision-makers. And, unlike other IRA programs that have a goal of providing 40 percent of program benefits to disadvantaged communities, every ECJ dollar and project is intended to provide benefits directly to disadvantaged communities across the nation.

The blog details eligibility, what types of projects can be funded, how to apply, and what ECJ program success could look like.

To learn more, check out the full blog here.