Green Guru Network

From Greenpeace volunteer in 1978, to Sustainability Coordinator for the County of Westchester, and to her current position as Managing Director of Green Guru Network Lea has been an avid proponent of sustainable issues for over 30 years. She pioneered green local social media, developed municipal and state climate action and sustainability  plans, spearheaded large scale municipal biofuel and environmentally preferred procurement programs, consults for large scale recycling and waste reduction projects, energy efficiency policy and local agriculture systems and sustanable tourisim for governments, non-profits and private entities. She was recently honored by 914Inc magazine as one of Westchester County's Most Influential Women. 

Sustainable Community Grants focus on sustainable agriculture as it affects community development, and successful proposals enhance the economic, social, and environmental position of farms and farmers. Reviewers are looking for innovative projects that clearly benefit farmers and were planned in coordination with them; they also want to see efforts that others can replicate and that are likely to bring about durable and positive institutional change.

Proposals must address certain key issues such as finance, marketing, land use, water use, enterprise development, value-added activities, or labor.

Sustainable Community Grants are primarily for agriculturally oriented agencies and nonprofits (Cooperative Extension, NRCS, state departments of agriculture, or comparable entities), and community development groups with the capacity and experience to foster sustainable agriculture enterprise development.

Grant funds can be used to pay for personnel costs, mileage, materials and supplies specific to the project, outreach, per-diem or consultant costs, and project-specific long distance, fax, and conference calls. Grant funds can also be used to cover meeting expenses and printing, postage, or outreach costs associated with hosting an event or field day. Any equipment costs must be project-specific; requests for general office equipment costs are not allowable.

Check out Partnership Grants for money to fund your sustainable farm- business project.

The deadline to apply is October 19th. For more information, visit http://nesare.org/get/sustainable-community/